KUALA LUMPUR, 11 October 2019 - Lazada Malaysia applauds the Government’s efforts towards developing a holistic ecosystem for all Malaysians to remain at the forefront of the digital economy. With a large number of Malaysian SMEs still in the early stages of digital maturity, we believe that the way forward is to focus on the professional development of SMEs which begins with the adoption of digital tools and channels.

Lazada also welcomes the development of infrastructure to improve connectivity and accessibility to increase the adoption of eCommerce and facilitate the transfer of goods. Initiatives such as the National Fibre Connectivity Plan (NFCP) play a huge role in the growth of eCommerce, as reliable and affordable connectivity empowers the next generation of entrepreneurs from previously unconnected areas.

Through the 2020 National Budget, the Malaysian government has reiterated its commitment to continue driving the growth of the country’s new economy and Industry Revolution 4.0, with a strong emphasis on the utilization of next-generation technology to accelerate transformation across various industries.

Red Hat is greatly encouraged by the promising use of technology in the digital banking sector and the digital transformation of Malaysian businesses, in line with efforts of having a matured digital landscape. We also applaud the Malaysian government in their commitment to providing support and grants to help businesses achieve automation and digitization, further enabling access to innovations and disruptive technologies.

The expansionary measures set out in National Budget 2020 clearly outline the government’s strategy on elevating the rakyat’s employability and financial well-being via initiatives focusing on continued investment in education, encouraging job creation and providing incentives for training, development and upskilling of the current Malaysian workforce

We commend the government for the allocation of RM20 million in grants and RM20 million from the Human Resource Development Grant to encourage working adults to sit for professional certification exams in IR4.0-related courses. This move is also bolstered by the expansion of withdrawal scope for EPF which includes members’ parents and spouse for accredited programmes in line with IR4.0.  These initiatives will provide a larger local talent pool for digital SMEs such as iMoney to recruit from and continue to grow across the region.

Malaysia’s National Budget 2020 saw a series of investments that will contribute to the growth of the tourism industry in Malaysia.

We welcome the allocation of RM1.1 billion for the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) for the Visit Malaysia 2020 campaign, and the continued focus on promoting “Malaysia Truly Asia” as part of the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030.

Belanjawan 2020 reflects the government’s ambition of driving equitable growth and a digitally connected landscape for mutual prosperity. We applaud their commitment to accelerate Malaysia’s transition to 5G through the ‘5G Ecosystem Development Grant’ worth RM50 million’.

Connectivity is key to ensuring a seamless transition to 5G and deploying shared infrastructure is crucial in that journey. As we move towards the era of Internet-of-Things (IoT) technologies, Artificial Intelligence (AI), development of smart cities and so forth, we will need the right solutions that can cope with the increased capacity demands.

SUBANG JAYA, 4 OCTOBER 2019 – As part of its continuous commitment to bring internet access to more Malaysians, Digi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd (Digi) today announced the availability of its new All Access Unlimited Digi WiFi on demand service exclusively for Digi Customers.

The WiFi hotspots are available at more than 7,000 hotspots across Malaysia in high traffic areas including shopping malls, business centers, universities and college campuses, and tourist attractions. Digi customers will enjoy non-stop entertainment and surf the internet with speeds of up to 4Mbps from as low as RM1 per pass.

KUALA LUMPUR, 4 OCTOBER 2019 – Leading e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, Shopee struck a partnership with the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (MDTCA) to bring the national Buy Malaysian campaign online and to the Region. This move is to encourage the purchase of Malaysian-made products and help local entrepreneurs grow their businesses and thrive in a highly-competitive environment. A few key initiatives will be carried out under this collaboration:

Firstly, to ensure prominent visibility of Malaysian-made products on the e-commerce platform, Shopee has created a dedicated Buy Malaysian collection page featuring Malaysian-made products from popular local brands such as Pensonic, BeauSiti by Dato’ Sri Siti Nurhaliza, Aik Cheong, Selamat, Victoria Sloane, Kaca-Kaca, 888, Amazin’ Graze, and OldTown White Coffee. It will also receive celebrity endorsement from the Shopee Celebrity Squad whose products are also made in Malaysia including Tya Arifin, Rita Sosilawati, Nana Mahazan, Fynn Jamal, Amy Search, and Sophia Liana. On top of that, Shopee users can discover truly Malaysian items including beauty products, delicious curry paste, sambal belacan, dried anchovies and more from local traders.

Kuala Lumpur, 8 October 2019 – The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT), a leading global qualifications and professional association of vocational accountants with 130,000 members worldwide, today announces a significant training collaboration with Yayasan Peneraju Pendidikan Bumiputera (Yayasan Peneraju). This initiative aims to develop and train Bumiputera talents by providing access to structured academic, vocational and professional certification programmes.

The training collaboration is a welcomed move towards closing Malaysia’s accountancy skill gap, as it seeks to provide vocational accountancy training and education to 500 underprivileged Bumiputera youths aged 18 – 23, who have not gained qualifications higher than Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).

Mercedes-Benz expands its compact car family with two new model variants.

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia today announces the availability of two new models in its new generation compact car range, the B 200 Progressive Line and GLA 200 Style.

As many are aware, the enforcement of the e-hailing regulations will come into effect from 12 October 2019. Though announced last year, the application process for the PSV licence kick-started only in April this year. This is undoubtedly a significant task for the government agencies and our driver community, as they navigate through an unprecedented regulatory process.

Since the regulatory process began, we have been aiming for at least 150,000 of our drivers to go through the PSV process. To date, 41% of these drivers-partners are now licensed. A further 24% are currently in waiting, either for examination results or for an examination slot. A further 22% have dropped out, citing various reasons including the time and costs required to navigate the regulatory process.