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Sabah needs more Federal help: Phoong
Published on: Saturday, September 16, 2023
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Phoong emphasised that establishing the Sabah Entrepreneurship Development Coordination Committee is not an easy task, as it involves communication and cooperation between the federal and state government agencies.
Kota Kinabalu: The Federal Government must provide more assistance to Sabah and work together with the State Government to add value to businesses in the State, said Industrial Development and Entrepreneurship Minister Phoong Jin Zhe.
He said this to Federal Entrepreneur, Development and Cooperatives Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick during a meeting, here, recently.
The assistance, he said, will give the business community the opportunity to connect with the peninsula and international markets, thereby boosting Sabah’s exports.
“Relying solely on the financial assistance provided by the Sabah government is insufficient for the development of Sabah businesses,” he said.
He hopes that the Federal Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will focus on the development of Sabah’s business sector in the upcoming budget, bringing good news for Sabah businesses.
“I have had numerous discussions with Ewon about the need for the Federal Government to increase funding for the development of Sabah businesses, and Ewon is highly supportive of this.
“We are now brainstorming together on how to secure more significant assistance for Sabah businesses in next year’s budget so that more Sabah businesses can benefit from it.
“Recently, the Sabah government has agreed to establish the Sabah Entrepreneurship Development Coordination Committee (JPPKNS) to assist the Sabah government in coordinating current business development plans and addressing issues related to business development in Sabah.
“This committee is one of the policies actively promoted by Datuk Ewon Benedick, and we are expected to hold our first meeting in October to start serving and assisting the Sabah government in coordinating Sabah business development matters.”
Phoong emphasised that establishing the Sabah Entrepreneurship Development Coordination Committee is not an easy task, as it involves communication and cooperation between the federal and state government agencies.
However, he believes that working together with Ewon to lead this coordination committee will greatly enhance efforts to promote Sabah business development.
Both parties share the goal of helping Sabah to leapfrog with the development progress of other states and seek more opportunities for Sabah.
Phoong also pointed out that promoting Sabah business development cannot rely solely on government initiatives, private enterprises must cooperate fully with the government to uncover more opportunities in the Sabah business sector.
The Federal Entrepreneur, Development and Cooperatives Ministry has already implemented several policies and activities beneficial to Sabah business development.
However, it is regrettable that Sabah’s local businesses often miss out on participating and expanding due to a lack of timely information about these policies and activities.
“I understand that the Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development Ministry does not have a dedicated unit in Sabah to promote the policies and activities it implements.
“Therefore, I have instructed the my ministry to provide the necessary assistance and coordination to the Ministry in future.
“This will make my ministry one of the channels for connecting with Sabah businesses and help promote the policies and activities implemented by the federal government so that Sabah businesses can more easily access this information and benefit from it.”
Phoong said that he will continue to maintain close cooperation with Ewon and work together to urge the Federal Government to allocate more funding for Sabah business development in the upcoming budget.
“This will enable both parties to provide more financial assistance to Sabah’s local businesses, enhance their competitiveness, and seek more development opportunities for Sabah, ensuring that Sabah keeps pace with the development of other states,” he said.
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