Kuala lumpur: More than 4,800 entrepreneurs have been developed by the Community Development Department (KEMAS) through the Quick Win programme since 2017, demonstrating that skills training can create economic opportunities for rural communities, according to a senior KEMAS official.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, KEMAS Skills Education Division director Dr. Faridah Mat said the programme not only provided training and certification, but also guided participants in developing the skills they acquired into sources of income to support themselves and their families. She noted that KEMAS provided free training in five main areas - sewing, personal grooming, cooking, computers, and handicrafts - particularly for rural communities and low-income groups, with a pathway towards the Malaysian Skills Certificate (SKM) Level Three.
Dr. Faridah emphasized that the main objective is not merely to provide training and certificates, but to ensure that participants are able to generate income. "We guide them from the training stage through to packaging, labelling, marketing, and entrepreneurship management," she said. She shared these insights after the closing ceremony of the 2026 KEMAS Kelantan Skills Day, officiated by South Kelantan Development Authority (Kesedar) chairman Datuk Zawawi Othman.
Faridah highlighted that throughout the implementation of the 12th Malaysia Plan from 2021 to 2025, about 164,000 participants nationwide had been trained in various fields. Quick Win participants also received additional training, guidance, and equipment assistance to enable them to start income-generating activities.
Meanwhile, KEMAS Kelantan director Wan Norlee Wan Ismail stated that 173 KEMAS-supported entrepreneurs in the state are currently active in various fields, receiving support including equipment kits, labelling, training, and marketing advisory services. This support includes the Kampung Bread Project at the Kuala Balah Cooking Centre in Jeli, involving 15 participants who supply bread to seven KEMAS Tabika classes.
Wan Norlee also mentioned that two Kelantan representatives won silver medals at the World Chef Championship in Johor Bahru, demonstrating that community-level skills can open pathways to wider markets and higher-level platforms.