Kuala Lumpur: The micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Malaysia have not yet reached the economic contribution goals outlined in the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP), as stated by Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development Minister Datuk Ewon Benedick. He emphasized the need for MSMEs to contribute 41 percent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 15 percent to total exports by 2025.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the GDP contribution of MSMEs in 2023 showed a 5 percent growth, accounting for 39.1 percent or RM613.1 billion of the national GDP, while their export contribution increased to 12.2 percent or RM152.2 billion. Meanwhile, cooperatives generated RM64.6 billion in revenue and held assets valued at RM165.9 billion by the end of 2023. Despite these figures, Ewon noted that the achievements still fall short of the targets.
Ewon announced that the ministry is devising strategic measures to enhance the impact on the entrepreneurial sector, given the current levels of achievement. He mentioned that while cooperatives met the RM60 billion revenue target ahead of schedule, maintaining and further improving this achievement presents a more significant challenge.
He highlighted that the Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development Ministry (KUSKOP) aims to achieve key targets by the end of the 12MP. These targets include boosting GDP growth, exports, MSME productivity, and cooperative revenues.
During the Majlis Amanat Menteri Pembangunan Usahawan dan Koperasi 2025 event, Ewon launched the ministry’s 2025 Strategic Plan document, themed ‘Transformation for Excellence.’ The plan focuses on three main objectives: creating a supportive ecosystem to accelerate growth and ensuring stability for the nation’s entrepreneurial sector.
Ewon outlined 21 strategies, five enablers, and 196 activities, including 20 flagship programs and six key performance indicators (KPIs) under the plan. These initiatives cover policy formulation, governance, capacity development, access to financing, and market accessibility, benefiting 508,498 entrepreneurs and potential entrepreneurs as well as cooperatives.
At a subsequent press conference, Ewon disclosed that 333,653 entrepreneurs and cooperatives received financing assistance last year, with microcredit financing, entrepreneurship grants, and soft loans totaling RM9.58 billion in 2022 and RM9.54 billion in 2023. He stated that KUSKOP aims to provide more significant financing this year, particularly in light of Malaysia’s ASEAN chairmanship-related events.
Ewon also emphasized the need to scale up small businesses to medium-sized ones, targeting a 5 percent business growth by 2027. He acknowledged the efforts of financing agencies under his ministry, such as TEKUN Nasional and Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM), in reducing their non-performing loan (NPL) rates.
TEKUN reduced its NPL rate from over 12 percent to 9.8 percent, while AIM achieved its best-ever performance with an NPL rate of just 0.02 percent in 2024. Ewon noted that KUSKOP conducted 204 programs last year, benefiting almost 800,000 MSME entrepreneurs, cooperatives, social enterprises, hawkers, small traders, and informal entrepreneurs.