Kuala lumpur: Malaysia’s Takaful industry has united to provide iTEKAD protection to vulnerable communities, marking a significant milestone in the nation’s social finance journey and reinforcing its leadership in Islamic finance.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA) announced that the programme was launched by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Governor Datuk Seri Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour at the Global Islamic Finance Forum (GIFF) 2025. The initiative received an allocation of RM5 million as a matching grant under Budget 2025.
MTA stated that the initiative further expands the iTEKAD umbrella programme, which was first introduced in 2020. The expansion includes a risk protection component designed to safeguard both lives and livelihoods.
The iTEKAD Protection Programme aims to deliver holistic and inclusive social finance solutions. By extending protection to microentrepreneurs, goods delivery personnel, and participants of Inisiatif Pendapatan Rakyat (IPR), the programme seeks to strengthen the financial resilience of vulnerable communities, enabling them to manage risks better and respond effectively to unforeseen challenges.
The MTA highlighted that Prudential BSN Takaful Bhd, Etiqa Family Takaful Bhd, Takaful Ikhlas Family Bhd, and Great Eastern Takaful Bhd are the first wave of participating operators piloting the iTEKAD Protection initiatives. These initiatives prioritize the wellness and financial resilience of vulnerable segments.
The Takaful industry is leveraging strategic collaborations with implementation partners to effectively roll out and scale the iTEKAD Protection programme within the broader ecosystem. By collaborating with banks, training providers, and state religious authorities, the initiative embodies a whole-of-ecosystem approach that drives unified efforts toward socio-economic empowerment.
MTA encourages wider participation from Takaful operators and implementation partners to deepen iTEKAD’s impact and strengthen interlinkages across the financial landscape. Fully aligned with the Hijrah27 Transformation Plan, the initiative supports measurable outcomes such as closing the protection gap, increasing Takaful take-up among microentrepreneurs and gig workers, and advancing blended finance models for micro, small and medium enterprises.
By focusing on these tangible results, iTEKAD Protection aims to strengthen financial resilience, widen access to protection, and accelerate the growth of inclusive social finance in Malaysia. MTA chief executive officer Mohd Radzuan Mohamed emphasized that this initiative reflects the Takaful industry’s purpose-driven mission, noting that with strong support from operators, the industry is collectively ensuring that protection is not a privilege but a right for all Malaysians.