KUCHING: The 2021 Budget is a balance between meeting the citizens’ demands and stimulating the economy, said Habitat for Indigenous and Urban Programme (Hidup) president George Young Si Ricord.
“As the backbone of the economy, the challenges faced by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) during the Covid-19 pandemic signifies the need for adoption and adaptation of new business approaches,” he said.
He said as companies’ income tax is the major contributor to total revenue and the government predicted a take of RM64.60 billion in 2021, the government must continue to support SMEs to prosper in the new environment, including the potential for going global.
George said while the total of RM4.6 billion to boost and empower Bumiputera entrepreneurs is commendable to revive the economic landscape, he said that with these incentives it is hoped that SMEs would transform and grow their operations to become more competitive.
“The allocation of RM1 billion for technology and high value investment incentive packages and the RM500 million High Technology Fund provided by Bank Negara to support high-tech and innovative sector companies to help them drive their business forward is highly lauded,” he said.
