KUCHING: The task force tasked with business permit and licence registration will continue to be deployed across the state to assist unlicensed women and youth entrepreneurs.
Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah said the ministry aimed to register 100 entrepreneurs here.
“Through this initiative, we are targeting 50 applications from Dalat and Subis districts to be approved respectively,” she said, when delivered her speech at the Business Licensing Programme for Sarawak Women Entrepreneurs (#PUWaS) at Wisma Wanita here yesterday.
She said this was necessary as these unregistered small and medium enterprises (SMEs), micro businesses, home-based, including online business, were unable to apply for the Covid-19 special financial assistance given by the federal and state governments such as Bantuan Prihatin Nasional Stimulus Package and Sarawakku Sayang Assistance Package Aid (BKSS).
“Based on a survey conducted by the Sarawak Women and Family Development (JWKS), we acknowledge that not all entrepreneurs are able to benefit from this financial aid.
“And this issue is not new. For example, as of June 11, 2020, a total of 903 applications for the BKSS were received from Dalat.
“However, out of this, only 88 applications (9.7 percent) were approved,” she said.
Urging all women entrepreneurs to register and obtain licence for their business, Fatimah added that the programme would be conducted by the task force.
“The first programme today, we will start off with 100 entrepreneurs in Kuching. And we will continue to conduct this programme by going around across the state.”
The task force, she added, would involve various agencies, including JWKS, Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Industrial Terminal and Entrepreneur Development Sarawak, Sarawak Multimedia Authority, Ministry of Local Government and Housing, Sarawak Economic Development Corporation, IRB, Centre of Technical Excellence Sarawak, Kuching North City Commission, local authorities and district officers.
