KUCHING: The need for innovation is essential for businesses to stay competitive and relevant, said Tabung Ekonomi Gagasan Anak Sarawak (TEGAS) board of trustee member, Dennis Ngau.
He said companies that utilise innovative approaches and techniques can create incredible new products and services, understand new market opportunities and trends, and solve existing problems with better solutions.
“As you may know, businesses founded by entrepreneurs are the pearls of our economy, contributing to the gross domestic product (GDP) and creating employment opportunities for others.
“The Sarawak government has long recognised this and has worked hard to support and encourage local entrepreneurs.
“Initiatives undertaken by the state government through TEGAS include setting up the TEGAS Digital Village and Digital Innovation Hubs in Kuching, Bintulu, and Miri, facilitating access to market, talent and funding for startups and social enterprises, and providing capacity building and accelerator programmes to accelerate their business growth,” he said.
He was speaking at the launching of the R.A.I.S.E Innovation Masterclass at Tegas Digital Village on Thursday (June 16).
Dennis, who is also Telang Usan assemblyman said the flagship programme of R.A.I.S.E is also one of the ways in which the state contributes to the digital innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.
“As you may know, R.A.I.S.E is a masterclass that aims to provide practical and insightful handles of the 10 pillars in an innovation ecosystem to inspire and equip entrepreneurs in their innovation journey.
“This masterclass also includes an on-the-spot application session of the tools along with a feedback session so the participants may walk away with a tangible innovation framework for their business. After this masterclass, entrepreneurs will have full confidence in creating the innovation results they want,” he pointed out.
He also said that Sarawak has always encouraged private sector companies to partner the state in driving initiatives that benefit communities – R.A.I.S.E is a great example of a public-private partnership.
“This is truly a partnership that we at TEGAS appreciate, as it allows for our budding entrepreneurs to gain experiences and knowledge from a multitude of sources,” he added.
The Innovation Masterclass is organised by Cube Innovation (iCube) and Global Entrepreneur Xchange (GEX) in partnership with TEGAS Digital Village, in conjunction with International Digital Economy Conference Sarawak (IDECS) 2022.
