PUTRAJAYA: The newly launched IKONDESA platform will serve as a strategic market access channel for rural products created by entrepreneurs under the Ministry of Rural and Regional Development and its agencies.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi described IKONDESA as a driver of change in empowering rural micro, small and medium enterprises beyond local market limitations.
“We created IKONDESA as a game changer and we must provide a platform for products from rural areas to be sold to tourists,“ he stated during the IKONDESA@Putrajaya launch ceremony.
Ahmad Zahid expressed hope that visiting tourists would appreciate the monthly changing rural products, creating new attractions for Malaysia’s tourism sector.
He encouraged rural entrepreneurs to utilise IKONDESA as a platform to expand their reach to global markets.
The Deputy Prime Minister outlined three crucial steps to ensure IKONDESA’s long-term sustainability as a proud rural legacy.
These steps include strengthening digitalization and e-commerce, enhancing brand and certification, and improving training and guidance programmes.
“IKONDESA products cannot just stop at physical shelves,“ he emphasised regarding the digital expansion strategy.
Ahmad Zahid stressed that rural products must be recognised for quality, trusted for certification, and appreciated for their unique characteristics.
He described IKONDESA as both a business space and a development centre offering coaching, business clinics, and ongoing guidance in marketing and financial management.
The inaugural IKONDESA@Putrajaya sales centre represents the first operational outlet under this new initiative.
Ahmad Zahid expressed confidence that it would become a new landmark showcasing rural culture, heritage, and creativity beyond mere product sales.
The centre will feature monthly state-themed promotions beginning with Perak this month, rotating products and entrepreneurs regularly.
IKONDESA@Putrajaya presents three main clusters covering handicrafts, lifestyle products, and food and beverages in an exclusive administrative heart location.
This hybrid sales concept blends mini-cafe elements with exhibitions of exclusive village products across multiple categories.
Special order services for corporate souvenirs and bulk handicrafts cater to individual, corporate, institutional, and government agency demands.
Thirty rural entrepreneurs have been initially placed at the centre, with four state-themed promotion series planned through December 2025.
RISDA Agri Food Industries Sdn Bhd has been appointed official operator, managing administration, promotion, entrepreneurship development, and marketing aspects. – Bernama
