KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Entrepreneurship Development and Cooperatives (KUSKOP) aims to channel the entire Prosperity Empowerment and A New Normal for Indian Woman (PENN) Fund allocation of RM50 million provided to Sahabat Usahawan India Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM) by early next year.
Deputy Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Datuk Seri R. Ramanan said as of Sept 30, RM22.715 million had been disbursed to 2,644 Indian women who became AIM Entrepreneur Friends since PENN was launched on Apr 13.
“We will see until October, after six months, it (disbursement of funds) is on target and we think that at the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025 we will use up this fund,“ he told reporters after attending the PENN Special Fund Briefing and Handover Ceremony here today.
He said there was an increase in the trend of applications and approvals for the fund, with Perak recording the most recipients, 818, followed by Selangor (535) and Pahang (292).
“Therefore, I would like to call on more Indian women, especially young women, and university graduates who have not yet found a job, to enter the field of entrepreneurship,“ he said.
He added that KUSKOP and other agencies provided opportunities, training and funding schemes for those interested.
Ramanan also praised AIM’s achievements, stating that the agency had removed over 4 million household heads from the shackles of poverty and maintained a Non-Performing Loan (NPL) percentage of 0.09 per cent last year.
The ceremony was also attended by AIM managing director Datuk Mohamed Shamir Abdul Aziz and Indian community leaders as well as 60 Indian AIM Entrepreneur Friends from AIM Region Selangor and Kuala Lumpur.
