ALOR SETAR, Oct 3 — Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) has spent about RM70 million through the MARA Integrated Smart Auto (MISA) initiative to help entrepreneurs in the automotive field expand their enterprises since it was first introduced in 2013.
Rural Development Minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid said so far, 48 automotive entrepreneurs nationwide had benefited from the programme, which offered a maximum funding limit of RM1 million.
“MARA’s complete ecosystem in developing the automotive industry starts with technical education and vocational training (TVET), which provides automotive programmes at various levels up to the provision of entrepreneurship facilities, training, financing assistance and advisory services.
“In fact, a special financing scheme for automotive entrepreneurs through MISA is also provided specifically for entrepreneurs to help them expand their businesses and upgrade their workshops,” he told reporters after officiating Mazlan and Hashimah Business Service Centre (PMH) Sdn Bhd here today.
He said several special programmes were also developed to further strengthen entrepreneurs in the field, including the MARA-PETRONAS Automotive Entrepreneur Development (PUMP) programme, the Auto Glass Expert (AGE) special programme and various entrepreneurship programmes targeting the expansion of the automotive business and industry.
Mahdzir said the automotive sector was one of the TVET fields that received encouraging response, focusing on two main elements, namely to produce a professional and skilled workforce, and to guide individuals who were interested in becoming automotive entrepreneurs.
“PMH Sdn Bhd is one example of a successful automotive entrepreneur guided by MARA, where it is the result of the perseverance of a young man who is a former student of Institut Kemahiran MARA (IKM) who is always looking for space and opportunities to improve the performance of this service centre.
“He (Mohd Izwan Mazlan) is only 36 years old and is the second generation of this company and managed to upgrade a regular car repair workshop to the level of a premium car service centre comparable to that of a well-known car service company,” he said.
He said MARA provided various assistance including for the purchase of equipment, working capital, workshop renovation as well as providing a series of business improvement training.
He added that MARA would continue to be committed to helping entrepreneurs who were interested in expanding their respective businesses to be more competitive.
