Malaysian state stimulates digital transformation via $1.2M grant to SMEs

The Selangor Smart City and Digital Economy Convention explores current and future frameworks and solutions 

As reported by Bernama, the Selangor state government allocated MYR5 million (USD1.2 million) to SMEs via the Selangor SME Digitalisation Matching Grant, to stimulate digital transformation for economic recovery.  

Launched back in April 2021, the matching grant covers five areas of digitalisation, including e-payment system, human resource management and payroll, cloud accounting, digital marketing, and e-commerce system.  

The Selangor Information Technology & Digital Economy Corporation (Sidec) showed support to 1,100 qualified small and medium enterprises to encourage them to take the first step in digitalising their businesses. 

Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari noted that a total of 1,500 SMEs in Selangor applied for the grant.  

“Based on some success stories from this programme, many have illustrated that by utilising e-commerce, e-payment systems, and digital marketing, they have leveraged this matching grant to improve payment operations and transaction management,” Amirudin said.  

 He said this in his speech when officiating the Selangor Smart City and Digital Economy Convention as part of the Selangor International Business Summit (SIBS) 2021.  

The event is co-organised by Sidec and Investment Selangor Bhd (the state’s investment arm), themed ‘Digital Transformation Towards Economic Recovery’.  

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The convention explores strengthening and growing the Selangor SME digitalisation ecosystem in shaping existing and future smart city and digital economy frameworks and solutions.  

Industry leaders, as well as academics, SMEs, and government and private sectors were gathered at the event.