KOTA KINABALU, Aug 22 (Bernama) -- The nationwide halal centric outreach program, Halal Malaysia 2019 - Sabah was held from 19 to 22 August 2019 in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, aims to benefit local entrepreneurs who are seeking business opportunities in the growing halal market ended today with a renewed . Organized by Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC), an agency under the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MEA) in collaboration with the Department of Standards Malaysia (Standards Malaysia) and Credit Guarantee Corporation Malaysia Berhad (CGC), Halal Malaysia 2019 - Sabah is hoped will elevate Sabah’s industry players to be halal champions.
 
The Assistant Minister of Trade and Industry, Yang Berhormat Azhar bin Datuk Hj Matussin, officiated the Launching Ceremony of Halal Malaysia 2019 – Sabah earlier on 19 August 2019 in attendance of  YBhg. Dato’ Mahmud Abbas, Chairman of Halal Development Corporation and  YBhg. Datuk Mohd Zamree Mohd Ishak, President / Chief Executive Officer of CGC and as well as Sabah State Head of Agencies .
 
This outreach program was also supported by Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority  (SEDIA), University Malaysia Sabah and Jabatan Pendidikan Negeri Sabah.
 
More than 1200 participants comprising of existing and potential halal entrepreneurs, undergraduates and students participate in the program series held throughout the months of August to September focusing on identified target audiences.
 
Halal Malaysia program’s main goals are to increase level of halal awareness and to encourage halal business participations. Through this platform, local entrepreneurs will be updated on the latest halal business market intelligence, Islamic banking products and financing, compliances related to Halal Certification and insights on Halal Standards development and conformities. 
 
“Local entrepreneurs should not miss this opportunity as the Government is committed to provide the channel and platforms for them to be Halal Malaysia champions. However, they must remain abreast of current changes and the challenges within the global halal market environment. Sabah has the advantage as the state is known as one of the top tourist destinations and agro-based sector such as palm oil based products. It is also in our interest to facilitate the needs of halal entrepreneurs through these knowledge sharing and networking sessions as it could create an inclusive halal business environment.
 
“At the end of the day, we are certain that the halal industry can increase productivity, elevate the socio-economic well-being of the people and contribute towards national growth, as a whole, through halal trade, investment and employment.” said YB. Azhar Datuk Hj Matussin.
 
According to Dato’ Mahmud Abbas, Chairman of Halal Development Corporation, “As at December 2018, 204 companies from Sabah have received halal certification as compared to 215 companies in 2017. Currently, a total of 8,120 halal certified companies nationwide. HDC is working closely with the relevant agencies both in government and private sectors to look into the decrease and propose mitigation plans on how to encourage more halal businesses in Sabah as we do not want Sabah to miss this uprising market opportunities”. 
 
Sabah State Government also owns several Halal Designated Industrial Parks (HALMAS) namely Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP), and POIC Lahad Datu. HALMAS is an accreditation given to Halal Park operators who have successfully complied with the requirements and guidelines stipulated under the HDC designated Halal Park Development. It is also a mark of excellence for parks that have noteworthy qualities; namely production of Halal products with the highest quality, integrity and safety.
 
With the HALMAS status, operators, industry players and logistics service providers will be able to enjoy incentives to help existing and would be players in the Halal industry.
 
“Sabah is also a top travel destination in Malaysia and has great potential in the halal industry especially in the Muslim-friendly tourism sector where there are 590 hotels in the state and a total of 36 hotels have obtained Halal certificates in 2018. If the number of Halal-certified hotels increases, more foreign tourists, especially from Muslim countries, are more likely to visit Sabah.
 
“In addition, the State of Sabah is known as a producer of coconut-based products, which is one of the main sources of Halal Ingredients. Therefore, I would like to urge the locals to continue to explore halal industry, to enable us to be more competitive and to increase the contribution of the halal industry to the growth of the local economy.” added Mahmud.
 
The three-day program ended today has successfully gathered almost 200 SMEs for Halal Malaysia Seminar and 65 companies attended Halal Best Practices two-day training program.  Awareness on halal lifestyle was also introduce at early age where more than 300 students from Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Tanjung Aru 2 attended the half day interactive Halal Cilik. Empowerment of Youth – Halal Talent program series will continue later this month and in September for students of University Malaysia Sabah.
 
Mahmud concluded, “We were most appreciative with the support given by all parties involved and with this experience we continue to mobilize our resources and demonstrate the message of Halal entrepreneurial development.”  

ABOUT HALAL INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION SDN BHD (HDC)

Halal Means Business

The Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC) was established on 18 September 2006 with the express objective of coordinating the overall development of the Halal industry in Malaysia for both the domestic and international markets. HDC is an agency under the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MEA).

HDC is Malaysia's holistic response to the worldwide demand for better quality products and services as consumers gain confidence in the Halal process. Its key thrusts are to grow and advance the development of Halal standards; facilitate capacity- building for halal products and services; and promote growth and participation of Malaysian companies in the multi-trillion dollar global halal market and industry. Today, there is an estimated population of 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide. The global halal market is currently estimated at USD2.3 trillion covering both food and non-food sectors.

In its effort to serve as an international hub for the halal industry, HDC provides manufacturers, distributors, retailers, entrepreneurs, researchers and investors with comprehensive assistance to penetrate and serve a growing global halal market through the adoption of the Malaysian experience and expertise in food and non-food sectors. For more information, please visit HDC at - www.hdcglobal.com.

NEWS RELEASE is prepared and issued by Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC)

Source: Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC)

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name: Norsida Ahmad
HDC PR & Media
Tel: +6012 3249703
Email: norsida.ahmad@hdcglobal.com

--BERNAMA