Its managing director, local operating partner, and the president of Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) Malaysia, Azmir Jaafar said currently, it has 370 restaurants nationwide, with 32 new restaurants opened last year.
“This is the vision of McDonald’s Malaysia, and we will do our best to ensure that it becomes a reality. In addition to focussing on locations in major cities. McDonald’s is actively seeking opportunities to open our restaurants in suburban or rural areas.
“This is to provide easy access to our customers and broader job opportunities for the local community,” he said during the opening ceremony of the McDonald’s drive-thru in Rembau, officiated by the state non-Islamic affairs and industry committee chairman, Teo Kok Seong, today.
Azmir said there are currently 20 McDonald’s fast-food restaurants in Negeri Sembilan, and this year, three more restaurants are expected to open in Gemas, Rasah, and Mambau to meet customer’s demands.
He explained that one McDonald’s restaurant provides 50 to 100 job opportunities for the local residents, not including vendors or local contractors involved in the construction or maintenance of the restaurant.
He clarified that the opening of new restaurants also directly creates opportunities for local people to learn new skills, thereby improving their economic status.
Minimising the impact of boycott
At the same time, Azmir added that despite the significant challenges faced by McDonald’s Malaysia due to the ongoing boycott, they will continue to make every effort to provide the best assistance possible to those in need through various community activities.
The multinational fast-food chain also contributed the business tithe (zakat) payment to the Negeri Sembilan State Islamic Religious Council (MAINS), totalling RM110,000 in 2023 for distribution to the asnaf (deserving recipients) in the state. Up to now, a total of RM651,000 in business zakat has been paid to Negeri Sembilan.
“McDonald’s Malaysia began paying zakat in 2017 when it was taken over by Lionhorn Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of the Reza Group from Saudi Arabia, making McDonald’s Malaysia a company fully owned by Muslims.
“When talking about our responsibility as Muslims, today we cannot avoid discussing the conflict happening in Palestine. I express our support to those affected in Gaza through a contribution of RM1 million to the Palestinian Humanitarian Fund under the Prime Minister’s Department recently.”
He added that in addition to this, McDonald’s staff throughout Malaysia also took the initiative to independently raise an additional RM100,000, donated to MyCARE to assist the people of Palestine.