He said if Yangon were to implement the ban, it would not have an impact on the country’s manufacturing sector as Myanmar was not a major source of foreign labour for Malaysia.

“Malaysia’s main source of labour comes from Bangladesh, Indonesia and Cambodia,” he told reporters after closing the Koperasi Bela Rakyat Malaysia (Kobera) convention at Bukit Merah Laketown Resort here today.

On Monday, the Myanmar Ministry of Immigration announced that licenses would no longer be issued to its citizens seeking employment in Malaysia.

Yesterday, Human Resources Minister Richard Riot Jaem said the ministry had not received any official notification from the Myanmar government prohibiting its citizens from working in Malaysia.

In another development, Hamzah, who is also Larut Member of Parliament urged cooperatives in the country to fully utilise online businesses to expand their marketing network.

“Cooperative members should also be trained to be internet savvy to enable them to market their products.

“Some cooperatives do not have any products, yet they are able to establish online businesses to create products,” he said.

When asked about Kobera, Hamzah said there were 300 cooperatives nationwide at present, operating since 2008, but that only 151 remained active.