He said government support in this matter is especially important, considering that there are over one million MSMEs, accounting for 96.9% of the business sector in Malaysia in 2023.
“We can ask them to consider how automating their businesses can increase their productivity,” he said at the Youth Economic Forum 2024 today.
Gobind said it is also crucial for the government and industry players to engage with MSMEs to raise awareness about the advantages of adopting technology and the risk of falling behind if they fail to adapt.
“The first step would be to create awareness that the technology is here, and it is going to disrupt and change things around. You don’t have much of a choice.”
Gobind highlighted the announcement that RM3.8 billion in loans from Bank Negara Malaysia would be channelled to help small and medium businesses (SMEs) automate and digitalise operations.
Another RM100 million has also been allocated for digital economy centres to support small entrepreneurs selling products online.
Gobind said he believed that once firms in a certain area began to automate their operations, it would have a ripple effect that encouraged neighbouring enterprises to follow suit.
“After some time, you will find that people want to keep up. They will then want to use technology to make sure that they can keep up with their competitors,” he said.
In July, Yeoh Seng Hooi, national secretary of the Small and Medium Enterprises Association Malaysia, was reported to have said that many SMEs were not tech-savvy.
Yeoh said they are currently dependent on their IT departments instead of recruiting in-house talent which can drive digitalisation.
He urged these businesses to take advantage of the matching grants or loans offered by the government to cover digitalisation costs.
The Youth Economic Forum 2024, which drew more than 1,200 aspiring professionals, encourages youth leadership and participation in the administration and governance of the country through a series of panel discussions with notable figures.
The guests include Dewan Rakyat Speaker Johari Abdul, Petronas chief sustainability officer Charlotte Wolff-Bye, CIMB Bank country head Gurdip Singh Sidhu and Sarawak Energy Bhd general manager Irwan Aman.