Advertisement

KUALA LUMPUR (June 15): The Malaysia External Trade Development Corp (MATRADE) has introduced a Market Development Grant (MDG) guideline for online export promotions in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Under the new guideline, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) may claim certain expenses for their participation in virtual trade events to promote exports starting from July 1, 2020.

"Eligible companies can apply for a reimbursable grant for activities under two categories, namely virtual international trade fairs and virtual trade promotion missions, where business-to-business (B2B) meetings are organised," the agency said in a statement today.

Introduced in 2002, the MDG aims to assist SME exporters in promoting Malaysian products and services as well as enhance product branding in international markets.

Chief executive officer Datuk Wan Latiff Wan Musa said the pandemic has impacted the way businesses are conducted worldwide, and leveraging digital platforms has become a new normal.

He said travel restrictions imposed by many countries around the world to curb the spread of Covid-19 has expedited digitalisation of businesses for the purpose of export promotions.

"Virtual trade shows, business pitching, B2B meetings, and webinars have become alternatives to physical events, and MATRADE has organised various buyer-seller engagements via digital platforms to ensure that Malaysian companies have access to international buyers even during the travel restriction period," he said.

Wan Latiff also hopes that SMEs will actively participate in virtual business events and ensure that their presence in the international market continues to be felt to propel the nation's economic growth as Malaysia enters into economic recovery mode.

Since it was launched in 2002, the MDG has benefitted 23,457 companies.

According to a MDG survey conducted in 2019, more than 92% of SMEs believed that the programme played a significant role in their export initiatives while 89% said that the MDG had led to an increase in export sales.

Source: https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/matrade-introduces-mdg-guideline-support-exporters