Advertisement

KUALA LUMPUR: Small Medium Enterprise Development Bank Malaysia Bhd (SME Bank) collaboration with the Malaysian Institute of Integrity (MII), has launched the SME Bank Organizational Anti-Corruption Plan 2020-2024 (SME Bank OACP).

SME Bank said the initiative, which supports the government's anti-corruption agenda, is a testimony of the bank's commitment to combating corruption and misconduct of integrity.

Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (MEDAC) minister Tan Seri Noh Omar said the ministry is one of the 27 government bodies responsible for ensuring that integrity and anti-corruption aspects remain as the main pillars in the distribution of funds and in organising entrepreneurial development programs.

"As the lead agency for initiative 2.4.8, which emphasises integrity and anti-corruption aspects in entrepreneurship education programs, it is MEDAC's goal to instil an anti-corruption culture starting from the highest level right down to all its agencies," he said.

SME Bank group president and chief executive officer Aria Putera Ismail said in line with the direction set out in the National Anti-Corruption Plan (NACP), SME Bank OACP has been developed based on the mandatory initiatives.

Aria said SME Bank OACP had been placed under NACP Strategy 2, which is to strengthen the efficiency of service delivery in the public sector.

"With the SME Bank OACP, SME Bank will also enhance the aspect of due diligence in the implementation of each task, especially in processing and approving of applications submitted by SME entrepreneurs.

"In addition to increasing efficiency and productivity, this good practice will also ensure that no SMEs will be left behind from getting or receiving the right assistance," he said.

Guided by this plan, SME Bank will take comprehensive actions in developing an anti-corruption management system to become a corruption-free organisation with integrity and cultivates good governance.

The five-year SME Bank OACP contains 22 action plans covering five priority areas, namely, procurement, administration, operations, integrity, and governance.

Currently, SME Bank is implementing and monitoring the initiatives embedded in the SME Bank OACP.

The bank is also actively undertaking initiatives to achieve the MS ISO 37001:2016 Anti-Corruption Management System certification, better known as ABMS.

It is expected to be obtained in the third quarter of 2022.

Source : https://www.nst.com.my/business/2021/12/754910/sme-bank-collaborates-mii-launch-anti-corruption-plan