A total of 107 small business owners who are residents of five “Projek Perumahan Rakyat (PPR)” across the Klang Valley, received a much-needed boost today when they were awarded with grants totalling RM460, 000 through an entrepreneurship programme, spearheaded by Taylor’s Education Group and CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd.

The programme, called “Program Keusahawanan Taylor’s-CIMB Islamic” is aimed at empower families in the B40 group to uplift their earnings’ ability through up-skilling and entrepreneurship.

During the initial stage of the programme, more than 120 participants attended a series of motivational and educational workshops by successful entrepreneurs, academicians and past grant recipients, to equip them with the necessary business skills and know-how. Subsequently, those who showed significant improvements in their businesses and operations were selected to present their business plan to a judging panel comprising representatives from Taylor’s and CIMB Islamic Bank. The 107 winners were then chosen based on the soundness of their business plans.

Mohamed Rafe Haneef, CEO of CIMB Islamic Bank said, “CIMB Islamic is very pleased to partner with Taylor’s Education Group to equip these business owners with the skills, know-how and guidance, so that they are empowered to take their businesses to the next level. Corporate social responsibility is a concept that is very much aligned with Islam’s basic principle of inclusivity in society, which is to ensure that all its members are enabled to prosper and benefit from the nation’s economic progress. By boosting the entrepreneurial skills of 107 business owners, we aim to create a long-term and sustainable impact, not only economically but also socially, by inspiring and giving courage to others to start their own businesses. This will eventually result in a virtuous cycle of viable businesses being created to continuously support the nation’s growth.”

Given the success of the entrepreneurial programme, Taylor’s and CIMB Islamic Bank are planning to collaborate in the second phase of the programme, scheduled to be rolled out in 2019. The second phase, known as “Program Keusahawanan 2.0” will see the creation of “Program Keusahawanan Universiti”, “Program Keusahawanan Marketplace”, and “Program Keusahawanan Digital” as a platform for the entrepreneurs to continuously learn and link to business opportunities.

“We are very happy to see how the programme has grown and successfully uplifted the lives of many of the PPR residents. We are committed to continue organising the programme and I’m confident that we will be able to see the creation of more successful entrepreneurs in the coming years,” said the Group Chief Executive Officer of Taylor’s Education Group, Dato’ Loy Teik Ngan.

“Program Keusahawanan Taylor’s-CIMB Islamic” was initiated in 2017 where 13 small business owners from PPR Sri Pantai were awarded with grants totaling RM47, 000. To date, 10 of the 13 enabled business owners have improved their business revenue by 30% since the completion of the programme.

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