MSMEs that have never received the aid can register for GKP 4.0 from Thursday until the end of this month

by ASILA JALIL / pic by BERNAMA

THE additional payment of RM500 to eligible micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) under the third Prihatin Special Grant (GKP 3.0) began yesterday and will be gradually credited to registered recipients’ bank accounts.

Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz (picture) said the government is committed to supporting businesses continuously, especially MSMEs, during this difficult time.

Under GKP 3.0, the total assistance worth RM1.5 billion will provide RM1,500 to each entrepreneur to ensure business continuity.

“Of the total, RM1 billion or RM1,000 to each MSMEs have been credited to recipients’ accounts in mid-June.

“The additional payment of RM500, which was announced under Pemerkasa+ (Strategic Programme to Empower the People and Economy Plus) package, will be credited gradually starting yesterday.

“The payment, which incurs financial implications totalling to RM500 million, will be directly credited to registered bank accounts in the GKP system,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Additionally, payments for GKP 4.0, which was announced under the People’s Protections and Economic Recovery Package (Pemulih) last month, will be channelled to existing and new GKP recipients in September and November.

The payments will be RM500 each. He said MSMEs that have never received the assistance previously can register for GKP 4.0 from Thursday until the end of this month.

“In total, additional allocation that will be channelled to almost one million MSMEs under GKP since Covid-19 hit the country amounts to RM6.08 million.

“The government hopes the assistance provided for MSMEs will lessen their burden, especially for those who are still unable to operate at this moment,” said Tengku Zafrul.

Besides GKP, the minister said there are other initiatives that the segment can benefit from as a preparation for them to plan for their recovery in the coming months.

Among the assistance include financing facilities for MSMEs from Bank Simpanan Nasional, Agrobank, SME Corp, Yayasan Pembangunan Ekonomi Islam Malaysia and Tekun Nasional which totalled to RM2.9 billion.

He added that Bank Negara Malaysia also provides financing of RM8.6 billion for the industry players where the amount includes additional allocation of RM2 billion via Pemerkasa+ package and another RM2 billion injection from Pemulih.

“In addition to GKP 4.0, the availability of financing and other assistance are intended to meet the financing needs of SMEs and MSMEs to support their growth, in line with the economic recovery outlined in the National Recovery Plan (NRP).

“This proves the government’s determination and continuous efforts in helping businesses to survive to contribute to the country’s economic growth,” he added.

Last month, Putrajaya outlined four stages under the NRP spanning over the next six months, which focus on the gradual reopening of all economic sectors when daily infection toll in the country hits below 500.

The Phase 1 of the NRP, which was supposed to end on June 28, was extended indefinitely as the number of daily positive cases are still above 4,000. Seven states have moved to Phase 2, namely Perak, Perlis, Pahang, Terengganu, Pahang, Penang and Sabah.