KUCHING, Apr 27: A total of 307 Sarawakian traders and entrepreneurs have applied for Sarawakku Sayang Bantuan Khas 2.0 (BKSS 2,0) which has been launched to provide financial assistance to the needy as well as Sarawak business community.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan who is also Minister of International Trade and Industry, Industrial Terminal and Entrepreneur Development (Mintred) said two weeks after the announcement made by the Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg, a total of 307 applications involving a total amount of RM12.42 million were received.
He said AgroBank had received a total of 254 application involving a total sum of RM10.24 million, while Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) received another 53 applications where the amount involved was RM2.181 million.
“The Sarawak Micro Credit Scheme (SKMS) offers two packages, namely SKMS1 Package which is specifically for B40 group, with RM10,000 maximum loan without any interest; and the SKMS2 Package which is for the M40 group where the maximum loan amount is RM50,000 and a four per cent interest which will be borne by the Sarawak government for up to three and a half years (42 months).
“Although the agreement between Mintred and the implementation agencies only materialised recently, the responses from the business community were very encouraging,” Awang Tengah said in a statement today.
Meanwhile, Awang Tengah also disclosed that the loan scheme for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) which has been implemented for the past few years had also received quite a number of applications from the SMEs.
Due to the Movement Control Order (MCO) implementation, Awang Tengah said the Mintred officers as well as those of AgroBank and SEDC officers are currently working online, but all the applications have been processed.
“I believed that in two another weeks’ times, we will received more applications from the traders and entrepreneurs throughout the state.
“All inquiries or applications can only be made online,” he added. — DayakDaily
