Govt provides various funds to help people venture into entrepreneurship: Najib

The government has been providing financial aid to low-income earners to venture into entrepreneurship to expand their source of income.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the financial aid includes the funds managed by Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara), National Entrepreneurial Group Economic Fund (Tekun Nasional), Bumiputera Entrepreneurs Startup Scheme (SUPERB), Poverty Eradication Programme (1AZAM) and the Perbadanan Usahawan Nasional Berhad (PUNB).

"The funds are given in the forms of grants, low-interest loans and even loans with repayment period to begin after two years," he said in his latest blog posting at NajibRazak.com.

Najib said entrepreneurship was also a very beneficial industry due to the potential of getting multiple-fold income compared to ordinary career.

However, he said not many people had the courage and confidence to venture into the industry for fear of its risks, and lack of capital to begin with.

For those who were interested to venture into business but worried about the risks, the prime minister said skills training would also be provided to them along with the funds.

"In fact, one of the ways to reduce business risk is by seeking knowledge. The more knowledge we have in entrepreneurship and business management, the lower the possibility for us to make mistake," he added.