E-wallet among licensing requirements for market traders - Rosol

PUTRAJAYA: The use of the e-wallet payment method will become one of the requirements for the renewal of licences by traders at farmers' markets and public markets here soon, said deputy minister Datuk Rosol Wahid.

The Putrajaya Corporation would impose the condition in the near future to encourage traders to switch to digitalisation, the Deputy Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister said.

According to him, this is part of the Retail Digitalisation Initiative (ReDI) framework being implemented in two phases, with the first phase involving Putrajaya and the second phase going nationwide in May.

ReDI is a collaboration between the ministry and several government and private agencies, including Maybank and Touch 'n Go.

At a press conference after launching ReDI at the Pasar Tani Precinct 2 here yesterday, Rosol said the ministry's survey found that the level of e-wallet acceptance among traders at farmers' markets and public markets had reached 50 per cent in Putrajaya.

"We believe with the 'onboarding' efforts, Putrajaya will reach more than 90 per cent by the end of this year," he said.

Rosol said the ministry was targeting 12,844 traders at 306 farmers' markets and public markets nationwide to use the e-wallet facility, in line with the new digitalisation era in business.

He welcomed strategic cooperation between the ministry, the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) and local authorities to help realise this objective.

"This year's target is to ensure 100 farmers' markets and public markets provide the e-wallet facility," he added.

-- BERNAMA