Malaysia first ASEAN country to develop sport satellite account - Hannah

She said that the account is aimed at preparing an accounting system that utilises 73 Malaysian Standard Industry Codes (MSIC) to provide a more detailed and comprehensive economic picture outside of macroeconomic indicators.

"Among South East Asian countries, we are one of the first to actually venture into this so we are very excited to see the potential created in the sports industry.

"Without data, it's hard to obtain adequate budgets as sports are viewed as merely recreational but we are an industry. With detailed data for sports training and coaches, we can see the industry workforce increasing," she told reporters when met after the launch, which was also attended by KBS secretary-general Dr Nagulendran Kangayatkarasu and Chief StatisticianDatuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin.

The account will prepare statistics and date sets involving the sports industry in a comprehensive, complete and holistic manner, track contributions and returns of the sports industry, especially to the national economy and serve as a reference for policymakers, as well as provide verifiable information and data on the local sports industry, especially to stakeholders, she added.

Hannah also urged the sports industry to look at the 2022 Sports Satellite Account's Initiatl Report for 2022, this year and the upcoming years that will be prepared free of charge on the DOSM, KBS and National Youth and Sports Department's websites to see the true value of the sports industry and its contribution to the national economic development.

She pointed out that the account would instill further confidence in the industry's stakeholders.

"But what's most immediate is for me to obtain a bigger budget for KBS, as I don't want the ministry to be viewed as one that only conducts sports and youth activities.

"I also don't want us to be seen as a ministry that only spends money but can't generate income for the government, this data I believe will be a game changer for the sports industry sector," she said.

The 2022 initial report revealed that gross added value for the sports industry grew by 12.1 per cent in 2022 compared to 1.9 per cent the year before, with a total of RM19.6 billion, or 1.34 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2022.

-- BERNAMA