Lulu Hypermarket To Buy USD100 Mln Worth Of MARA Entrepreneurs’ Halal Products – Ahmad Zahid

KUALA LUMPUR, May 4 (Bernama) -- Global retail chain Lulu Hypermarket has expressed its commitment to purchase and market halal products from Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) entrepreneurs worth USD100 million (approximately RM470 million) for the international market beginning July 1.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the commitment was conveyed personally by the owner of the retail chain, Yusuff Ali, during a meeting with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last week.

Ahmad Zahid said he has instructed MARA’s top management to immediately coordinate products from its guided entrepreneurs to meet global market demand, particularly in the Middle East through the hypermarket’s network.

“I told him (Yusuff Ali) in front of the Prime Minister, do not look left or right, you must work with MARA to purchase these halal products for the global market.

“He wants to proceed starting July 1 this year to market these products,” he said when speaking at the launch of the MARA Halal Ecosystem here today.

Ahmad Zahid, who is also Rural and Regional Development Minister, added that following the vast market opportunities, he has set a higher target for MARA’s international halal sales potential to exceed RM1 billion by next year.

He said the target is realistic as MARA entrepreneurs have already demonstrated their capability by recording potential sales transactions amounting to RM819 million on international platforms this year.

“If we are able to achieve RM819 million this year, I want MARA to surpass the RM1 billion mark in potential sales value in the international market next year. At the same time, I am targeting at least 300 more entrepreneurs to obtain halal certification this year,” he said.

Earlier, he said the launch of the MARA Halal Ecosystem aims to establish a comprehensive value chain encompassing training, certification, financing and infrastructure to ensure Bumiputera entrepreneurs not only participate but also lead the global halal market.

To further strengthen the ecosystem, Ahmad Zahid also announced a target to produce an additional 30 Halal Executives and 30 Internal Halal Auditors among MARA officers to provide more efficient technical guidance to entrepreneurs.

At the event, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) exchange took place between MARA and Maybank Islamic Berhad to enhance cooperation in capacity building for entrepreneurs, halal industry development, access to financing and market expansion.

In addition, a Letter of Intent (LOI) was presented to the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) to strengthen training, certification and halal competency development among entrepreneurs and MARA training institutions.

-- BERNAMA