By Rosli Mansor Ahmad Razali
IPOH: The Perak Government is targeting an increase of up to RM350 million in annual revenue for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) by the fourth year through a digital empowerment programme leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
The target is among the key outcomes of two strategic memoranda of understanding (MOUs) involving Digital Perak Corporation Holdings (Digital Perak) with CyberSecurity Malaysia (CSM) and Novus Transact (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, signed in conjunction with the Perak State Innovation Convention 2026 at Stadium Indera Mulia here today.
State Communications, Multimedia and NGO Committee chairman YB Mohd Azlan Helmi said both collaborations focused on strengthening cybersecurity and driving MSME growth through the adoption of digital technology.
He said the initiatives align with the Perak Sejahtera 2030 aspiration and the Perak Digital Economy Action Plan 2030, aimed at ensuring technological development benefits the public sector, communities, and local businesses.
“Through the collaboration with CyberSecurity Malaysia, Digital Perak will strengthen cybersecurity and resilience through awareness programmes, training, professional certification, security assessments, as well as advisory services related to data governance and protection,” he said.
The two-year collaboration will also explore the need for a Security Operations Centre as a Service (SOCaaS), while developing cybersecurity capabilities in a more structured way.
It targets the participation of between 1,000 and 1,500 participants and 15 to 25 organisations across Perak, with an indicative programme value of around RM1.5 million.
Meanwhile, the MOU with Novus Transact (Malaysia) focuses on empowering MSMEs through the Growth-as-a-Service approach, leveraging digital technology and AI to help businesses improve productivity and expand their markets.
Under the Digital Perak MSME Growth Programme, 200 MSMEs will be selected as a pilot group before the programme is gradually expanded, with a target of reaching up to 7,000 MSMEs over four years.
Key components of the programme include expanding digital storefronts and e-commerce platforms, digital payments, productivity enhancement tools and AI-based customer support.
The programme also includes the development of the Perak MSME Growth Index, Perak MSME Digital & AI Centre of Excellence and Economic-Impact Intelligence Dashboard to measure the development and impact of the programme on MSME growth.
Based on the model developed, the programme has the potential to contribute to an increase of RM350 million in annual MSME revenue by the fourth year, while the estimated overall cost of the programme’s main three-year scope is RM9.5 million.
The two MOUs complement each other by focusing on creating a secure digital environment while ensuring that MSMEs can leverage technology to drive growth and enhance their competitiveness.
