20
Event
@ Halal | March-April . 2022
Honouring Malaysia ’ s halal champions
HDC awards 16 organisations for contributing to Malaysia ’ s halal industry growth and announced a collaboration with AUSTRADE
BY FATIHAH MANAF
MALAYSIA ’ S halal industry remains resilient despite the restrictions that come with the pandemic . The sector ’ s success is due to the efforts made by halal players to continuously innovate , evolve and expand their footprints in the industry despite the challenging period .
To recognise their efforts , Halal Development Corporation Berhad ( HDC ), during its prestigious World Halal Excellence Awards ( WHEA 2021 ), awarded 16 organisations for their contributions to the growth of the halal industry .
The annual event , formerly known as the World Halal Conference Excellence Awards , recognises and honours exceptional contributions and achievements by halal players in the industry . More than 200 recognitions were awarded to individuals , organisations and companies .
Senior Minister of International Trade and Industry ( MITI ), Dato ’ Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali , who presented the awards to the winners , said the event was timely with Malaysia ’ s economic recovery . He hoped the recognitions received by the winners would further encourage their excellent performance .
“ This event is most timely , echoing the pace of an ongoing economic recovery underpinned by the contributions , achievements and commendable efforts of halal industry players in inducing greater product and market complexity while integrating Malaysian products globally and tapping on the great potential of this trillion-dollar industry ,” said Azmin during his official address .
HDC CEO Hairol Ariffein Sahari , in his opening address , stated the annual award ceremony provided a stage for winners from various halal industries to showcase their growth , workforce and halal innovations , as well as put the national spotlight on their success stories .
Collaboration with AUSTRADE
A highlight of WHEA 2021 was the announcement of a collaborative agreement between HDC and the Australian Trade and Investment
Rizal Yusof , Head of SME Banking , Bank Islam Berhad
Paul Sanda , Senior Trade Commissioner of AUSTRADE Malaysia and Brunei .
Commission ( Austrade ) which outlines specific initiatives to enhance cooperation between Malaysia and Australia in developing more opportunities to enhance commercial cooperation in the halal economy , manufacturing and food processing industries .
Austrade is the Australian Government ’ s trade and investment promotion agency with an international network of offices throughout the world .
It was also announced that the World Halal Business Conference Circuit 2022 would be held in Melbourne , Australia , likely to be in August , September 2022 .
According to Hairol , Malaysia and Australia have long been trading partners in the halal industry , notably in the foodservice such as dairies and meat , hospitality industries and manufacturing . The collaboration will complement Malaysia ’ s robust manufacturing sector , which will continue to play a vital role in the country ’ s economic transformation .
“ Last year , the manufacturing sector contributed about 22 per cent of the country ’ s GDP , including a growing halal manufacturing subsector , focused on food and healthcare products , said Hairol .
“ The collaboration will enhance Malaysia ’ s standing as a preferred partner in the global halal ecosystem and create increased commercial opportunities for Australian and Malaysian stakeholders in the growing halal economy .”
Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner for Austrade Malaysia and Brunei , Paul Sanda , told @ Halal that the halal economy was recognised as a significant market for Australian food and beverage products including meat and dairy with additional potential to develop strong collaborative partnerships with Malaysian firms across a range of products including beauty and skincare , vitamin supplements , pharmaceuticals , financial services and logistics .
He said WHEA 2021 showed where firms had much optimism for the future , and where Malaysia is positioning itself as a Centre of Excellence for halal processing and manufacturing .
Touching on the opportunities for both countries , he said : “ Australia is known for providing high-quality produce with high safety and food standards . This combined with Malaysia ’ s strong expertise in processing and high halal standards can give Malaysian firms that extra boost internationally , and Australian produce and ingredients can add value to the products and services .
“ We know that Malaysia , in terms of halal , is recognised as a high benchmark . So , Australian firms are learning from the expertise you have here in Malaysia . We see both countries collaboration to enter into third markets internationally as a very win-win situation .”
WHEA 2021 winners
The top two categories of WHEA 2021 include the Halal State Performance Excellence Award and Halal Best Entrepreneur SME Excellence Award .
As for organisations , the categories are the Halal International Business Excellence Award , Halal Healthcare Excellence Award , Halal Innovation Excellence Award , Halal Logistic Excellence Award , Halal Food and Beverages Excellence Award , Halal Prominent Brand Excellence Award and Halal Financial Excellence Award .
Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad ( BIMB ) and United Overseas Bank ( Malaysia ) Berhad were the Halal Financial Excellence Award winners for local and international financial institutions , respectively . The award was to honour their respected reputation in integrity , trust and good governance .
Rizal Yusof , Head of SME Banking , BIMB , said the bank ’ s responsibility in providing excellent Shariah-compliant financial services started from the beginning , even before it received recognition from HDC . He stated that BIMB worked very closely with HDC to support any halal agenda and programmes .
“ We are under the same platform , of which we have the Halal Integrated Platform ( HIP ), coming from HDC , and we have our SMExpert platform . Both platforms are integrated into one ,” said Rizal .
Those customers who are onboarded under HIP who need financing would be channelled to and supported by Bank Islam . And those customers from Bank Islam who need direction , training , and assistance in terms of halal audit , certification , advisory and consultancy will be advised by HDC .”
HDC also awarded the Halal Healthcare Excellence Award to Duopharma Biotech Berhad and The Origin Foods for their roles in trailblazing within the healthcare industry as providers of quality products and services , manufactured and distributed within the stringent requirements halal processes .