May-June . 2021 | @ Halal
Industry
05
Forward momentum amidst challenges
Malaysia records increase of RM0.2 billion in domestic direct investment in 2020
( From left to right ) Don Marzi Amad Shamsuddin ( Chairman of MISDEC ), Datuk Seri Dr Sulaiman bin Md Ali ( Chief Minister of Melaka ), Datuk Seri Dr Hasim Hasan ( Melaka State Secretary ) and Hairol Ariffein Sahari ( Halal Development Corporation CEO ).
HALAL Development Corporation Bhd ( HDC ) and the Melaka Industrial Skills Development and Entrepreneurship Centre ( MISDEC ) signed a Memorandum of Understanding ( MoU ) to expand academic cooperation in training and research . They also intend to enhance collaboration between the two parties .
HDC chief executive officer Hairol Ariffein Sahari said this cooperation was in line with the agency ’ s vision and mission to make halal the first choice in exploring business and provide solutions for business excellence in the halal market space
This effort and cooperation with MISDEC to provide the Halal Apprentice Programme ( HAP ) showed the importance of the halal industry in the new economy , he said .
“ As we know , the global halal industry is huge , with demand breaching US $ 3 trillion annually . It generates big business
Halal Food & Beverages continued to be the main contributor to Malaysia ’ s halal economy with RM17.40 billion in total value . That ’ s followed by Halal Ingredients ( RM8.83 billion ), Cosmetics & Personal Care ( RM2.67 billion ), Palm Oil Derivatives ( RM0.89 billion ), Industrial Chemicals ( RM0.47 billion ) and Halal Pharmaceuticals ( RM0.30 billion ).”
THE past year has been both unprecedented and extraordinary . Despite the widespread devastation caused by the global pandemic , several notable achievements were recorded from the overall performance of the Malaysian halal industry in 2020 , as revealed by Halal Development Corporation Berhad ( HDC ).
Malaysia recorded an increase of RM0.2 billion ( or 1.25 per cent ) in domestic direct investment into Malaysian halal parks in 2020 . It signalled the local halal industry was still growing , despite the many ongoing challenges .
To date , Malaysian halal parks have attracted a cumulative total of RM16.1 billion in investments since 2011 . Of this , RM9.5 billion ( or 59 per cent ) was a foreign direct investment ( FDI ). In comparison , RM6.6 billion ( or 41 per cent ) was a domestic direct investment ( DDI ).
A total of 295 companies operate throughout the 21 halal parks across Malaysia , with 42 companies being multinational corporations ( MNCs ). Meanwhile , 253 companies ( or 85.7 per cent ) are locally-owned corporations .
In the global arena , Malaysia emerged highest in the annual Global Islamic Economic Indicator ( GIEI ) for 2020 / 21 , its eighth year in a row . It came out tops in four out of six categories , including Halal Food , Islamic Finance , Muslim Friendly Travel , and Pharmaceutical & Cosmetics sectors .
Malaysia was also ranked second and fourth in the Media & Recreation and Modest Fashion sectors , respectively , in the annual State of the Global Islamic Economy ( SGIE ) Report produced by international strategy research and advisory firm DinarStandard .
The world ground to a halt for the most part of last year . Travel restrictions imposed limited not only the movement of people but also goods . Malaysian halal exporters had to rely on their old regional trading partners , including Singapore , Indonesia and Thailand , for support .
Based on HDC ’ s proprietary data sources and analysis for 2020 , in terms of bilateral trade , Singapore emerged as Malaysia ’ s biggest importer of halal products in 2020 . With a total export value of RM4.10 billion , the city State relegated China ’ s RM3.44 billion to the second spot . US came in third with RM1.74 billion .
The reduced halal export value also corresponds to the 19 per cent reduction in the number of Malaysian halal exporters , from 1,876 in 2019 to 1,507 in 2020 . Aside from the movement control orders ( MCOs ), this drop also corresponds to the timeline of a system upgrade for the halal certification process to facilitate online renewals and virtual submissions of supporting documents .
Halal Food & Beverages continued to be the main contributor to Malaysia ’ s halal economy with RM17.40 billion in total value . That ’ s followed by Halal Ingredients ( RM8.83 billion ), Cosmetics & Personal Care ( RM2.67 billion ), Palm Oil Derivatives ( RM0.89 billion ), Industrial Chemicals ( RM0.47 billion ) and Halal Pharmaceuticals ( RM0.30 billion ).
Hairol Ariffein Sahari , HDC ’ s chief executive officer , said : “ Although it was initially forecasted that Malaysia ’ s annual halal exports would reach an estimated RM42 billion by 2020 , it has been an exceptionally challenging year , with the volatility of global oil prices and the ongoing war on Covid-19 taking precedence .
“ Despite these uncertainties , however , the Malaysian halal industry continued to show unbridled resilience , thanks largely to its strong fundamentals . At HDC , we see that there is much headroom for growth , especially within the landscape of home-grown Malaysian exporters . We intend to further augment the Malaysian halal market share via strategic programmes amidst these challenging times .”
Hairol said HDC would strive to fulfil its primary mission to facilitate the onboarding of industry players into the halal economy and increase Malaysia ’ s total halal exports and total direct investments into Malaysian halal parks .
HDC , MISDEC tie-up will enhance Halal Apprentice Programme , certified centre in Melaka
opportunities and opens up prospects in employment value-add on talent development initiatives and offers quality jobs ,” he said recently .
The MoU was signed between Hairol Ariffein and MISDEC chairman Don Mardzi Ahmad Shamsuddin and witnessed by Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Sulaiman Md Ali .
HDC has produced more than 60,000 halal skilled workers and talents since 2007 .
This year , HDC will focus on job placements for the trained group in over 8.000 halal companies , both local and foreign , with the potential to become future employers .
“ Besides providing professional halal training , HDC also offers its expertise in facilitating industry players to move into the halal market through consultation and advisory services , business matching services and Halal Integrated Platform ,” he said .