Rafizi to launch ‘Ayuh Malaysia' as social enterprise platform
PETALING JAYA : Former economy minister Rafizi Ramli will launch a social enterprise platform named 'Ayuh Malaysia' on July 27, which he says was part of his plan even before his recent defeat in the PKR central leadership polls.
Rafizi said it was another way of bringing change to society and local communities, outside of politics.
He said 'Ayuh Malaysia' would operate differently from profit-oriented businesses and donation-reliant NGOs by empowering local communities to conduct economic activities that are both effective and self-sustaining.
'Social enterprises return their profits to workers and the community, unlike conventional businesses,' he said in a statement.
Rafizi said 'Ayuh Malaysia' would also serve as a one-stop platform to set up and connect social enterprises while providing them with the expertise and additional financial resources needed to operate.
It will also connect social enterprises with potential beneficiaries.
'I believe the strength of our society lies in building sustainable community structures, especially as political instability continues,' he said.
Rafizi stepped down as economy minister last month after losing the PKR deputy presidency to Nurul Izzah Anwar in May.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
30 minutes ago
- Malay Mail
Lazada Seller Summit 2025 Charts the Future of eCommerce with Innovation and Empowerment
Over 1,000 Sellers Gathered to Gain Insights on AI, Brand Differentiation and KOL Partnerships Award Winners Excellence Awards General Merchandise mobile goo General Merchandise Elegant Concept Fashion COZY_EYEWEAR Fashion SC OnlineStore Electronics SL Integrated Electronics PH CHAIN STORE FMCG CARiNG ESTORE FMCG Top Brand Awards General Merchandise Jean Perry Malaysia General Merchandise OGAWA Fashion TOMEI Fashion PVH Asia Limited Electronics Sonos Electronics Philips Official eStore FMCG Hoppi® Malaysia FMCG SC Johnson Local Brand of the Year Awards Fashion Siti Khadijah General Merchandise GAIAS Bedding & Bath Comprehensive Trust and Impact Award Social Selling KOL Elle Onni Social Selling KOL WTalent Social Selling KOL Stella Boo Social Selling KOL Vickie Siah Collective Influence Pioneers Award Social Selling KOL Fish 阿鱼 Social Selling KOL heyiamcoco Brand Marketing Excellence Award Social Selling KOL CONSMY Social Selling KOL KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA - Media OutReach Newswire – 6 August 2025 – Lazada, a leading eCommerce platform in Southeast Asia, reaffirmed its commitment to accelerating digital entrepreneurship and enabling local business success at the Lazada Seller Summit 2025. Drawing over 1,000 sellers nationwide, the summit served as a strategic platform to share insights, unveil new tools and explore the future of Malaysia's digital in its second year, the summit spotlighted Lazada's next-phase innovations, including AI-powered solutions, platform-exclusive offerings and creator-led commerce strategies. This cements the platform's role as a partner in seller growth and digital transformation. In addition to spotlighting AI-powered solutions, brand differentiation and the rise of social commerce, the event also celebrated seller excellence through dedicated award segments, recognising top-performing and high-growth sellers who have achieved outstanding success on the platform.'By equipping entrepreneurs with practical tools and structured guidance, Lazada has helped accelerate our national shift toward a more agile and future-ready economy. We look forward to more efforts by Lazada to encourage sellers, especially those in remote and non-urban areas, to come online and leverage these digital tools, in line with the vision set out in the 13th Malaysia Plan (RMK13)," said Teo Nie Ching, Deputy Minister of Communications at the event. "As a key player in digital commerce, Lazada is well-positioned to support this national agenda by collaborating with initiatives such as National Information Dissemination Center, under the Cashless Society drive. Such partnerships can help bridge the digital divide and ensure that no community is left behind as Malaysia accelerates toward an inclusive digital future."'Seller Summit 2025 reflects our ongoing investment in innovation and our strong belief in the power of local entrepreneurs to shape the future of digital trade,' said Kaya Qin, Chief Executive Officer of Lazada Malaysia. "At Lazada, we are committed to creating a more intelligent and inclusive eCommerce ecosystem - one where every seller, regardless of size or background, has access to the tools, insights and opportunities needed to grow.'Among the major announcements at the summit was the rollout of AI-powered seller tools, further underscoring Lazada's commitment to tech-driven empowerment. These innovations are designed to simplify the seller journey at every stage, from onboarding and operations to campaign execution and business growth. By automating routine tasks and delivering real-time insights, the new tools aim to help sellers 'break zero' faster and stay agile amid shifting market dynamics. Complementing these advancements was the showcase of Lazada's expanded support ecosystem, which includes strategic subsidies, advanced analytics and enhanced fulfillment solutions, giving sellers the firepower to drive conversions and scale summit also spotlighted the growing influence of creator-led commerce, with a dedicated session featuring a prominent influencer and a panel of top Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs). These leading digital voices shared actionable insights on crafting high-impact campaigns, interpreting evolving consumer behaviour and building authentic collaborations that drive meaningful engagement with today's audiences.'Winning this award is a proud moment for our team. Lazada's support ranging from AI insights to priority delivery, has helped us scale faster than we imagined,' said Mr Lee Jia Wei, Founder, GAIAS Bedding & Bath, recipient of the The Local Brand of the Year Award.'We are truly honoured to receive this award. It reflects the unwavering support from our customers and the dedicated efforts of our team. Lazada has empowered us to grow while staying close to the communities we serve,' said Mr Khairul Idham Ramdzan, COO, Siti Khadijah Apparel Sdn Bhd, also a winner of the Local Brand of the Year Lazada Seller Summit continues to serve as a critical platform for knowledge sharing, upskilling and community building among sellers. As part of the one-day agenda, sellers were introduced to a comprehensive ecosystem of tools, programs and strategic support to accelerate business growth. Some other business accelerating features include smart subsidies, advanced data analytics and priority delivery services, all of which ensure both new and established sellers can thrive in a competitive eCommerce #LazadaMY #Lazada The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. About Lazada Group Lazada Group is Southeast Asia's pioneer eCommerce platform. For the last 13 years, Lazada has been accelerating progress in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam through commerce and technology. Today, a thriving local ecosystem links about 160 million active users to more than one million actively-selling sellers every month, who are transacting safely and securely via trusted payments channels and Lazada Wallet, receiving parcels through a homegrown logistics network that has become the largest in the region.
Malay Mail
30 minutes ago
- Malay Mail
Bursa opens lower, tracking Wall Street's weakness on US data, tariff news
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 6 — Bursa Malaysia opened slightly lower on Wednesday, tracking Wall Street's decline as sentiment turned cautious following weak US economic data and tariff announcements by President Donald Trump on the semiconductor and pharmaceutical sectors. At 9.10 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 1.16 points, or 0.08 per cent, to 1,537.48 from Tuesday's close of 1,538.64. The benchmark index had earlier opened 0.72 of a point lower at 1,537.92. Market breadth was negative, with 197 decliners outpacing 98 gainers. Another 287 counters were unchanged, 1,920 untraded, and seven suspended. Turnover stood at 168.44 million shares worth RM82.74 million. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-president of equity research Thong Pak Leng said the local bourse mirrored the weakness on Wall Street, where sentiment turned cautious following weaker-than-expected US job market data. 'The situation worsened after Trump mentioned that separate tariffs would soon be imposed on both the semiconductor and pharmaceutical sectors. 'Nonetheless, we believe overall sentiment remains positive and expect the FBM KLCI to trend within the 1,535–1,550 range today,' he told Bernama. Among the heavyweights, Maybank and Public Bank rose 10 sen each to RM9.67 and RM4.25, respectively. IHH Healthcare added three sen to RM6.88, CIMB was unchanged at RM6.75, while Tenaga Nasional fell four sen to RM13.24. On the actively traded list, NexG eased half-a-sen to 53 sen, Top Glove dropped 2.5 sen to 61 sen, and Hartalega declined six sen to RM1.26. Harvest Miracle Capital and Pharmaniaga gained half-a-sen each to 16.5 sen and 19 sen, respectively. On the broader market, the FBM Emas Index fell 18.35 points to 11,523.62, the FBMT 100 Index declined 16.74 points to 11,289.92, and the FBM Emas Shariah Index slipped 31.83 points to 11,537.17. The FBM 70 Index dropped 60.50 points to 16,606.25, while the FBM ACE Index edged down 0.60 of a point to 4,630.86. By sector, the Financial Services Index added 18.17 points to 17,466.63. The Industrial Products and Services Index slipped 0.93 of a point to 158.47, the Energy Index fell 0.39 of a point to 740.01, and the Plantation Index declined 9.23 points to 7,354.12. — Bernama
Malay Mail
30 minutes ago
- Malay Mail
Fund youth, sports development or risk losing future talent, Hannah Yeoh tells state leaders
SHAH ALAM, Aug 6 — Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh urged Chief Ministers and Menteris Besar to provide sufficient funds for youth and sports development for the coming year. Hannah said this step is crucial to help the executive council members responsible for these portfolios to implement more development programmes in their respective jurisdictions. 'I want to urge all Chief Ministers and Menteris Besar in the coming weeks, as they prepare to table next year's state budgets, to allocate sufficient funds to assist their state youth and sports excos. 'This is not a small portfolio; it looks after the future assets (of the country) and promotes a healthy lifestyle. If they receive adequate budgets, they can implement many more development programmes, but usually, it's not enough,' she said. She was speaking at a press conference after chairing the Malaysia Games (Sukma) Supreme Committee Meeting here yesterday. Hannah also chaired the first Meeting of Ministers and Excos on Youth and Sports Development 2025 yesterday, which was also attended by state youth and sports excos. The Corporate Communications Unit of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in a media statement distributed after the meeting, stated that as of Monday (August 4), the Registrar of Youth Societies records showed that 54 per cent or 53,513 office holders in youth organisations are individuals under the age of 30. This follows the enforcement of the youth age limit in line with the Youth Societies and Youth Development Act (Amendment) 2019 [Act A1602]. 'The enforcement of the Act is expected to have a direct impact on the 8,233 youth organisations registered under the Registrar of Youth Societies office,' the statement read. — Bernama
