Malaysia will work closely with Japan to develop its small- and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs), in light of the business sector's greater role in the economy. Second Finance Minister Datuk Dr Jamaludin Jarjis said Japan's economy has always been driven by its SMEs and Malaysia is keen to learn ways to improve its own situation.
Jamaludin commended the initiative taken by Japan External Organisation (Jetro) and Japan Chamber of Trade and Industry Malaysia (Jactim) in organising a business mission comprising 48 members on a three-day visit to Kuala Lumpur specifically to meet with local SMEs.
"Until now, we have been focusing more on large Japanese companies for technology and technical transfers," Jamaludin said. He said that Malaysia will maintain the policies related to Japan, including “Look East”, which was put in place over 20 years ago.
