BY TANIA LAM & ALWIN LAWRENCE
ANJUNG USAHAWAN TELOK MELANO
SEMATAN: The entrepreneurs centre (Anjung Usahawan) in Telok Melano is developed by the state government through the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Industrial Terminal and Entrepreneur Development to support local small and medium entrepreneurs and enhance socio-economic development in Telok Melano.
The project is aimed at providing a suitable and comfortable space for traders to conduct business and consumers to obtain local products and services.
It will also open up more opportunities for local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as well as increase access to facilities and amenities for rural folk in the area.
The entrepreneurs centre is also apt as the area has become a tourist hotspot with a variety of attractions such as the beach and national parks.
The proposed centre would include facilities such as stalls for selling local products, an area for eating and resting, wet market, public washrooms, and public utility facilities.
Locals have voiced their sincere appreciation for the state government’s efforts in developing the Anjung Usahawan Telok Melano.
Mohammad Ikmal Sepawi, 23, who runs a food shop owned by his mother Hadiah Suteh, 54, said he was thankful for the state government as this project would be able to help grow their business.
“Until now, our business is running smoothly and all customers have given positive feedback. Furthermore, Telok Melano has now become the focus of many visitors on weekends. The development of the centre will provide us with better facilities and more conducive platform to conduct our business,” he said.
Housewife Hayati Ahmad, 38, hoped that through the project, conducting business would be more comfortable in the future, as currently she was forced to shut her shop at Telok Melano when there were storms.
“I can earn about RM100 to RM1,000 or more a day, depending on the current circumstances and especially on weekends when more than 1,000 visitors came to Telok Melano before Covid-19 struck,” she said.
Homemade Abang Mat Coconut Shake owner Rahmat Suhaimi, 40, also hoped that the new project would help them do business in a more organised and systematic manner.
“I hope that this project can resolve the challenges that we face, among which are a lack of systematic piped water supply and electricity supply,” he said.
He also hoped that through the centre, business activities in Telok Melano would be continuously developed and more public facilities made unavailable in the future.
