FLOOD-hit small-and medium-sized enterprises (SME) have asked the government to provide a three-month interest-free moratorium on loan repayment.

“We thank the government, through Bank Negara, for offering up to RM500,000 in soft loans to SMEs affected by the floods.

“And we urge the government to take the step further by announcing a three-month interest-free moratorium on repayment of loans for affected SMEs,” said Small and Medium Enterprises Association of Malaysia (Samenta) chairman William Ng in a statement today.

Yesterday, Bank Negara Malaysia announced the availability of RM200 million in financing facilities for micro-enterprises and SMEs affected by the floods nationwide under the Disaster Relief Facility 2022 (DRF 2022).

The central bank said SMEs could use the money to cover the cost of repairs or the replacement of assets for business use, such as plants and machinery damaged by floods.

It said SMEs could apply up to RM500,000 while micro-enterprises may borrow up to RM75,000.

Samenta today appealed to the government and the police to stop the looting of shops and warehouses.

He said that the assistance was needed as many SMEs have reported severe damage to vehicles, machinery and stocks, some running into millions of ringgit.

“Our initial estimate is that between 12,000 to 18,000 SMEs have been affected by the floods,” said Ng.

“This disaster has happened at a difficult time for businesses – when our SMEs are only getting back on their feet after the long lockdowns.”

Ng also appealed to the insurance companies to process claims expeditiously, so that small businesses could recover from the floods as soon as possible. – December 21, 2021.