Alibaba Opens KL Office to Assist Malaysian SME's

Described as a “one-stop shop” for Malaysian small and medium-sized enterprises, the office will provide support and platforms to assist SME's to drive exports and offer extensive training programmes and cloud-computing services Jack Ma, Alibaba's founder and executive chairman, who attended the office-opening ceremony, said. His company’s focus "is on three areas when we partner with Malaysia, as well as other countries – to digitise our local partners and empower small businesses and young people to go global.”
The office opening is the latest step Alibaba has taken to create inclusive and innovative global trading technology infrastructure in Malaysia. The country was the launching pad for the Electronic World Trade Platform (eWTP) initiative introduced by Ma.

Showcasing Malaysian products
Launched in November last year, eWTP facilitates exports for Malaysian SMEs and create the infrastructure to support global trade. Services include e-commerce, logistics, cloud computing, mobile payments and training of talent.
Other initiatives under the eWTP initiative include the establishment of Alibaba’s first regional e-fulfillment hub near the Kuala Lumpur International Airport under a Cainiao-Malaysia Airports Holding Bhd. joint venture to enable speedy storage, fulfillment, customs clearance and warehousing operations.
Cainiao is the logistics arm of the Alibaba Group, which earlier this month said it will invest US$1.5 billion to build a logistics centre at Hong Kong International Airport.
Coinciding with the opening ceremony in Kuala Lumpur, Alibaba announced it will hold a “Malaysia Week,” an online promotion to attract Chinese consumers to buy Malaysian.
The event, from July 6 to 12, will showcase over 50 Malaysian brands from multiple product categories. They’ll be highlighted to Chinese consumers across Alibaba’s platforms as an array of “must-see, must-eat and must-buy” products and services.

Nol van Fenema