HDC's Collaborations With BOC, Greenland Set To Double Halal Exports To China

KUALA LUMPUR, March 31 (Bernama) -- The Halal Industry Development Corporation's (HDC) new collaborations with Bank of China (BOC) and Greenland Hong Kong Ltd are set to double Malaysia's halal exports into China in four years' time. HDC Chief Executive Officer Jamil Bidin said the corporation signed three memorandum of understanding (MoUs), two of them with China, in conjunction with the World Halal Week 2016 on Wednesday. He said the first collaboration reached with BOC was to provide facilitation for Malaysian companies, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs), to export their products to China. This is aimed at creating awareness of Malaysia's wide array of halal products and services through direct engagement with China's provincial governments and high-potential industry players, he told reporters on the sidelines of the World Halal Conference here today. Jamil said BOC would fill the needs of SMEs in the areas of corporate lending, trade financing and other banking solutions in the halal industry in their forays into China's market. He said the participation of China's biggest banks in China in the halal industry reflected its confidence in the industry and augured well to Malaysian companies. Jamil said HDC's second MoU was with Greenland, a top 500 Fortune company, over the development of the first Halal International Trade Centre in China, which was already in progress and expected to be ready by June this year. Under this collaboration, HDC will provide expertise and run the centre - another endorsement from a giant company for the halal industry. Malaysian companies could also bring their products and leverage the trade centre as their gateway into China's market, he added. HDC also signed an MoU with Nestle Malaysia Bhd to join hands towards greater halal commitment and to empower local SMEs in competing and creating stronger presence in the global halal market. On the ninth edition of the World Halal Conference, Jamil said it recorded increasing number of foreign delegates, accounting for 40 per cent of 1,200 participants from 50 countries. The two-day conference and World Halal Week were aimed at asserting Malaysia's leadership in halal development, he said, adding that, "It is not all about tangible but also intangible benefits like bringing people together from all over the world to a common platform to discuss the way forward," he added. --BERNAMA