Give interest-free loans to women entrepreneurs affected by floods, govt told

 

Noraini Ahmad has asked Putrajaya to provide financial aid to female entrepreneurs affected by the floods.

PETALING JAYA: Wanita Umno chief Noraini Ahmad has called on the government to introduce an interest-free loan repayment scheme, along with a year-long moratorium, for women entrepreneurs whose businesses were badly affected by floods around the country.

Noraini said she welcomed the swift action taken by Putrajaya in allocating RM400 million for flood-hit areas, and thanked banks and financial institutions that took the initiative to offer a six-month loan moratorium for flood victims.

However, she said more could be done to help women entrepreneurs.

“Wanita Umno would like Putrajaya to give serious attention to entrepreneurs, especially women entrepreneurs who were affected by the floods,” said Noraini in a statement.

“We would like to suggest that the government allocate funds in the form of grants to these entrepreneurs so that they can rebuild their businesses.

“Apart from that, we would also like the government to introduce an interest-free loan repayment scheme together with a 12-month-long moratorium”.

Noraini said Wanita Umno’s machinery had been tasked with gathering the names of women entrepreneurs affected by floods to ensure the aid promised by Putrajaya reached them.

The Northeast monsoon season brought on heavy rains that saw floods hit Kelantan, Terengganu, Perak, Sabah and Sarawak. More than 55,000 people were affected in both Kelantan and Terengganu alone.

Last week, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced in Parliament that RM400 million was channelled to the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) for early preparedness initiatives in flood areas. He assured that additional funds would be provided when necessary. - FMT