KUALA LUMPUR: HLB Islamic has channelled RM138,600 in social financing to social enterprise SURI Inspirasi under Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) iTEKAD framework.
In a statement, the bank said participants in SURI’s Sustainable Reliable Income (SRI) programme recorded an average 94% increase in monthly income and generated more than RM14,000 in total new earnings.
The programme trains participants to turn discarded fabrics into fashion products, providing them with skills and opportunities to generate income.
As part of the programme, participating entrepreneurs produced 1,000 school uniforms for students across five schools in Langkawi, which HLB Islamic said generated RM30,000 in savings for local families.
HLB Islamic also provided high-grade sewing machines to the participating entrepreneurs as they moved from training into running their businesses.
HLB Islamic chief executive officer Dafinah Ahmed Hilmi said the collaboration was aimed at providing participants with tools and training to develop their entrepreneurial capabilities and work towards financial independence.
“Through our partnership with SURI, we are providing the community with the essential tools and training to unlock their entrepreneurial potential, and we hope this will catalyse a lifelong trajectory of building wealth towards financial independence that will enrich the community for generations to come.”
The partnership builds on HLB Islamic’s earlier collaboration with SURI through its HLB Jumpstart initiative, which provides mentorship, branding and digital capacity-building support to Malaysian social enterprises.
