CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd is continuing to drive inclusive and sustainable development through its “iTekad CIMB Islamic Melon Manis Terengganu Graduate Agropreneur” programme.
Since 2023, the bank has mobilised RM750,000 in seed funding to empower 40 underserved and asnaf students through sustainable agropreneurship.
This has resulted in the cultivation of about 12,000 Melon Manis Terengganu (MMT) plants.
According to a media statement, the second cohort involves training and production across four greenhouses at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (Unisza) Besut campus.
“This programme reflects our commitment to advancing customers and society by harnessing Islamic social finance as a catalyst for inclusive and sustainable nation building,” said CIMB group chief executive officer Novan Amirudin.
“By integrating financial inclusion with capacity building, we empower students to develop resilient livelihoods while strengthening local agro-based value chains and enhancing income opportunities in Terengganu.
“The programme helps nurture a new generation of future-ready agropreneurs by creating practical and sustainable pathways to participate in high-growth, high-value sectors, contributing to a more resilient and inclusive food security landscape overtime,” Novan said at the launch of the second cohort at the campus.
Also present were CIMB group chairman Datuk Syed Zaid Albar, Yayasan DiRaja Sultan Mizan (YDSM) board of trustees member Datuk Mohd Fadzli Yusof, Unisza vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Fadzli Adam and CIMB Islamic CEO Ahmad Shahriman Mohd Shariff.
Delivered in collaboration with YDSM and Unisza, the programme equips youth with technical expertise, entrepreneurial skills and access to essential resources with structured training and hands-on agricultural experience.
The statement added that participants from the pioneer batch remained active in the programme, achieving average income of around RM3,000 each per harvest.
This, the bank said, underscored the viability of agro-based entrepreneurship as a sustainable long-term pathway for graduates and youth in Terengganu.
One of them, Bazli Amin Baharin, 25, said as a Bachelor’s degree student in Agribusiness at Unisza, the programme complemented his academic learning, giving him the opportunity to experience agriculture beyond the classroom.
“Being involved hands-on in crop management, financial planning and marketing has strengthened both my technical and business capabilities.
“More importantly, it built my confidence to manage my own cultivation projects.
“I am grateful for the exposure, which has clarified my ambition to pursue agropreneurship commercially and contribute to a more sustainable agricultural ecosystem.
“This is an experience I will carry forward as I take my next steps,” Bazli added.
Unisza Agricultural Biotech-nology student Nur Syazwani Safi Sukri, 23, joined the programme to gain exposure in agriculture and to further develop her skills and capabilities.
“Through both laboratory exposure and hands-on experience, I began to see the field from a different perspective.
“The experience provided through this programme has added significant value beyond theoretical learning and helped recognise my potential in agriculture,” she said.
