THE Malaysian Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers, Business Events Council of Malaysia, and the Malaysia Convention and Exhibition Bureau have all called for a quick re-opening of the business events sector. The Small and Medium Enterprises Association of Malaysia joins this call for an urgent re-opening of this sector.
While businesses in the retail, food and beverage, manufacturing, construction and tourism sectors are now allowed to operate in various capacities, most SMEs are struggling to re-open. The prolonged lockdown has resulted in most SMEs running out of cash, with many having laid-off or retrenched their employees, while operational restrictions have resulted in many global clients dropping Malaysian suppliers in favour of vendors from other markets.