KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 — The Auditor-General's Report (LKAN) 2/2024 has determined the management of the e-commerce entrepreneurship development programmes is well implemented, covering training and providing incentives.
The programmes fall under the Investment, Trade, and Industry Ministry, the Digital Ministry, the Rural and Regional Development Ministry, and the Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Ministry (Kuskop).
The audit review of several programmes related to e-commerce training and adoption under these ministries found that they have exceeded the set targets.
The e-commerce training programme provided by the government via ministries and implementing agencies aims to equip micro, small, and medium entrepreneurs (MSMEs) with the necessary basics to conduct business online.
"The audit found that the number of MSMEs trained in e-commerce has reached the target, at 378,487 in 2020, while the achievement for 2021 to 2023 is 306,003. As for e-commerce adoption, the achievement of NESR (National e-Commerce Strategic Roadmap) 1.0 is at 489,958, and NESR 2.0 is at 1.02 million.
“Additionally, the audit review of seven programmes related to e-commerce training and adoption found that all programmes have exceeded the set targets. This is in line with the findings of NESR 2.0 eCommerce as the Engine for Catalytic Growth for Businesses in Malaysia Report, issued by Ernst & Young," it said.
However, the development of the Mymall e-commerce platform under Kuskop has not fully achieved its objectives, and there are weaknesses in contract management and operations.
Based on the audit review of the agreement contract involving MyMall, no elements, such as deliverables, specifications, agreement period, payment schedule, and source code ownership clause, guarantee the government's interest in the appointment letter issued by Kuskop to the companies.
In addition, the contract agreement between Kuskop and the companies was prepared and finalised late.
LKAN recommends three corrective actions to address the weaknesses raised and prevent the same from recurring.
The recommendations are that Kuskop ensure that the contract agreement is finalised immediately, take proactive action to ensure that the integration of the MyMall platform with the Odela platform can be done within the set period, and identify two other platforms that can be integrated with MyMall to ensure that the Application Programming Interface is available for use.
“Kuskop must also improve operational management by ensuring that the company appointed as payment gateway operator is a company licensed by Bank Negara Malaysia, and separation is made for the receipt and payment of MyMall accounts,” said the report.
— Bernama
