PUTRAJAYA: The Digital Economy Centre (PEDi), which was created to offer collective Internet access for the less privileged in rural areas, now serves as a catalyst for the digital economy to help uplift the socio-economic status of local communities, says Fahmi Fadzil.

Speaking at the PEDi Madani conference here on Wednesday (Nov 29), the Communications and Digital Minister said the centre also offered training programmes in ICT, digital entrepreneurship and e-learning to benefit community members, especially those involved in the micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMSEs), youths and students, in addition to value-added services including digital health services, cashless transactions and one-stop online bill payments.

He said the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has conducted a study to assess the impact of PEDi as a one-stop centre to drive the socioeconomic status of local communities and enhance human capital development.

"Among the findings obtained is an active usage rate of 94 per cent. This indicates the loyalty of users towards PEDi,” he said.

He said 89 per cent of the respondents in the study also provided positive feedback on the services and programmes offered by PEDi while the net promoter score indicated that 70 per cent of respondents would encourage others to visit the centre.

Fahmi said MCMC has cooperated with its strategic partners, digital collaborators, organisations in the private sector and non-governmental bodies to plan and implement multiple training and guidance programmes, such as the Small Entrepreneur Digitisation Empowerment Programme (PUPUK) to empower communities at the grassroots level to be involved in the digital economy.

According to him, MCMC, Shopee and PEDi staff members have achieved the target to conduct digitisation efforts involving 7,000 entrepreneurs this year through the e-commerce platform with a sales value totalling RM15.7mil.

Fahmi said since 2021, the initiative has garnered RM55.4mil in sales value.

The centre is also supported by service providers such as Telekom Malaysia, CelcomDigi, Maxis and Redtone, providing e-learning programmes for less privileged students, which have helped them improve their studies, he added.

At the event, Fahmi presented the Best PEDi Entrepreneur Award to six recipients, including Mohamad Bahar Nordin from Pekan Ijok PEDI, Haleda Aqila Nasis from Sungai Pinggan PEDi in Pontian, Johor and special recognition to the PEDi in Song, Sarawak.- Bernama

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2023/11/30/pedi-helps-to-improve-socioeconomic-status-of-local-communities-says-fahmi