Halal International Selangor Eyes Two Per Cent Global Halal Market

By Christine Lim KUALA LUMPUR, July 5 (Bernama) -- Halal International Selangor (HIS), an initiative by Malaysian state Selangor to promote the halal industry, aims to capture two per cent of the global market within the next three to five years. Programme Director Ahmad Inzuddin Mohd Hashim said HIS was driving for globally recognised halal standards and e-commerce platform. "One approach would involve calling all the countries involved in the halal industry to come together and discuss to agree on harmonised halal standard," he told Bernama. Ahmad Inzuddin was part of an eight-day investment mission to five major Taiwanese cities from June 19, spearheaded and organised by the Selangor Information Technology and E-Commerce Council and Invest Selangor, the Selangor state investment promotion agency aimed to promote the development of e-commerce and halal industries in Malaysia. He said Selangor was promoting a common halal standard that would provide safety, health and integrity to facilitate trade in the US$1 trillion global halal market. "Malaysia has been successfully building the halal brand and it is reputable," he said. However, Ahmad Inzuddin explained that much more effort was needed to boost halal exports and the number of registered halal companies. This, he said was based on recent data which showed that Malaysia's exports of halal products accounted for only US$10 billion compared with Malaysia's average annual total trade of about US$400 billion. "There is a need for a platform that meets the need for quality, affordability and integrity," he said, adding that a paradigm shift would be required to boost Malaysia's halal industry especially with more intense competition and the rising production cost. "Selangor can be a gateway for the halal industry based on knowledge economy and a platform for trading as production does not necessarily have to be in Selangor," he explained. Ahmad Inzuddin also said HIS was targeting the vast potential of the North Asian markets where it has established partnerships and the e-commerce platform. Through 10 key programmes, HIS is tasked to promote the halal industry that includes an e-platform in collaboration with strategic partners that links business-to-business, business to consumer and consumer-to-consumer companies. --BERNAMA