KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 9 -- Deputy Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Datuk Seri R. Ramanan disclosed that 7,779 cooperatives nationwide have failed to maintain their accounts, while 2,304 have not conducted audits.
To address this, the Cooperative Commission of Malaysia (SKM) has stepped in, by offering guidance, training, and assistance in preparing account statements, to help cooperatives manage their finances effectively.
"Recently, financial assistance was provided to support audit and accounting management, amounting to RM3,000 for cooperatives in Peninsular Malaysia and RM3,500 for those in Sabah and Sarawak," Ramanan said during the oral question-and-answer session at the Dewan Rakyat, today.
He was responding to a supplementary question from Dr Richard Rapu (GPS-Betong), about the number of cooperatives struggling with timely account preparation, and the ministry's measures to support them in maintaining their businesses and adhering to governance standards.
Ramanan also noted that out of 16,009 registered cooperatives nationwide, 9,823 remain active.
In response to a question from Wan Razali Wan Nor (PN-Kuantan) on KUSKOP's efforts to address troubled cooperatives, Ramanan said that the SKM has implemented preventative measures, including the development of comprehensive guidelines to promote best practices in cooperative governance and operations.
He explained that SKM’s supervisory activities, for cooperatives facing financial management challenges, include conducting management engagements to formulate recovery or financial resilience plans, and closely monitoring their implementation.
Additionally, SKM has adopted control measures to protect cooperative members from financial losses. These include proactive interventions, and addressing public complaints related to suspicious cooperative activities.
"SKM is well-equipped to regulate cooperatives with its current capacity. It has branches nationwide, and a sufficient workforce to oversee and support cooperative operations," he added.