PETALING JAYA, Sept 5 (Bernama) -- Tesco Stores (M) Sdn Bhd is looking for more local small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) to serve as suppliers of quality and consistent products.

Commercial director Jamie Walker said SMEs formed a very important part of the overall offer for Tesco business to meet customers' expectations for food and non-food products.

"Locally produced products are of very high quality and need to be promoted to gain wider awareness and acceptance by the public," he told reporters after the launch of Tesco Malaysia SME Hari Raya Promotion by SME Corporation Malaysia chief executive officer Datuk Hafsah Hashim here, on Saturday.

To date, Tesco Malaysia has 1,272 suppliers and of which, about 60 per cent were under the SME category. The present promotion with some of Malaysia's best products ends on Sept 10.

Walter said that last week, Tesco Malaysia launched the SME Brand @ Tesco Promotion in conjunction with Ramadan to showcase more than 60 products by 20 local SME suppliers.

The response from customers was very positive, he said.

"Many shoppers were delighted to see products and local favourites that are of good quality and made locally by Malaysia's own entrepreneurs," he said.

Tesco Stores Malaysia was incepted on Nov 29, 2001 as a strategic alliance between Tesco Plc UK and local conglomerate Sime Darby Bhd.

-- BERNAMA

2009/08/24 NST

By Alina Simon and M. Hamzah Jamaluddin

PEKAN: Risda, Felda and Felcra, the three government development agencies tasked with improving the lot of the hardcore poor through agriculture programmes, won't have to go it alone much longer.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday said he had directed the heads of the three agencies to come up with a plan to pool their resources.

He said these agencies would become stronger and more effective if they formed a consortium to carry out projects.

He said they should work together rather than taking in outside partners in their ventures, since they were working towards the same goal of getting the poor and landless to become rubber and oil palm smallholders.

He cited Risda's plan to form a joint venture with Konsortium Baja Nasional to build a fertiliser factory as an example of this oversight.

"I find it strange that they would find outside partners instead of looking within. Imagine the economies of scale if they built one factory to serve all their needs instead of building one each.