The Asia Foundation Partners with DHL to Train Women-led MSMEs through the Accelerate My Business Program

• DHL adds module focusing on logistics and cross-border trade skills for 700 new participants of the program
• The program has to date supported over 4,000 aspiring and existing female entrepreneurs in Malaysia and Indonesia

KUALA LUMPUR, 1st August 2022 – To drive further women participation and growth in e-commerce, The Asia Foundation brings aboard leading logistics provider DHL Express Malaysia as a capacity-building partner for its Accelerate My Business program.

The collaboration will include a new module titled ‘Go Global with DHL’, conducted by the company’s network of international specialists from August to September. 700 participants of the program are expected to benefit from the range of topics encompassing e-commerce strategy, export rules, customs procedures, prohibited and dangerous goods, shipment packaging, and other pertinent information. Of the number, a shortlist of 70 entrepreneurs will receive one-on-one guidance by executive leaders of DHL as part of the mentoring component, ‘E-Commerce: Ready-Set-Go!’.

As a long-standing resource partner of The Global Development Alliance for eTrade Development II (an initiative under the USAID and Palladium known as the eTrade Alliance), DHL has actively focused their efforts in providing their expertise, training and support for e-commerce businesses in emerging economies.

The announcement is timely given the Department of Statistics Malaysia reported that the total income for e-commerce transactions climbed 21.8 percent from RM896 billion in 2020 to RM1.09 trillion in 2021. Through the partnership with DHL, The Asia Foundation can continue to support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to succeed in the global online marketplace as well as equip women entrepreneurs with the business acumen necessary to tackle challenges and remain competitive, particularly in a post-pandemic environment.

“The Asia Foundation is grateful to have a strategic partner in DHL,” said Dr. Robin Bush, Malaysia Country Representative of The Asia Foundation. “We believe the new learning modules and mentorship sessions will assist MSMEs in key attributes needed to transform their businesses towards successful cross-border trade. Coupled with existing modules in digital, business, and financial literacy skills from current partners Visa and AT&T, our participants will have a clearer roadmap for navigating the e-commerce landscape.”

"At DHL Express, we understand the positive impact of supporting women to become more economically empowered, and how it broadly benefits families and communities. Through the program, we can help address the knowledge bottlenecks that discourage female entrepreneurs from expanding their businesses by leveraging our logistics and cross-border trade expertise. This is in line with our company’s purpose of connecting people and improving lives," said Julian Neo, Managing Director of DHL Express Malaysia and Brunei.

To date, the Accelerate My Business program has trained more than 4,000 women across Malaysia and Indonesia.

Women entrepreneurs interested in joining the Accelerate My Business program may visit http://accelerate-msme.com/

For media inquiries, please contact:

Qistina Kamarudin
The Asia Foundation
[email protected]

Nadzirah Hashim
Wavemakers
[email protected]