KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 23 (Bernama) -- Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed will meet personally with the top management of Bank Negara at the soonest, to address the issue of financing,particularly for the small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

"I will take this (issue of financing) personally to the top management of Bank Negara for a resolution," he said at a dialogue session of the National Domestic Investment Dialogue and Seminar here today.

The seminar was organised by the Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (MIDA) and SME Corporation.

He said the issue of failing to secure financing from SME Bank is being raised everywhere and should be addressed seriously as it could affect the government's move to stimulate domestic investments.

"I am quite embarrassed with this issue, as everywhere I go, I keep hearing of the same problem. It was also raised during last week's National SME Development Council meeting chaired by the Prime Minister," he added.

Mustapa was responding to a question by a participant on the slow approval process for financing as well as the lack of experts in SME Bank to evaluate financing applications.

At a press conference later, he said his ministry and the central bank have always been in regular discussion on issues pertaining to SMEs.

When asked if the forthcoming discussion would focus only on SME Bank, Mustapa said the issue of financing went beyond it and included foreign and local banks that provided financing for SMEs.

"What's important is to understand the real situation and determine why there are problems. Then, we need to find a solution, and we know many things have been done over the past few years to improve access to financing.

"Yet, it remains an issue," he said.

He said financing issues may probably arise from a company's track record and management with some being very subjective, based on different situations and scenarios.

"We must first identify the problem, determine why it still exists and finally, eliminate it," he added.

The National Domestic Investment Dialogue and Seminar, last organised three years ago, attracted more than 800 participants from both the private and public sectors.

-- BERNAMA