The Johor government will convene a meeting with all 10 local authorities to address the high number of unutilised MyKiosk units in the state.
State housing and local government committee chairman Jafni Shukor said the meeting was necessary to come up with solutions and ensure that the initiative to support small traders continues to thrive.
“Before these kiosks existed, many single mothers, single fathers, and poor families were eager to start a business. Some were even evicted from their trading spots.
“Many traders are struggling, so I’ve directed that the kiosks be rent-free for the first six months. In my view, this is a good initiative as they provide legitimate spaces for many who previously lacked licences.
“Single parents and others now have a proper place to operate,” he said during the Johor legislative assembly sitting in Kota Iskandar today.
He was responding to an additional question from Gan Peck Cheng (PH–Penggaram) on the status of the MyKiosk initiative.
The Bukit Permai assemblyman said a brainstorming session would be held with all 10 local councils to come up with creative approaches to revitalise the kiosks and support small traders.
“When I visited some of these kiosks, traders told me there’s no water supply. They’re relying on solar power and don’t even have proper set-ups to cook food.
“Can we relocate the idle kiosks to better spots and ensure that they have access to water and other facilities? We want these kiosks to truly benefit the people, so we need to place them in strategic locations.
“If needed, we can arrange skills training for traders. The point is, if we’re going to help people, we can’t do it halfway,” he added.
The MyKiosk units are a national initiative by the housing and local government ministry.
Lately, social media posts had highlighted the number of units that were empty or abandoned, largely due to inconsistent participation by traders.
