Bandar Seri Begawan - Thirty-two undergraduates from the Academy of Brunei Studies (APB) of Universiti Brunei Darussalam, made an educational visit to Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam Berhad (BIBD) at its Kiulap Branch, yesterday.

The educational visit began with a welcoming address and a presentation on SME financing facilities conducted by the Manager of the SME Service Centre, Pg Sanusi Iskandar Pg Hj Ismail. The students, who are currently in their third year at the Academy of Brunei Studies, are working on a programme entitled `Industri Tradisi Brunei' (Traditional Industries of Brunei).

The aims of the educational visit were to expose the students to the world of Islamic Banking, the structure of the bank as well as the products and services offered by BIBD to the public, specifically in regards to SMEs.

The students were briefed regarding the role of the Small Medium Enterprise Service Centre and the types of schemes offered to the public - Enterprise Facilitation Scheme and the Microcredit Financing Scheme. According to Pg Sanusi Iskandar, these schemes are offered in collaboration with the government via the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources (MIPR).

He then elaborated further about the criteria that an applicant would have to satisfy in order to be eligible for the dual financing schemes offered by the SME Service Centre. He then touched on the various financing facilities offered to SMEs in the country.

During the presentation, the students also learnt about the process flow of SME financing beginning from the initial application stage all the way to its final approval. According to Pg Sanusi Iskandar, the ingredients required for a good business to be successful are cash, commitment, collaboration, integrity, honesty as well as possessing an opportunist mindset.

The students were informed that if they wanted to begin a business, they would have to consider certain points such as raising sufficient capital to run and manage operations for a minimum of at least six months without a revenue stream, being open to new and emerging opportunities, having confidence in new ideas and not being afraid to accept failure but to actually learn from them, as well as create network with partners and distribution points, which would enable the business to get closer to potential customers.

After the presentation came to an end, the students were provided with an opportunity to mingle with BIBD staff socially, allowing them to gather more in-depth information about the bank from its different employees. Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam Berhad, as the leading Islamic Banking institution in this country, constantly pushes itself in providing innovative Islamic Banking products and services for the benefit of the Brunei community as a whole. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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