KUALA LUMPUR – A total of 1.37 million informal entrepreneurs were recorded in Malaysia in 2023, comprising those who are self-employed and employers, said the Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives, Datuk Ewon Benedick.

He stated that, according to findings from the 2023 Economic Census, a total of 219,015 women-owned entities were also recorded, of which 185,582 were classified as micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

“For MSMEs overall, data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia in 2024 showed that 1,086,386 entities were recorded.

“Of that number, 761,897 are micro enterprises, 306,764 are small enterprises, and 17,725 are medium enterprises,” he said during a session in the Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives) today.

He was responding to a question from Sungai Besar MP, Datuk Muslimin Yahaya, who had requested the latest statistics on informal entrepreneurs, micro, small, and medium enterprises, women entrepreneurs, and the percentage of entrepreneurs expected to be involved in the implementation of e-Invoicing.

Ewon added that, according to Ministry of Finance data, as of 31 July 2025, a total of 417 million e-Invoices had been issued by 84,000 taxpayers, including MSME entrepreneurs.

“KUSKOP (Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives) projects that only 4.0% of MSME entrepreneurs in the manufacturing and services sectors will be involved in the implementation of e-Invoicing after compliance begins on 1 July 2025,” he said.

He added that KUSKOP, through its agencies such as SME Corp and INSKEN, will continue to conduct programs aimed at promoting and supporting the implementation of e-Invoicing.