KUALA LUMPUR, July 25 — Khazanah Nasional Bhd is calling upon Malaysian businesses that are actively tackling problems arising from the impact of climate change on the agri-food sector to participate in the Khazanah Impact Innovation Challenge (KIIC) 2023.

Themed, “Tackling the Climate Challenge for Malaysia’s Food Security”, the KIIC 2023 is organised under the Khazanah Dana Impak initiative, and the online application to participate in the challenge is open from today until Sept 4, 2023.

Khazanah said this year’s theme was derived from escalating concerns about climate change and its potential threat to food security, as prolonged dry spells, heatwaves, intense rainfall, and floods are already ruining food production across continents, leading to plummeting crop yields and the destruction of livestock and food stocks.

In a statement today, the sovereign fund said KIIC is a business challenge aligned with Khazanah Dana Impak value creation objectives, aiming to address pervasive problem statements and drive socio-economic resilience and growth potential for the country.

“As climate change poses an increasing threat to food security in our country, we hope that through this challenge, we can offer the necessary support and a wide-reaching platform to attract capital for innovative and sustainable solutions,” said managing director Datuk Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir.

The KIIC 2023 challenge aims to seek innovative solutions such as alternative animal feed sources, alternative fertilisers, on-farm technologies, financing and supply chain solutions to enhance efficiency and productivity in the agri-food industry.

It aims to attract innovative agri-food start-ups and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and provide support to the selected participants to enhance their readiness and knowledge in securing and raising funds to take their businesses to the next level of growth.

Shortlisted applicants will receive an invitation for Demo Day and finalists will be announced in October 2023.

Ten KIIC finalists will be selected to receive an award of up to RM500,000 each in the form of grants and the opportunity to pitch for potential equity investments and/or debt funding from Khazanah and its funding partners.

KIIC is co-organised with programme partner, Plug and Play; outreach partners Impact Circle and Cradle Fund’s MYStartup; as well as funding partners Gobi Partners, 500 Global and Agrobank. — Bernama