By SEEd.Lab, a collaborative incubator programme by PETRONAS and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), showcased seven promising social ventures from its third cohort at its Open Day, held at Petrosains, The Discovery Centre from July 11 to July 13, 2024.
The Open Day provides a platform for participants, known as SEEd.lings, to present their innovative ideas for social change, seeking feedback and support from industry leaders and ecosystem players.
Aidonna Jun Ayub, Head of SEEd.Lab, emphasized PETRONAS’ dedication to creating shared value for stakeholders and society. “SEEd.Lab harnesses our capabilities and networks to support and nurture young social entrepreneurs. Their innovative solutions are vital for the communities they serve. We believe making positive changes in the community is a collective effort, and SEEd.Lab is an active participant in this endeavour,” he stated.
Reflecting on the success of previous cohorts, Aidonna added, “We have witnessed the growth of SEEd.lings from the first two cohorts which have impacted close to 22,000 lives collectively, and we look forward to nurturing the potential of the third cohort in their journey to create meaningful change in the community.”
The seven social ventures introduced at the Open Day include:
- Quinterra: A closed-loop sustainable farming system transforming food waste into fish feed and promoting healthy fish and vegetable farming.
- Sage: Empowering financially vulnerable women by co-creating handcrafted busybooks for children.
- Aqufish: Providing aquaculture farmers with affordable technology to optimize feed and accelerate fish growth.
- Learnardo: Enhancing STEM education through interactive, game-based learning experiences for children.
- SebijiHub: A reward-based crowdfunding platform providing smallholder farmers equal access to capital.
- ArtsProud: Offering art-based activities tailored to meet the unique needs of seniors and elderly individuals with dementia.
- ProLadang: A digital crop monitoring tool that helps farmers make informed decisions.
PETRONAS and TCS contribute resources to accelerate these social enterprises’ journeys by providing business and leadership mentoring, technical expertise, funding, market testing, and commercialisation support. Graduates of the programme continue to have access to this support system.
Datuk Sazali Hamzah, PETRONAS Executive Vice President and CEO of Downstream, highlighted the impact of entrepreneurship on social change. “Our commitment to nurturing social enterprises aligns with PETRONAS’ vision of creating a sustainable future for all. I am proud to support this initiative by harnessing our capabilities and networks and welcome collaborations with those that share our vision to cultivate sustainable social enterprises capable of creating significant impact,” he said.
Jeevan Rajoo, TCS Malaysia Country Head, expressed pride in partnering with SEEd.Lab and PETRONAS. “By fostering innovation and sustainability, SEEd.Lab nurtures the next generation of visionary entrepreneurs and tackles some of the most pressing global challenges. Our support for Malaysian start-ups dedicated to social enterprises highlights our deep belief in the transformative power of business to drive positive change and create a brighter, more sustainable future for all,” he noted.
SEEd.Lab’s third cohort is supported by a network of partners including Taylor’s University, Malaysian Humanitarian Foundation, Manggis Group, Korn Ferry, Tenaga Nasional Berhad, AmBank Group, Digital Impact Square, Zaid Ibrahim & Co, Amazon Web Services, Axiata Foundation, and Zharif Nizamuddin.
SEEd.Lab is Malaysia’s first 12- to 18-month incubation programme offering an end-to-end journey for start-ups, modelled around the TCS Digital Impact Square (DiSQ). It encourages innovation using digital technologies to address social challenges and is tailored to meet the needs of Malaysian communities.
