By Kazi Mahmood, IOL South East Asia correspondent

KUALA LUMPUR, February 9 (IslamOnline) - In a very encouraging move, the Malaysian government through its Minister of International Trade and Industry Rafidah Aziz is pushing more women to take up business and to venture in trade and Industry in a country where women are known to be very active in general.

Rafidah, also known as "rapid fire" for her sharpness and witty stance on major issues affecting politics in the region, said that the government has always encouraged women and that this has helped diversify the Malaysian economy.

She said that the Malaysian economy was spurred by trade and a large portion of it was managed by women.

Malaysia also has a slightly larger female population with the latest census showing that no less than 55 percent of the country were females.

Rafidah said that according to the Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM), the number of firms owned by women had increased to 54,626 in 2001 from 49,551 in 2000, Bernama reported on Saturday, February 8.

"It is expected that at the end of 2002, the figure can touch 56,000 firms," she said at the BH Beauty Spa certificate presentation ceremony.

Women also hold a growing share of leadership in major firms in the country with the most prominent being Zeta Akhtar Aziz, Governor of the Bank Negara (National Bank).

The country also has its first political lady in the person of the wife of jailed former deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Mrs Wan Azizah Wan Ismail who leads the Party Keadilan (PK) or National Justice Party.

Malaysian Women Are Majority, Active & Daring

"Women are having large responsibilities in Malaysia due to the fact that they form the majority of the population, and they are also very active and daring in doing business and taking challenges at the office," Nueriz, working for foreign bank in Kuala Lumpur said.

Women are also active in a majority of Non-Government Organizations (NGO) and they are battling even on the front of liberty and freedom in the country through the Suhakam, the local Human Rights Group.

Rafidah Aziz said that her ministry, through the Small Medium Industry Development Corporation (SMIDEC), provided a special scheme for women entrepreneurs not only in the manufacturing sector but also in information and technology, education, software development and accounting.

She said that until December 31, 2002, a total of 331 grants worth RM5.5 million and 39 soft loans worth RM21.1 million were approved for women entrepreneurs.

Of the total grants, 83 approvals were for market development, she said.

A walk through the streets in Malaysia's major cities, including Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru and Kota Baru in Kelantan shows that women hold most of the food and trading businesses.

One particular aspect that shows the temperament of women in this majority Muslim nation is the wet market in Kota Bahru, Kelantan which is an all woman exclusive business.

The colorful market place is made even more interesting with the ladies in scarf (Islamic head gear) and their Malay traditional dresses selling vegetables and other products before sun rise.

"The businesses belong to these women, not to their husbands or parents, it is these women who build the business through the years and the interesting part is that they even run the household," an Arab businessman living in Kota Baru told IslamOnline.