Lim Xin Yu

Orang Asli (OA) mothers who have young ones to look after are often confined at home and have limited opportunities to work. In many instances, the Orang Asli children are forced to give up their education to help ease financial burdens. This was when Lim Xin Yu co-founded The Asli Co in 2019.

The Asli Co trains and works with OA mothers to produce quality handmade products. Products such as handmade soap, tote bags and succulent pods are crafted by the OA mothers. Having met her fellow co-founder, Jason, in a previous volunteer experience, Xin Yu saw the need to provide an outlet where OA mothers and children could benefit from. 

Xin Yu also has a background in design, UI/UX and multimedia. She was previously the VP of product development of Flexiroam, a data roaming tech startup. Since 2014, Xin Yu has been volunteering with Epic Homes and has built 15 houses for Orang Asli families in four villages in Hulu Selangor. 

To date, The Asli Co has upskilled 63 OA mothers while paying them four times the minimum hourly wage. Additionally, The Asli Co has assisted eight OA villages in Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan & Pahang, Malaysia and raised RM 1,140,041, channelled towards providing materials, equipment, training & wages to Orang Asli Communities.

There’s only so much I can donate as an individual. But as a business, the impact can be magnified 100-fold easily. I believe businesses can be a force for good, with the ability to create a tremendous impact on the social causes they choose to focus on. My wish is to see more social businesses starting up in the near future to create positive change in the world we live in.