1. Senior Minister of State for Trade & Industry and Education Chee Hong Tat visited Sabah and Sarawak from 27 to 29 August 2019. Mr Chee met his counterparts during the visits and reaffirmed the strong ties that Singapore enjoys with Sabah and Sarawak.
2. Mr Chee said, “Singapore enjoys a longstanding relationship with Sabah and Sarawak. Both states present trade and investment opportunities for Singapore companies in sectors such as agriculture, logistics and tourism. We look forward to strengthening our ties at the government-to-government, business-to-business and people-to-people levels.”
3. During his visit to Sabah, Mr Chee called on Governor Juhar Mahiruddin and Chief Minister Shafie Apdal and discussed ways the two Governments can work together to create opportunities for businesses to collaborate. Mr Chee and Mr Shafie agreed to explore setting up a Sabah Trade and Tourism Office in Singapore which would benefit businesses from both sides.
4. In Sabah, Mr Chee also met with Deputy Chief Minister and State Tourism Minister Christina Liew, State Minister for Agriculture and Food Industry Datuk Junz Wong and representatives from the Sabah chapter of the Malaysia International Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
5. In Sarawak, Mr Chee called on Governor TYT Tun Pehin Sri Haji Abdul Taib Mahmud and Chief Minister YAB Datuk Patinggi Dr Abang Haji Abdul Rahman Zohari bin Tun Datuk Abang Haji Openg. Both sides agreed to deepen the relationship between Singapore and Sarawak in areas like agriculture, furniture manufacturing and tourism.
6. While in Sarawak, Mr Chee also met Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Modernisation of Agriculture, Native Land & Regional Development and Second Minister for Finance YB Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas, Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of International Trade and Industry, Industry Terminal & Ports Development and Second Minister for Urban Development and Natural Resources YB Datuk Amar Haji Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, Minister for Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah and business leaders. Mr Chee also congratulated the Sarawak State Government for the successful opening of the Sarawak Trade and Tourism Office Singapore on 16 August 2019, which would serve as a useful platform to further enhance Singapore’s links with Sarawak.
7. Singapore has close trade and investment linkages with Malaysia. Trade between Singapore and Malaysia increased by 9.3% from 2017 to S$118.3 billion in 2018. Singapore was Malaysia’s largest investor as of August 2019, with RM139.1b of investments spread across a wide range of sectors such as property, hospitality, logistics, retail, manufacturing, aerospace, electrical and electronics, and food.
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MINISTRY OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY
29 August 2019