WELCOME ADDRESS BY MR LIM HNG KIANG, MINISTER FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY AT THE RUSSIA-SINGAPORE BUSINESS FORUM 2011, 26 SEPTEMBER 2011, 11.05AM, MARINA BAY SANDS CONVENTION CENTRE
Ministers
Governors
Excellencies
Distinguished Guests
It is my pleasure to be here at this year’s Russia-Singapore Business Forum (RSBF), which is now into its sixth successful run. Today we have 600 delegates from Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States, Singapore and the rest of Asia. On behalf of the RSBF organisers, I warmly welcome you to this year’s Forum.
I delivered the opening address at the very first RSBF in 2006 and I am pleased to see how this platform has evolved and grown over the past six years. The RSBF has maintained its high standards and proven itself to be a successful and highly-subscribed platform for networking, insight-sharing, and the mutual exploration of business opportunities. It continues to attract strong interest from both the Russian and Singaporean business communities.
Today, I would like to share some of my reflections on the RSBF. On the surface, to the casual observer, it might seem rather strange that Russia, one of the largest of countries, should partner Singapore, one of the smallest of countries – indeed, a Little Red Dot – to create this business event. It might also be strange that so many of our friends from Russia and its neighbouring regions have flown for 10 hours or more to be here in Singapore for this event.
I believe that the RSBF, and indeed your presence here today, would not be happening if Russia does not see value in Singapore. This seemingly odd pairing would not have materialised if Singapore were not creating value for Russia and Russian companies.
Creating value will always be a priority for Singapore. As a small city-state with no natural resources, we know that Singapore needs to constantly evolve, innovate and reinvent ourselves to remain relevant and useful to the rest of the world. Otherwise, we will be ignored and fall behind.
In striving to remain useful and relevant to our friends and partners, we have responded to our constraints of small physical size and small population by harnessing those pressures to drive innovation in hardware, such as transport and housing infrastructure and industrial parks, and software, such as water and environmental management. Today, we are developing new synergies represented by the concepts of Whole-of-Government, where our public agencies work together as one networked and coordinated body, and Urban Solutions, where we develop and implement policies and technologies that support and enhance our urban living environment. In this way, we are looking ahead, adapting and growing to meet the needs and demands of the world.
Where Singapore began by seeking to be relevant and useful to the developed countries and our regional neighbours, we have, in recent years, started to expand our ties with the emerging markets of Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Russia. These are large, diverse and exciting regions. There is a lot of room for our ties to grow with these markets, and I am pleased that we are making steady progress.
I am also very pleased to see that a growing number of our home-grown Singapore companies, including small and medium enterprises, have started to venture farther and farther afield in search of opportunities. Singapore companies now have commercial presence in emerging markets as diverse as Brazil, India, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and, of course, Russia. I am also pleased to note that the reverse is happening at a steady pace. Many companies from emerging markets are also starting to establish themselves in Singapore – through joint ventures, the setting up of regional bases, and by making use of our companies’ distribution networks and channels.
Singapore’s economic relations with Russia have been strengthening over the years. Our total trade reached a record S$5.2 billion last year. I am confident that our economic relations will continue to strengthen, given Russia’s strong growth trajectory and Singapore’s strategic position in the heart of Asia. I am also glad that physical connectivity between Russia and Singapore is growing. Besides Singapore Airlines’s daily flight to Moscow, Russia’s Transaero also flies to Singapore and it will soon be joined by Vladivostok Air. This increased connectivity will certainly facilitate more trade, investment and people flows, particularly with the Russian Far East.
Underpinning our deepening trade and investment ties are institutional linkages that we have established and built on mutual trust and friendship. Recently, Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, and Russian DPM Vyacheslav Volodin co-chaired the second High-Level Intergovernmental Commission, or IGC, in Moscow.
The IGC is a useful platform to help Russia and Singapore identify key areas of collaboration between our countries. At the recent IGC meeting in Moscow, a Memorandum of Understanding on Modernisation of the Economy was signed between the Russian Ministry of Economic Development and Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry. This sets a path for deeper cooperation in sectors such as transport, power, e-government and engineering solutions. A Joint Roadmap is currently being developed to identify concrete initiatives for cooperation in these sectors. I am confident that this Roadmap of tangible projects will add even more substance to our partnership.
Indeed, Singapore companies are growing increasingly active in Russia, and not just in the big cities of Moscow or St Petersburg. Interest in other Russian regions is also growing. Jurong Consultants has an ongoing master-planning project in the Pskov region. RSP Architects is working on a master-planning project for an IT technology park in Tatarstan and is keen to work on master-plans across Russia. Similarly, our IT companies, led by IDA-International, are keen to participate in ICT and e-government projects not just in Moscow but across Russia.
More Russian companies have also been setting up operations in Singapore to do business here and elsewhere in Asia. For example, Gazprom and Lukoil have set up their Asian base here because of Singapore’s strategic location within a growing region with strong economic potential, our sound economic fundamentals and good links with the rest of Asia.
Today, Singapore houses over 7,000 major multinational companies. Many of these undertake substantive activities here, such as manufacturing and regional headquarter functions. We have built up significant industry clusters, in energy and chemicals, oil and gas, natural resources and consumer businesses. We have a vibrant and diverse business community. Our processes and institutions make us an easy place to set up and do business.
Our competitive advantages and systems have made it easy for growth-oriented companies from around the world to set up their HQ or regional HQ bases in Singapore. I would like to strongly encourage other Russian companies to do the same. The Economic Development Board, our lead agency for establishing and sustaining Singapore as a global hub for business and investment, is ready to welcome you and assist you in setting up a base in Singapore.
As Singapore-based companies, you would be in a better position to look for opportunities throughout Asia, which is growing at a rapid pace. International Enterprise Singapore has a network of regional offices standing ready to help you expand further into the region. For Russian companies keen to raise capital or exploring alternative financing options to grow their Asian business, I encourage you to consider a listing on the Singapore Stock Exchange’s Main or Secondary Boards.
Likewise, let me strongly encourage our Singapore businessmen and companies to take a serious look at Russia and explore the opportunities that abound there. Some Singapore companies are already in Russia. They are now moving beyond Moscow and St Petersburg to find opportunities in its diverse regions. It is time you did the same. I am glad to see many of our businessmen in the audience today. I trust you will find this Forum useful, thought-provoking and productive.
Finally, even as the core relationship being strengthened today at the RSBF remains between Russia and Singapore, there are opportunities for others as well. I encourage our friends from other countries to establish useful relationships and partnerships with Russia through Singapore, or with Singapore through Russia. In this regard, I am very happy to see a strong and encouraging participation of speakers and guests from countries like Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and China.
I wish all of you a fruitful Forum.
Thank you.