Deepening the Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and Singapore

TIN LIÊN QUAN
	PM’s visit hoped to further bolster Vietnam-Singapore ties
	Ambassador highlights PM’s upcoming visit to Singapore

What is your assessment of the cooperation between Vietnam and Singapore recently, especially after an upgrade of the mutual relationship to strategic partnership in 2013 as well as the visit of Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to Vietnam on November 2017?

Singapore and Vietnam share longstanding and multi-faceted ties, with substantive cooperation in many areas. 

Our leaders share warm personal ties, which are maintained through regular exchanges of high-level visits as well as frequent meetings on the sidelines of multilateral fora. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has visited Vietnam thrice within the last five years: in September 2013 when Singapore and Vietnam upgraded our bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership; in March 2017 for an official visit; and in November 2017 for the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting. 

My leaders look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc during his upcoming official visit to Singapore to keep up the momentum of high-level exchanges.  Prime Minister Phuc’s visit is important and special as it will take place as we celebrate 45 years of diplomatic relations and 5 years since relations were elevated to a Strategic Partnership.

Singaporean Ambassador to Vietnam Catherine Wong Siow Ping.

The economic and trade relations between Vietnam and Singapore are growing strongly. Singapore has always been one of the biggest foreign investors to Vietnam in the region. How would you expect this bilateral cooperation to advance after the visit of Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to Singapore (from 25 - 27/4)? What fields would attract Singaporean businesses in the coming time?

The strong trade and investment flows between Singapore and Vietnam continue to grow healthily.  Bilateral trade reached SGD21.6 billion in 2017, an 8.9% increase from 2016.  Singapore is the third largest foreign investor and top ASEAN investor in Vietnam, with USD43 billion in cumulative investments in over 1,800 projects.  

The seven Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIPs) throughout northern, central and southern Vietnam are examples of the economic collaboration between both countries. They have attracted about USD10.9 billion worth of investments and created more than 174,000 jobs for the Vietnamese people.  

Many of our real estate companies such as Keppel Land, CapitaLand, Mapletree, Ascendas-Singbridge have also invested in long-term projects in Vietnam. Singapore restaurants and eateries such as Jumbo, Yakun, Hill Street and Pastamania have recently set up their first branches in Ho Chi Minh City.

Looking ahead, beyond the industrial parks, real estate and consumer sectors where Singaporean companies have traditionally invested in Vietnam, our companies are also looking at investing in other areas. Hopefully, this would be aligned with Vietnam’s evolving economic needs as it shifts to higher-value added activities. 

First, with demand for energy in Vietnam increasing, Singaporean companies can work with Vietnam to explore new sources of energy such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) and renewable energy. 

Second, Singaporean companies can play a role in Vietnam’s push to become a digital economy. We have noticed a growing tech start-up community in Vietnam which has attracted a wave of foreign investors such as venture capital funds and co-working space providers. Singaporean companies are similarly keen to develop e-services and e-payment solutions in Vietnam to help enhance the financial ecosystem. 

Third, Singaporean companies could play a role in Vietnam’s drive to develop smart cities. Given our journey in developing a Smart Nation in Singapore, our government agencies and companies can share experiences and smart cities solutions with our Vietnamese friends.

Our companies have also been looking beyond the traditional investment destinations such as Ho Chi Minh City and Ha Noi to other regions such as the Mekong Delta Region, Da Nang and Hai Phong, particularly in the areas of cruise tourism, agriculture processing and logistics.

What is your opinion on Vietnam’s investment environment?

Singapore companies take a long-term view and approach when investing in Vietnam. They continue to be bullish about the investment climate in Vietnam, partly due to its young, hardworking and dynamic population. Vietnam’s economy is also growing healthily, with several international organisations projecting GDP growth to be around 6.8% in 2018. 

At the same time, the Vietnamese government has been reviewing and updating its policies to make the business environment in Vietnam more conducive for both domestic firms and foreign investors. It has opened up more sectors for foreign investors and lowered some of the regulatory hurdles for foreign investments such as for mergers and acquisitions. 

We hope that the Vietnamese government can continue to enhance the business environment such as through the further removal of technical barriers and the consistent application of government policies. This would further enhance investor confidence and send the right signal to foreign investors.

Ambassador Catherine Wong Siow Ping met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

How would you evaluate the potential of the bilateral cooperation? What would the cooperation focus on?

Besides the close personal friendships between our leaders and robust economic ties, there are many other areas in which Singapore and Vietnam share substantive cooperation. For example, people-to-people ties between our countries have flourished with greater connectivity, tourist and business links. 

More than 18,000 Vietnamese officials have participated in training programmes under the Singapore Cooperation Programme. Our tourism flows have also increased steadily with more than 145 flights between Singapore and Vietnam each week, making it convenient for us to visit each other. 

There is scope for both sides to expand air connectivity to facilitate even greater business and tourist flows. I am confident that Prime Minister Phuc’s upcoming visit will further deepen the Strategic Partnership between our two countries, and expand new areas for cooperation.

As the Chairman of ASEAN in 2018, what goals would Singapore prioritize, in order to maintain the energetic development in the region?

Boosting economic development is key to improving the well-being of people in the region.  As the ASEAN Chair this year, Singapore will work with other ASEAN countries, including Vietnam, to build a “Resilient and Innovative” ASEAN. For example, we will work together with our ASEAN friends to strengthen our ability to withstand crises, whether they are economic, security-related, or humanitarian/natural disasters.  We can do so by enhancing cooperation in areas such as counter-terrorism, air safety, and cybersecurity. 

We also hope to further develop ASEAN Member States’ innovative capacity and prepare our people for the disruptive effects of new technologies. Singapore has proposed establishing an ASEAN Smart Cities Network. The primary goal is to improve the lives of ASEAN citizens, using technology as an enabler. 

We will also continue to deepen economic integration and improve regional trade facilitation, especially in the area of e-commerce. These initiatives will benefit everyone in ASEAN, be it larger or mid-sized economies, MNCs or SMEs, the older generations or the younger ones.  

In fact, one of our ASEAN Chairmanship priorities is to invest in the people of ASEAN, in particular the youth. We will encourage them to get to know one another through various ASEAN youth programmes and activities that Singapore will be supporting this year.

Thank you Your Excellency!

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