The Second Asia-Pacific Dengue Workshop is being held in Singapore from 31 August to 8 September 2010 for a group of 58 participants from 23 countries. This workshop is jointly organised by the Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), World Health Organisation (WHO) and the National Environmental Agency of Singapore (NEA) under the Singapore-WHO Joint Training Programme. It is also supported by Nanyang Polytechnic, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Regional Emerging Diseases Intervention (REDI) Centre and Secretariat of the Pacific Community.

The workshop builds on the achievements of the First Asia-Pacific Dengue Workshop that was held in Singapore in March 2009. Like the first workshop, the second workshop will support the Dengue Strategic Plan for the Asia-Pacific Region (2008 - 2015) that has been endorsed by the WHO Member States, through its focus on strengthening dengue laboratory and vector surveillance in the region. Additionally, this year's run will include a clinical management component, which involves dengue case classification and primary treatment by clinicians. We have extended participation in this workshop to the Africa and Middle East Region, and are pleased to welcome participants from Sudan, Yemen and Saudi Arabia, in addition to those from countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

As part of his welcome address during the opening ceremony, MFA’s Director of Technical Cooperation Mr Koh Tin Fook said that "we are honoured once again to be able to play our part in promoting a deeper understanding of dengue surveillance and vector control and the battle against dengue". Mr Andrew Tan, Chief Executive Officer of NEA, in his welcome address highlighted that we must work closely as a region to fight dengue, and that this would require sustained efforts and strong commitment from the governments concerned. WHO Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO)'s Director of Division of Health Security and Emergencies Dr Takeshi Kasai underscored the importance of regional efforts to combat dengue by sharing with all participants in his welcome address that more than 242,000 dengue cases and 800 deaths were reported in the Western Pacific Region in 2009.

Singapore and Egypt will collaborate for the first time to provide technical assistance to African countries. The collaboration aims to support economic and social development in developing countries in Africa through human resource capacity building. Possible areas of collaboration include governance, economic development, education and healthcare.

A Letter of Intent was signed by Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for Technical Cooperation, Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ambassador Fatma Galal, Secretary General, Egyptian Fund for Technical Cooperation with Africa (EFTCA), Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on 20 August 2010 in Singapore.

Since 1992, over 6,200 officials from Africa have attended Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) courses in areas such as public administration, economic development, civil aviation, information and communications technology, environment and education. The collaboration with EFTCA will add a new dimension to the SCP in providing assistance to more African participants.

Two concurrent 5-day courses titled “Competition Law and Impact on Foreign Direct Investment for CLMV” and “Intellectual Property for CLMV” are currently being organised under the Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21) from 2-6 August 2010. Jointly sponsored by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the two courses are conducted by the Civil Service College Singapore and the IP Academy respectively.

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for Technical Cooperation in the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Mr Koji Oshikiri, Director of Southeast Asia Division 2, Southeast Asia 1 & Pacific Department in JICA, co-officiated the joint opening ceremony of the two courses. Both partners affirmed the successful collaboration between both countries under the JSPP21 and highlighted the noteworthy progress the JSPP21 has made in providing training opportunities in diverse areas such as trade promotion and governance to government officials from ASEAN, South Asia, Africa and the Asia-Pacific region.

A total of 38 participants from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam will learn about Singapore's unique policies and experiences on either enhancing market competitiveness, or on protecting intellectual property rights. The “Competition Law and Impact on Foreign Direct Investment” course also aims to provide participants with useful knowledge on the principles behind competition law, and to understand how these laws are incorporated into Free Trade Agreements. In the “Intellectual Property” course, participants will learn more about the international Intellectual Property framework and how it can be applied at the national level. Notable guest speakers such as Mr Geoffrey Yu, who holds dual appointments as Senior Specialist Adviser in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and as Deputy Chairman of IP Academy, as well as Mr Jose Luis Herce-Vigil, Project Manager from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (Singapore) have been invited to share their perspectives on the value Intellectual Property brings to the national economy and the business community.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a presentation ceremony for the recipients of the Singapore Scholarship on 4 August 2010. Guest-of-Honour Mr Lee Chiong Giam, Deputy Secretary for International Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, congratulated the scholars from the nine ASEAN countries (less Singapore) and presented the certificates to the scholars.

The Singapore Scholarship provides for students from the ASEAN countries to study in one of Singapore's three tertiary institutions: Nanyang Technological University (NTU), the National University of Singapore (NUS), and Singapore Management University (SMU). Singapore has so far awarded 550 Singapore Scholarships to the ASEAN countries.

This year, 30 Singapore Scholarships have been awarded. The 20 scholars who attended the ceremony on 4 August will study at NUS and SMU, commencing in early August . The remaining 10 scholars, who will be studying at NTU, will begin their academic term in September 2010. A separate certificate presentation ceremony will be held on 13 September 2010 for them.

In an inaugural joint initiative by Singapore and Japan to strengthen capacities and promote regional economic integration among APEC economies, 20 government officials from the APEC economies are in Singapore attending a 5-day training course on "Achieving Competitiveness in the Service Sector: Strategies and Lessons for APEC Economies" from 5 to 9 July 2010. Organised under the auspices of the Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21), this is one of 19 courses that will be jointly conducted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) this year.

During his welcome address, Mr Jimmy Chua, Senior Deputy Director for Technical Cooperation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore, affirmed Singapore’s fruitful partnership with JICA and noted that the course is the first in the joint capacity-building package of three training programmes (which includes two other programmes on trade and investment, and on management of trans-boundary health threats) conceptualised by Singapore and Japan to be implemented in 2010 for APEC economies.

The course, conducted by the Singapore Cooperation Enterprise, addresses the strategic importance of promoting service competitiveness in both the local and international marketplaces, with focus on five key service sectors of health, telecommunications, finance, environment, and supply chain management and logistics. JICA provided a guest speaker, Mr Hajime Suzuki, to share insights with the participants on how Japanese service industries promote the productivity movement.

The second WTO-TFCTN Parliamentarian Workshop is being held from 5 to 7 May 2010 at the Pan Pacific Hotel Singapore for a group of 25 Parliamentarians from Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore Thailand and Vietnam. The workshop is organised under the auspices of the Singapore-WTO Third Country Training Programme, and co-sponsored by the Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore (MFA), World Trade Organisation (WTO), and the Temasek Foundation Centre for Trade and Negotiations (TFCTN). The inaugural run of the workshop was conducted in June 2009.

Singapore's Speaker of Parliament Mr Abdullah Tarmugi gave the opening address for the workshop. In his speech, the Speaker said that "The organisers believed it was vital for MPs to have a clear understanding of global trade, of Asia's role in trade patterns, and of what individual states could do to respond to the unfolding global economic situation." The Speaker added that “Government has an important role to play in creating the environment for success. Active and involved legislators can play a key role…if we have a firm grasp of international trade issues…and know what organisations like WTO or the Asian Development Bank can or cannot do and what services they can provide.”

During the three-day workshop, the Parliamentarians will engage in discussions on topics such as intellectual property and climate change and their impact on international trade. The workshop is facilitated by experts from World Trade Organisation, World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Singapore Office, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Secretariat, Temasek Foundation Centre for Trade and Negotiations, Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Trade and Industry, Singapore Business Federation and CrimsonLogic. In addition, the Parliamentarians will be making site visits to Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) International and the Parliament Building as part of the programme.

Country teams from Cambodia, Indonesia, Mongolia, Philippines and Vietnam, each comprising of one mayor/deputy mayor and four team members, are attending the inaugural "Leadership in Local Government: Decision, Action, Results (DARE)" programme, which is conducted from 28 June to 8 July 2010 at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP). This programme is organised under the auspices of the Singapore-World Bank Institute-Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy Joint Training programme, and co-sponsored by the Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore (MFA) and World Bank Institute (WBI).

The opening ceremony for the programme on 28 June 2010 was co-officiated by LKYSPP Dean Kishore Mahbubani, Director of MFA's Technical Cooperation Directorate Mr Koh Tin Fook, and Manager of WBI's Governance Practice Mr Ed Campos. In his welcome remarks, Dean Kishore Mahbubani said that he was very pleased with the programme that had been put together by the partners. He spoke about the prevalence of development pessimism in the international community, and stressed that LKYSPP did not agree with such a view as they believe that our efforts in capacity building would benefit developing countries if they adopt the principles of good leadership – Meritocracy, Pragmatism and Honesty.

As part of his welcome remarks, Mr Koh Tin Fook commended the WBI and LKYSPP on their thoughtful initiative, commitment and collaboration in bringing the programme to fruition. He also noted the participants' commitment, which was clearly evident from their excellent project proposals submitted for consideration as part of their country applications for participation in the programme. Mr Ed Campos added that the uniqueness of this DARE programme would be the follow-up actions which WBI would work with the country teams to convert the submitted project proposals into concrete action plans. He said that WBI had a lot of research and data at their disposal, and that this workshop would allow them to put the research and data to good practical use.

During the two-week programme, experts from both LKYSPP and WBI will share their knowledge on results-oriented leadership, urban governance and development project management with the participants. Participants will also get the opportunity to participate in the World Cities Summit, which is taking place in Singapore from 28 to 30 June 2010.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Singapore and the Colombo Plan Secretariat and would like to congratulate Mr Kiran Prasad Acharya on his successful completion of the Master of Information Technology in Business programme from the Singapore Management University. Mr Acharya, a senior IT assistant with the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies of Nepal, is the first recipient of the Colombo Plan – MFA Singapore Postgraduate Scholarship.

The Colombo Plan – MFA Singapore Postgraduate Scholarship is open to public officials of Colombo Plan member countries, upon nomination and endorsement by their respective National Focal Points. The scholarship is jointly sponsored by Singapore MFA's Singapore Cooperation Programme and the Colombo Plan’s Long Term Scholarship Programme. Successful applicants will pursue a Masters course in one of the universities in Singapore.

Singapore and the Republic of Korea signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the Singapore-Korea Comprehensive Joint Development Cooperation Partnership on 5 June 2010 at the Istana. Mr Peter Ho, Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and Mr Park Dae-won, President of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), signed the MOU on behalf of the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and KOICA respectively. The signing was witnessed by the Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Hsien Loong and President of the Republic of Korea, His Excellency Lee Myung-bak.

The Singapore-Korea Comprehensive Joint Development Cooperation Partnership is an enhanced framework, under which Singapore (through the Singapore Cooperation Programme) and the Republic of Korea will significantly expand our developmental assistance to developing countries. The four key areas of expanded collaboration are (i) launching a joint flagship short senior executive programme in public policy for bright young senior government officials, (ii) extending the geographical reach of our joint programmes to cover Middle East and Africa, (iii) offering training in new fields, including green growth and public governance, and (iv) increasing the number of training places in our programmes, thus providing more training opportunities for developing countries.

Singapore and the Republic of Korea have been jointly providing technical assistance to developing countries under the auspices of the Singapore-Republic of Korea Third Country Training Programme since 1993. To date, over 1000 government officials from countries in the Asia Pacific have benefited from these capacity building programmes in areas like tourism, trade, IT and environment.

The Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and the Cities Development Initiative for Asia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the Singapore-CDIA Third Country Training Programme (TCTP) which will provide joint technical assistance programmes to developing member countries of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). CDIA was co-founded by the ADB and the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in 2007 and is today also co-funded by the Swedish International Development Agency and Spanish Government. The Singapore MFA has entered into this partnership under the auspices of the Singapore Cooperation Programme, and looks forward to collaborating with CDIA to offer training courses, study visits, seminars and workshops to developing ADB member countries. The programmes aim to build human capacity in the area of urban infrastructure services.

The signing ceremony was held at the ADB Headquarters in Manila on 25 May 2010. The signatories were Singapore's Ambassador to the Philippines A Selverajah, CDIA Programme Coordinator Emiel Wegelin and CDIA Programme Manager Michael Lindfield. Also present at the signing ceremony were Mr Chaiyuth Sudthitanakorn, Executive Director for Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore and Thailand, Ms Ursula Schaefer-Preuss, Vice President (Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development), Mr Yao Xianbin, Director General, Regional and Sustainable Development Department, and other senior ADB officials.

In brief remarks after the signing, Ambassador Selverajah welcomed the MOU which underscored Singapore's interest in engaging ADB and CDIA for the long term. Mr Lindfield said that the CDIA regarded its partnership with Singapore as a strategic one and that the CDIA hoped to tap on Singapore's cutting-edge urban solutions so as to share them with CDIA's client cities. Also welcoming the MOU which marks the first collaboration between CDIA and MFA, Mr Wegelin expressed interest in exploring further areas of cooperation between CDIA and Singapore in the future.

Singapore and the Republic of Korea convened the Tenth TCD-KOICA Meeting on 20 April 2010 at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The purpose of this meeting was to review the training courses jointly organised by the Technical Cooperation Directorate (TCD) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) under the Singapore-Republic of Korea Third Country Training Programme, and also to set the direction for our future collaboration in the next two years.

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, and Ms Bok-Hee Kim, Managing Director, Training Programme Department, KOICA, expressed much satisfaction with TCD and KOICA's joint collaboration since 1995. Both delegations agreed that the courses in FY2007, FY2008 and FY2009 had been conducted in an efficient manner and were well-received by course participants. For FY2009, we successfully conducted 6 training courses for 89 officials mainly from the Asia-Pacific region.

For FY2010, both parties agreed to conduct six courses under the Singapore-Republic of Korea Third Country Training Programme: two Cross-Border Training Courses with segments in both the Republic of Korea and Singapore, one course in the Republic of Korea, one course in Singapore, and two courses in our Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Training Centres in Cambodia and Lao PDR. These courses cover areas such as environment, governance, urban development and trade and investment.

The Tenth TCD-KOICA Meeting was concluded with a signing ceremony for the Record of Discussions Document.

Singapore and Japan have signed the Planning Committee Meeting Report on their FY 2010 Annual Workplan of training programmes under the Enhanced Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21). The meeting was held on 13 April 2010 at Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which concluded with the signing of the report officiated by Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, and Mr Shigeo Shimizu, Director, First Country Assistance Planning Division, International Cooperation Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Japan.

The FY 2010 workplan offers some 20 training programmes to developing countries in the Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle East. Programmes to be covered include public governance, economic development, the environment, community policing, urban management, maritime safety and disaster management. In line with the flagship "Joint Initiative on Strategies on Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development in ASEAN" established in 2007, Singapore and Japan will conduct three courses in environment-related areas for ASEAN countries in 2010, as part of their joint commitment to provide environment-related capacity-building training to ASEAN countries over five years from FY 2008 to 2012.

Another noteworthy aspect is a package of three courses to assist APEC member economies in pandemics management, trade and investment and competitiveness in the service sector. This was announced by Singapore at the APEC SOM 1 Plenary Meeting in Hiroshima (February 2010) as Singapore's and Japan's contribution to APEC capacity building in conjunction with Singapore's APEC chairmanship in 2009 and Japan's APEC chairmanship in 2010. Singapore and Japan will also launch a second run of the flagship course on understanding the ASEAN Charter, which is jointly organised with the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC) for ASEC and ASEAN member country officials.

A second signing ceremony took place at the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to seal the agreement between Singapore and Japan to initiate the first ever volunteer programme for Vietnam under JSPP21. The community development project in Phu Tho Province will assist locals in the production, design and marketing of traditional conical hats as a commercially viable enterprise. The Record of Discussions document was signed by Mr Koh Tin Fook and Mr Koki Hirota, Director General, Southeast Asia 1 and Pacific Department, JICA.

20 participants from 9 countries in South, East and West Africa are attending the "Urban and Regional Development Planning and Management" course to be conducted from 5 to 16 April 2010 in the Civil Service College in Singapore. The course is jointly sponsored by the Singapore Cooperation Programme under the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD), and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

In his opening speech, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, highlighted the good tripartite collaboration and thanked the other two partners, as well as the Singapore Civil Service College as the training agency, for "their hard work in bringing this course to fruition". Mr Kazunobu Onogawa, Director UNCRD, and Ms Kyoko Kuwajima, JICA Representative in Singapore, also expressed satisfaction with the tripartite collaboration and welcomed the African participants to the course in their opening speeches.

The 10-day programme will equip participants with the requisite knowledge and analytical skills to design effective, socially acceptable, and environmentally sound sustainable urban and regional development policies and programmes. Participants will learn from Singapore's urban management experience through a series of lectures and discussions, and also through site visits to places such as the National Parks Board, Semakau Offshore Landfill and the Marina Barrage.

The 10th Integrated Narcotics Programme (INEP) was held in Singapore from 22– 26 March 2010. Senior Minister of State (Law and Home Affairs) Assoc Prof Ho Peng Kee was Guest-of-Honour at the Opening Ceremony of the programme.

This training programme is jointly sponsored by the Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Australian Federal Police (AFP). The theme for the 10th run of the INEP was “Challenges in Transnational Illicit-Drug Control”. As Assoc Prof Ho noted during the opening ceremony, “The theme aptly reflects the increasing need for international cooperation in illicit drug control.”

Jointly conducted by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB), Singapore and the Australian Federal Police, the programme brought together 22 participants from the ASEAN countries. Singapore’s CNB shared on Singapore’s multi-pronged anti-drug strategy that integrates the efforts of various local agencies as well as the community, while trainers from the AFP addressed a variety of topics including the Heroin Signature Programme and trans-national drug trafficking trends.

19 participants from nine ASEAN countries (excluding Singapore) are attending a two-week "Preservation of Recorded Heritage "workshop in Singapore from 8 to 19 March 2010. The workshop is conducted under the Singapore-China Third Country Training Programme (TCTP). This is the second activity which the Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is collaborating with the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China to provide dedicated assistance to ASEAN. The first programme, on "Information Network Construction for ASEAN Countries", was conducted in Beijing in 2008.

Explaining how the theme for the second programme was chosen, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for Technical Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who co-hosted the Opening Ceremony with Minister Counsellor (Economic and Commercial) Mr Li Ming Lin from the Embassy of the People's Republic of China, recounted, "When we first began considering suitable themes, we had in mind the needs of ASEAN and the strengths of Singapore and China, and what stood out for us was the rich cultural and historical heritage of Southeast Asia and China." The workshop, conducted by the National Archives of Singapore, will also have guest trainers from the State Archives Administration of China and Renmin University of China. Among other things, the workshop will cover audio visual archives management, preservation imaging, archival repository management, and conservation principles and techniques.

The Singapore-China TCTP recognises that Singapore and China have common and complementary expertise in areas that could be valuable to the development needs of ASEAN and which could contribute to the Initiative for ASEAN Integration. As Singapore and China commemorate the 20th anniversary of our diplomatic relations this year, the Singapore-China TCTP also serves as another milestone in the close bilateral cooperation between the two countries. As Minister Counsellor Li Ming Lin from the Embassy of the People's Republic of China noted during the Opening Ceremony, "In cooperating on the TCTP, both Singapore and China have realised that we possess complementary expertise in areas that could be shared with other countries. And through this cooperation, mutual understanding between China and ASEAN is also enhanced."

The 4th St Jude-Viva Forum in Pediatric Oncology was held in Singapore from 3 to 5 March 2010. Senior Minister of State, Dr Balaji Sadasivan was Guest-of-Honour at the official Opening Ceremony of the Forum.

Organised by the St Jude Children's Research Hospital, Viva Foundation For Children With Cancer and National University Health System, this Forum brings together top world experts and regional leaders in the treatment and research of leukemia and lymphoma in children. The objective of the Forum was for participants to learn from each other in the areas of scientific research, clinical cases and identification of management issues.

Working with the organisers, the Singapore Cooperation Programme awarded Travelling Fellowships for 30 professionals from developing countries in the region to attend the Forum. The Forum was a useful platform for the professionals to interact and share experiences with the experts, bringing back home with them valuable new insights and knowledge.

The Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) welcomed 18 officials from ASEAN who participated in the "Checkpoint Competencies in People Clearance" course held in Singapore from 2 March to 8 March 2010. The 5-day course was sponsored by MFA under the ASEAN Training Award (ATA).

Experts from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) of Singapore, imparted knowledge and skills in performing passengers' clearance at border checkpoints and in forgery detection skills. Participants also visited the Woodlands Command to get a first-hand experience of the passenger clearance methods adopted at one of the world's busiest land checkpoints.

The sense of camaraderie of the group grew stronger by the day, even as they applied themselves seriously to the lectures and discussion groups. One participant, Ms Nguyen Thi Binh Phuong, Deputy Head of the Immigration Inspection Team from Hanoi, Viet Nam, commented that she had picked up useful information relevant to her course of work and would share it with the immigration officers back home.

The 4th TICA-TCD Technical Cooperation Meeting (TCM) was held in Singapore on 18 February 2010. The annual meeting provides an avenue for joint planning and review of training courses co-sponsored jointly by the Technical Cooperation Directorate (TCD) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Thailand International Development Cooperation Agency (TICA) under the Thailand- Singapore Third Country Training Programme (TCTP).

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for TCD, and Mr Apinan Phatarathiyanon, Director-General for TICA, reaffirmed TCD’s and TICA’s commitment to their joint partnership, which started in 1997. The meeting was fruitful and substantial. Both sides noted with satisfaction that seven training courses were successfully conducted in 2009 for 135 officials from the ASEAN countries and Timor Leste. They further agreed to continue implementing, reviewing and improving the joint training under the broader Thailand-Singapore Civil Service Exchange Programme (CSEP) framework


The meeting concluded with site visits to the Marina Barrage and the Sustainable Singapore Gallery.

The Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Commonwealth Secretariat co-organised two consecutive 10-day training courses from 1 to 12 February 2010, on "Better Governance - Issues and Challenges in Corruption Control for Senior Policy Makers" and "Developing e-Government and e-Business Strategies". Conducted by the Civil Service College Singapore and e-Government Leadership Centre respectively, the courses were attended by a total of 41 senior government officials from 25 Commonwealth member countries.

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for Technical Cooperation of Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, co-officiated the opening ceremony for the two courses with two representatives from the Commonwealth Secretariat – Dr Roger Koranteng, Adviser for Governance, and Mr Anthony Ming, Adviser for Public Sector Informatics and Head of Commonwealth Connects Secretariat.

In his opening address, Mr Koh underscored the Singapore-Commonwealth Secretariat Third Country Training Programme as one of the longest standing and most successful collaborations the Singapore Cooperation Programme has with development partners, and expressed confidence that participants would be able to take in key learning points from Singapore’s experience in both the courses.

Participants in the "Better Governance - Issues and Challenges in Corruption Control for Senior Policy Makers" course delved into the strategic, organisational and operational issues of good governance and combating corruption. Dr Koranteng in his opening address said that the course would provide “the learning opportunity for participants to gain a deeper understanding of anti-corruption issues, as well as the design and implementation of specific strategies to reduce corruption within their own countries using the Singaporean experience as a guide".

In the "Developing e-Government and e-Business Strategies" course, participants learnt about the strategic importance of developing national Information Communication and Technology (ICT) strategies and undertaking business process re-engineering. They were also introduced to the Commonwealth Secretariat’s model on ICT development. Mr Ming in his opening address remarked that as “many governments are now embarking on the journey to provide government services online to improve customer service, transparency and efficiency”, the “Singapore experience will be invaluable to obtain lessons learned and best practices when implementing these initiatives.”

To maximise value to the participants, both courses integrated site visits and experiential learning with classroom briefings. The Commonwealth Secretariat (Governance and Institutional Development Division) also value-added to the training through the active contributions of Dr Koranteng and Mr Ming who served as resource persons.

As course representative of the “Developing e-Government and e-Business Strategies” course, Mrs Festina Shale Bakwena, Permanent Secretary of Botswana Ministry of Transport and Communications, thanked Singapore and the Commonwealth Secretariat for sponsoring the training and said: “We look forward to a time when participating countries and individuals undergoing this training will showcase success stories on e-Government.”

The "Airport Terminal Operations and Management" course was jointly organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and our partner the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO) under the auspices of the Singapore Cooperation Programme. It was conducted from 11 to 22 January 2010 by the Singapore Aviation Academy, and was the second programme under the Singapore and Germany's joint initiative to provide technical assistance to Afghanistan. The 16 participants who attended the course were from the Afghan Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, and the Kabul and Herat airports in Afghanistan.

The course was specially customised by the Singapore Aviation Academy to provide the Afghan participants with an in-depth understanding of the complexities of running an airport terminal and the common problems faced by terminal managers in their daily operations. Participants made site visits to Singapore's Changi Airport to better understand the day-to-day operations of an international airport.

In his closing speech, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director of Technical Cooperation, expressed his wish that participants would be able to "adopt or adapt” some of the knowledge, ideas and procedures learnt from the course to suit the specific needs of Afghanistan. The Ambassador of Germany to Singapore His Excellency Jörg Ranau, in his closing speech, provided a general overview of Germany's assistance to Afghanistan, placing our joint training in the context of the reconstruction of Afghanistan. Singapore is glad to be able to partner Germany in providing technical assistance to Afghanistan, on top of the bilateral assistance that we provide Afghanistan in areas such as healthcare, trade promotion, public administration and English language.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are co-organising a 10-day course on "Climate Change, Energy and the Environment" from 18 to 29 January 2010. This is one of 19 joint courses conducted under the auspices of the Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21) for the current year. 15 government officials from the ASEAN member countries are attending the course.

Conducted by the Singapore Environment Institute, the course addresses the strategic importance of mitigating climate change and implementing energy-efficient practices. Participants will learn from Singapore's experience on how to tackle the impact of climate change on built and natural environments. Besides the lectures and discussions, site visits and a one-day Programme for Environmental Experiential Learning, or PEEL in short, are arranged for the participants to give them first-hand insights into the environmental sustainability solutions adopted by Singapore.

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for Technical Cooperation of Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and Ms Kyoko Kuwajima, JICA Representative in Singapore, co-officiated the opening ceremony of the course. In his opening address, Mr Koh acknowledged the JSPP21 as one of the most successful collaborations the Singapore Cooperation Programme has with development partners, and was confident that participants would be able to take in key learning points from Singapore’s experience.

Ms Kuwajima affirmed the fruitful partnership and commented that the JSPP21 has made noteworthy progress over the years since 1997, in sharing the experiences and knowledge necessary for economic and social development with recipient countries. She added that environment, energy and sustainable development are flagship areas that the JSPP21 places its priority on.

Singapore was selected to present its case study paper on "Innovative Institutional Arrangement - Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Training Centres" at the High-Level Meeting on South-South and Triangular Cooperation on 14 December 2009 at the World Bank Main Complex in Washington DC. The Meeting was co-organized by the Special Unit for South-South Cooperation of the United Nations Development Programme, International Finance Corporation of the World Bank, and Japan International Cooperation Agency, as part of the 2nd Global South-South Development (GSSD) Expo and in conjunction with the Sixth United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation.

The Meeting, attended by more than 100 delegates responsible for technical cooperation from many countries as well as representatives from various UN agencies, was geared towards the exchange of solutions in policy, strategy, institutional and financial capacity in South-South Cooperation.

In the Singapore presentation, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director Technical Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, elaborated on the innovative concept of establishing IAI training centres in the capital cities of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam to accelerate ASEAN integration and enhance regional competitiveness. The Singapore Cooperation Programme's best practices, such as commitment to human resource capacity building, consultation with participating countries, partners and training agencies, and compatibility in development requirements with what Singapore has expertise in, were highlighted.

To ensure that the recipient countries' priority needs and ASEAN goals are addressed, Singapore sets up an effective feedback channel to involve stakeholders in the planning and implementation processes.

Mr Koh concluded by putting forward four key challenges that technical cooperation agencies and the donor community are likely to face: (i) responding to changing regional and global landscape, like environmental sustainability, emerging diseases and pandemics, trade and economics, (ii) doing more with same or less resources, (iii) achieving win-win outcomes and (iv) creating synergistic partnerships.

Singapore attended the High-Level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation, held from 1-3 December at the United Nations Office in Nairobi.

The Conference was convened by a UN resolution to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries. Participants to the Conference exchanged views and experiences in the field of technical cooperation, and discussed ways of enhancing cooperation between developing countries, particularly technical assistance programmes, so as to meet the Millennium Development Goals. The outcome document of the High-Level Conference will be known as the Nairobi outcome document of the High Level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation.

In a statement delivered at the plenary meeting of the Conference, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director of Technical Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, expressed Singapore's support for South-South cooperation. He outlined Singapore's technical cooperation with developing countries under the Singapore Cooperation Programme and emphasized the need for flexibility and innovation in formulating technical cooperation programmes. The statement is reproduced below:

Mr President, Excellencies and friends,

1 I sincerely thank the Government of Kenya and the United Nations for hosting this important Conference, and for this opportunity to deliver a statement on behalf of Singapore.

2 Globalisation and development cooperation are here to stay. As globalisation marches on, we all share common challenges to maximise the opportunities that globalisation and development cooperation afford in improving human lives and helping to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

3 Singapore is doing its part to share our development experience with other fellow developing countries through the Singapore Cooperation Programme. The Singapore Cooperation Programe is Singapore’s contribution to South-South Cooperation, North-South Cooperation and Triangular Cooperation. It reflects our own strong belief that human resource capacity building, through education and training, is one of the best ways to achieve development.

4 Since its establishment in 1992, over 63,000 participants from about 160 countries have taken part in the Singapore Cooperation Programme. Over the years, the Singapore Cooperation Programme has kept pace with development and priorities. We have given greater importance and emphasis to areas of current importance, such as the environment, sustainable development, capacity building for trade and economic development, and transboundary health and pandemic issues. In these areas, we have acquired knowledge and experience in water management, urban planning, management of liveable cities, climate change, and the operational management of communicable diseases like SARS and influenza pandemic. We are happy to share our experiences with our friends from developing countries through the training programmes conducted under the Singapore Cooperation Programme. In the process, we have also learnt much from our friends. Our tag-line is therefore “Joining Hands, Making Friends”.

5 Apart from South-South Cooperation, Singapore also partners with more than 30 developed countries and international organisations to conduct training programmes, which fully maximise the knowledge, skills and experience of ourself and our partners for the benefit of developing countries.

6 Singapore believes that South-South Cooperation is a process of mutual learning and mutual benefit. While each country is unique and no two countries are the same because of social, economic and political differences, we can always either adopt best practices from each other, or to adapt such best practices to suit each country’s individual needs.

7 In conclusion, we believe that South-South Cooperation will bring about maximum results if each of us play our part, contributing where we have the knowledge, experience and resources to do so, and for each developing country to adopt or adapt policies and actions that will improve and enhance the welfare and economic progress of all people. In the process all of us will help to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. As South-South Cooperation has wide participation across the world, and no one single narrow system or concept will meet all our requirements and expectations, we should approach South-South Cooperation with some flexibility and a lot of thinking and innovation. If this is done, I am confident all of us will achieve a win-win situation.

8 Finally I would like to thank you, Mr President, and the Conference delegates for giving me the floor.

Fifteen countries in East and the Pacific convened in Singapore from 1 to 2 December 2009 for the Singapore-UNICEF Regional Early Childhood Policy Review Seminar: Sustainable Policies for Early Childhood Development (ECD). The seminar was sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and UNICEF, and organised by the Asia-Pacfic Network for Early Childhood (ARNEC) and SEED Institute. The seminar also coincided with the launch of the new ARNEC Secretariat base in Singapore at the SEED Institute.

The Seminar's opening ceremony was officiated by Singapore Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports Mrs. Yu-Foo Yee Shoon and UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office (EAPRO) Deputy Regional Director Dr. Festo Kavishe. This was followed by a signing ceremony by ARNEC's core members (UNICEF, UNESCO, Save the Children, Plan International and Open Society Foundation) which marked the relocation of the ARNEC Secretariat from Bangkok to Singapore. In her opening remarks, Minister of State Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon noted that ARNEC's "presence in Singapore would contribute towards accelerating the development of the early childhood sector here and regionally and will provide an ideal platform for policymakers and practitioners to share and learn from each other." As host of the ARNEC Secretariat, Singapore looks forward to facilitating even better access for regional countries to research, policies and best practices in the area of ECD.

The two-day Seminar aimed to improve coordination and collaboration among key sectors such as education, health, child protection, and women’s affairs, so as to achieve holistic ECD policies in East Asia and Pacific countries. Specifically, it focused more attention on the aspects of costing, finance and governance which were critical to ensure effective and implementable ECD policies. Over 100 policy makers, academics and early childhood professionals from the fifteen countries participated in seminar discussions.

The Seminar provided participating countries a valuable opportunity to present their draft ECD policies for expert comment, peer review and support. Mr Prak Kosal, Deputy Director (Early Childhood Education) of Cambodia's Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports told us he found the forum useful in providing learning points that could be applied to the drafting of ECD policies in his country.

The 8th Central Party School (CPS) delegation from China is in Singapore from 4 to 13 November 2009 on a study visit to learn about Singapore's experience in public management and urban development. The 42-member delegation is led by Mr Luo Zongyi, Member of the School Committee of CPS and Director-General of the General Office of CPS.

Deputy Secretary (International Cooperation) Mr Lee Chiong Giam and Director (Technical Cooperation) Mr Koh Tin Fook from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
together with Deputy CEO of the Civil Service College, Mr Yee Ping Yi, welcomed the CPS delegation at the opening ceremony held at the Ministry on 5 November.

The CPS delegation will visit the Housing Development Board (HDB), the Urban Redevelopment Agency (URA), the Public Utilities Board (PUB), the Ministry of National Development (MND) and the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), among other agencies. Visits to a Community Club and Meet-the-People Sessions have also been arranged. Through such visits and discussions, the delegation will have the opportunity to interact with Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Mr Lim Swee Say, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed, Senior Minister of State for National Development and Education Ms Grace Fu, and Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Manpower Mr Li Yi Shyan.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore and the Royal Norwegian Embassy have co-organised a "Seminar on Climate Change and Sustainable Energy: Renewable Energy - Maximising Opportunities for Developing Countries of Asia" from 2 to 6 November 2009, under the auspices of the Singapore-Norway Third Country Training Programme. The 5-day seminar was attended by 26 participants from 10 countries, namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, Lao PDR, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Timor Leste, Thailand and Vietnam. This seminar was conducted under the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP).

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director of Technical Cooperation, highlighted in his opening speech that "Climate change is a very serious and long-term challenge facing mankind and that failure to address this critical issue can further cause both economic and political disclocations." He also thanked Norway, which has a wealth of experience and is committed to addressing climate change, for partnering Singapore in the seminar. In her opening speech, Ambassador of Norway to Singapore Her Excellency Janne Julsrud stressed "the importance Norway's government places on efforts to combat climate change and its willingness to assist and partner where possible." She also said that Norway would like to share with the participants some of the challenges, the possibilities, and the opportunities and potential solutions to the problems their countries will face.

The seminar addressed the issues of climate change and how responsible solutions relating to renewable energy can maximise sustainable growth opportunities in Asian developing countries. To complement the presentations given by the Singapore Environment Institute (SEI), Norway had engaged 10 Norwegian speakers, coming both from Norway and from the region, to share their experience and knowledge with the seminar participants, in areas like Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), Renewable Energy and Sustainable Growth. In addition, the participants had the opportunity to go for field visits where they got a first-hand view of some of Singapore's clean energy solutions and applications.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore welcomed a group of young civil servants from the State of Minas Gerais, Federative Republic of Brazil, for a study visit programme from 26 October to 20 November 2009. The delegation, made up of 14 young civil servants representing different state-level ministries or “Secretariats” of Minas Gerais, is led by Mr Iran Pordeus, Assistant Coordinator of the State Results Unit in the Secretariat for Planning and Management. The four-week study programme is sponsored by the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) and coordinated by the Singapore Cooperation Enterprise (SCE), with support from the Minas Gerais State Secretariat for Economic Development.

Addressing the young civil servants at the Welcome Ceremony for the delegation, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director of Technical Cooperation, said, "I strongly encourage you to take full advantage of this opportunity to immerse yourself in a different landscape that is Singapore, and to take in all the experiences and knowledge you will be exposed to in the next four weeks. Ask as many questions as you can and share your experiences as well, as I am sure this is a two-way process. Singapore has also many things we can learn from you."

This is the first in-depth programme designed for officials from one of the key states in Brazil. The programme was organised at the formal request of the Minas Gerais government under its “Young Mineiros – Citizens of the World” exchange initiative, to provide young civil servants the opportunity to experience operations in different business environments, centers of excellence and government institutions overseas through total immersion training. The objective of the four-week study programme in Singapore is to give the young civil servants a broad perspective on the role of the government in building a first-class public service for a successful and vibrant nation, specifically in areas like good governance, civil service excellence, economic development, national planning and policies, workforce development, electronic-government initiatives and the management of public services.

Mr. Luiz Antonio Athayde, Undersecretary of the Minas Gerais State Secretariat for Economic Development stated that “This initiative is a milestone in the relationship between Singapore and Minas Gerais. I believe that one of the most relevant investments that the state can do, is to get involved in the preparation of generations of young talents to face challenges in the global economy. This is the first programme of this kind that Brazil is doing with Singapore. This initiative will pave a better understanding between Singapore and Minas Gerais and strengthen ties between our people.”

The study programme will allow the young civil servants to appreciate and understand the various considerations underpinning the Singapore Government’s initiatives, policies and development schemes. This knowledge will be further reinforced with field visits to various ministries and agencies, where the participants will get a first-hand view of the Singapore public administration system in action as well as interact and exchange ideas with their Singapore counterparts.

At the request of the Government of Sri Lanka, Singapore has customised a "Public Sector Leadership Programme for Senior Officials from Sri Lanka", to be held from 26 October to 6 November 2009. The programme is being conducted by the Singapore Civil Service College (CSCI) for a delegation of 25 officials, many of whom are holding Deputy Secretary apppointments. Through this programme, the officials will gain insights into Singapore's approach to public policy and planning, public sector leadership and best practices in public sector management. The Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) is hosting the delegation through the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP).

Besides briefings and discussions facilitated by experienced Singapore officials, the Sri Lankan senior officials could also look forward to learning journeys to the Public Service Division, Seletar Aerospace Hub, HDB Housing Estates, etc.

Click here to read official press release by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Technical Cooperation Directorate of the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Colombo Plan Secretariat joined hands to organise a training course on Public Governance and Administration in Singapore from 7 to 11 September 2009, aimed at sharing Singapore's experience in public administration with Colombo Plan member countries. The programme was organised under the Singapore-Colombo Plan Third Country Training Programme and conducted by the Singapore Civil Service College.

Some 17 participants from 13 Colombo Plan member countries in Southeast and South Asia, South Pacific and the Middle East attended the 5-day course, which focused on the fundamentals of good governance. Participants learnt about Singapore's experience in translating these fundamentals into policies and practice in the civil service. They also learnt about financial and budgetary process in the Singapore Civil Service, and how e-Government services have contributed towards better service delivery and public sector excellence.

The Secretary-General of the Colombo Plan Secretariat, Dato' Patricia Chia Yoon-Moi was present at the Closing Ceremony. Addressing the 13 participants from the Colombo Plan member countries present, she emphasised that the need for good governance was common to every country:"There is no right or wrong government, all we need is a good government."

Dato’ Patricia Chia and Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director Technical Cooperation of the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also discussed on improving future collaboration. To promote good governance and economic development in Colombo Plan member countries, Singapore and the Colombo Plan have jointly organised training courses for more than 450 senior government officials from the Colombo Plan member countries, since 1996.

Singapore and Germany joined hands to provide training to management staff of technical and vocational institutions in China’s Liaoning province through a course on "Technical and Vocational Educational & Training (TVET) Education Concepts and Academic Management" held in Singapore from 24 August to 4 September 2009. The course was co-sponsored by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the German aid agency Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) under the auspices of the Singapore-Germany Third Country Training Programme.

Singapore and GTZ have been collaborating to provide technical assistance to developing countries in TVET since 1993. To date, close to 30 training courses have been organised for over 370 government officials from the Asia-Pacific in areas such as management of TVET institutions, multimedia development and internet technology. An enhanced Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Singapore and GTZ in December 2007, to expand the scope of our cooperation..

This 10-day course conducted by Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) acquainted participants with the latest innovative concepts in the management of TVET institutions, curriculum development and pedagogy skills. Participants also gained insight into Singapore’s education system and NYP’s philosophy and approach to technical and vocational education, which is aimed at fostering innovation and creative talent.

This year's seminar on “Community Policing Strategies Evolving from the Koban System of Japan and Neighbourhood Police Centre System of Singapore” was held in Singapore from 17 to 21 August 2009. It marks the 15th year of partnership between Singapore and Japan in sharing their respective experiences in community policing with developing countries under the Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21). It was jointly sponsored by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Singapore Cooperation Programme and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and organised by the Singapore Police Force (SPF).

19 senior and mid-level officers from the security agencies of Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Maldives, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste and Vietnam participated in the seminar.

The programme's aim was to provide participants the opportunity to learn about the Japanese Koban System and Singapore’s Neighbourhood Police Centre (NPC) System and the importance of these systems in community policing. Participants learnt about the current and emerging crime trends and their implications on the community policing strategies in Japan and Singapore. They also benefited from case studies of how the Koban System of community policing was adopted and adapted in various countries. Furthermore, participants had a chance to visit the various SPF Units in Singapore, including the land divisional headquarters and the NPCs.

Emphasizing on the importance of community policing in Singapore. Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Singapore Ministry of Education and Home Affairs Mr Masagos Zulkifli Bin Masagos Mohamad reiterated at the opening ceremony that "Community policing will continue to be Singapore’s key policing strategy. This sense of ownership by the community is often the most crucial element in keeping our homes safe".

The Japanese Ambassador to Singapore, His Excellency, Mr Makoto Yamanaka highlighted the importance of sharing Singapore and Japan's knowledge with developing countries: "This seminar on the community-policing is designed to boost the self-help efforts of each country by utilizing the experience and expertise of both Japan and Singapore." The Ambassador also hoped that this opportunity to learn about the community policing system would improve safety and security in the recipient countries, thus ensuring peace, stability and economic growth.

We spoke with one of the participants, Ms Genelle M Gulmatico, Chief of the General Doctrine Development Division of the Philippine National Police, on her impressions of the programme. Ms Gulmatico found the knowledge she had acquired extremely relevant to the policy aspects of her work. She hoped that the Philippine National Police could adapt some aspects of Japan’s Koban system and Singapore’s NPP system, to help further reduce crime rates in her country.

Singapore and Germany will be collaborating for the first time to provide technical assistance to Afghanistan in the field of civil aviation. A Declaration of Intent between the Governments of Singapore and Germany was signed on 20 August 2009 by Singapore's Ambassador in Berlin, Mr Jacky Foo and Germany's Special Commissioner for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ambassador Bernd Muetzelburg at the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO) in Berlin.

Click here to read official press release by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Singapore Government awarded 32 undergraduate university scholarships to students from ASEAN countries under the Singapore Scholarship Programme at an award ceremony held on 5 August at the Marina Mandarin Hotel. The Singapore Scholarship Programme, in its eleventh year, is a government-to-government initiative that provides students from member countries of ASEAN an opportunity to pursue a sound tertiary education in Singapore.

Initiated by then-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong at the 6th ASEAN Summit in 1998 during the Asian financial crisis, the Singapore Scholarship Programme has awarded 520 scholarships to date. Singapore Scholars can pursue a course from a wide range of disciplines offered by our three local universities - Nanyang Technological University, National University of Singapore, and Singapore Management University.

At the award ceremony attended by the ASEAN Heads of Missions, the scholars' families and the scholars' host families in Singapore, the Guest-of-Honour, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr Balaji Sadasivan urged the new scholars to "dare to dream and make a difference" to themselves, their countries and the ASEAN community.

Click here to read full speech by Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr Balaji Sadasivan

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore recently welcomed a 29-member delegation from the Republic of Tatarstan of the Russian Federation, for a study visit programme from 29 June to 10 July 2009. The delegation, which comprised of two Deputy Prime Ministers, 14 key cabinet ministers as well as other senior officials, were in Singapore to learn about Singapore’s approach to governance and public administration. The study visit was organised under the auspices of the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP), and jointly conducted by the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP) and the Civil Service College (CSC).

This was the first time that such an in-depth visit programme was designed for the cabinet and senior officials of one of the key regions in Russia. The programme arose from a request by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Tatarstan, HE Rustam Minnikhanov to Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew. The Tatar leaders had expressed interest in learning from Singapore’s experience in various areas concerning public policy and management, particularly in areas such as corruption and crisis management.

During the visit, the delegation participated in briefings, interactive group discussions and case studies, which shared Singapore’s experiences in public governance, administration policies and strategies. This was further reinforced with field visits to various ministries and local public agencies, which provided a first-hand view of the public administration system in action.

The delegation's senior officials, led by Deputy Prime Minister Zilya Valeeva, called on Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew during their stay. Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo, also hosted the delegation to a lively breakfast session.

Singapore welcomed a high-level group of 35 senior policy makers from Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda and Tanzania to Singapore for the Third South-South Study Visit on “Skills and Knowledge for Sustained Development in Africa”. The group, which comprised 9 Ministers, as well as Permanent Secretaries and other senior leaders, attended the study visit from 22 to 26 June 2009 under the auspices of the Singapore-World Bank Third Country Training Programme (TCTP).

The South-South Study Visit was organised with the objective of sharing Singapore's experience in skills and knowledge development. The programme focused on how the formal education and training system is linked to the skills associated with a country's development strategy and growth of industry and private enterprise. This third visit complements two earlier study visits organised in 2006 and 2008, which looked at Singapore's education system, including its technical and vocational education.

These three high level study visits for senior African policy makers have been conducted under the Singapore-World Bank Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2006, which specifically provides for joint technical assistance programmes to advance development in Africa.

In his opening address Dr Balaji Sadasivan, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs said that “Singapore is heartened with the progress made in many parts of Africa, where good governance, stability, and capable leadership have made a difference. We believe that Africa has much potential to develop its vast human capital for economic and social development. Havard/Oxford-educated economist Dambisi Moyo in her ground breaking bestseller 'Dead Aid' puts it starkly that ‘direct foreign aid to Africa had bred dependency and trapped nations in poverty’. We in Singapore have learnt that there is no alternative to achieving progress than through hard work, economic development and trade. Increasingly there is realisation too in Africa that aid alone is not the answer to Africa's challenges. Such development bodes well for Africa.” Dr Balaji hoped that Singapore’s development experience could be useful to our friends in Africa, in their developmental journey.

Mr Yaw Ansu, World Bank's Sector Director for Human Development in the Africa Region,said in his opening address that “For the World Bank.. the idea of a knowledge Bank is indeed among President Zoellick's six top priorities for the institution. I am thus very grateful to the Singapore government for making it possible for the World Bank Africa Region to contribute to this institutional priority. I am particularly happy that our effort is responding to feedback from our partner countries from past study visits. They have placed a particularly high value on the sharing of experiences and knowledge exchange with development practitioners that these study visits foster and facilitate. The rich program that we are about to enjoy in the coming week promises to provide plentiful opportunities for interaction, both with veteran Singaporean practitioners and among us participants as well.”

Through this knowledge and information exchange, Singapore hopes to contribute to human resource capacity-building to advance development in Africa, in partnership with the World Bank.


Click here for opening address delivered by Dr Balaji Sadasivan, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.

Click here for opening address delivered by Mr Yaw Ansu, Sector Director for Human Development in the Africa Region, World Bank.

This year’s Regional Trade Policy Course (RTPC) for Asia Pacific, a collaboration between Singapore and the World Trade Organisation (WTO), had its opening ceremony at the Law Faculty of the National University of Singapore (NUS) on 19 May 2009. Prof Tan Cheng Han, Dean of the Law Faculty of NUS, hosted the opening ceremony and graciously welcomed the 25 participants from 22 countries from the Asia-Pacific region.

Singapore is proud to host this annual programme for the third consecutive year. All the three runs have been co-organised and co-sponsored by the WTO and the Law Faculty of the National University of Singapore (NUS) and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP). Held from 18 May to 7 August, the three-month course aims to equip developing countries to participate more effectively in the multilateral trading system and to harness trade as an engine for growth.

"Developing countries and small states like Singapore have gained much from the strengthening of the WTO system, which is inclusive, and allows all member states to participate in the creation of global trade policy and formulate the rules governing international trade", said Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate (TCD), Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore (MFA), in his address at the opening ceremony. He added that Singapore is committed to helping other developing countries maximise benefit from participating effectively in the multilateral trading system by hosting the RTPC and other trade-related programmes under the SCP.

In his address at the opening ceremony, Mr Raymond Krommenacker, Regional Coordinator for Asian and Pacific Economies, World Trade Organisation said " The main objective of the course is to increase the number of government officials from developing and least-developed countries and customs territories, countries in accession and observers in Asia-Pacific with a solid foundation of knowledge on the WTO, widening their understanding of trade policy matters, the multilateral trading system, international trade law and the functioning of the WTO."

In response to an initiative from the WTO, a Patron has been appointed for the first time for the third RTPC held in Singapore. As Patron, Ms Indranee Rajah, Deputy Speaker of Parliament and Member of Parliament for the Tanjong Pagar Group Representation Constituency, who is well-versed in international trade, will be a mentor and a source of guidance and inspiration to the RTPC participants.

The Annual Planning Committee Meeting for the Enhanced Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21) was held in Singapore on 16 April 2009. Present at the meeting were representatives from the MFA Singapore, Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy of Japan in Singapore and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Japanese delegation was led by Mr Hideki Kusakabe, Senior Coordinator, Grant Aid and Technical Cooperation Division, International Cooperation Bureau, Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Following the meeting, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for Technical Cooperation, MFA Singapore and Mr Kusakabe signed the Report of the Annual Planning Committee Meeting, which included the work-plan for the work-year 2009. The work-plan provides for the conduct of 19 training courses in various fields such water resources management, sustainable development, trade promotion and intellectual property. Both sides agreed that the partnership has become an important collaboration in providing development assistance to developing countries from many regions, including the Asia Pacific and Africa. The partnership is also a positive reflection of the good bilateral relations between Singapore and Japan.

The Japan-Singapore collaboration began in 1994 and was formally established in May 1997 as the JSPP21. In December 2007, the Foreign Ministers of both Japan and Singapore re-affirmed the collaboration by signing the Memorandum of Discussion (MOD) on the Enhanced JSPP21. The partnership has provided training assistance to more than 3,700 participants in the various development fields.

The re-emergence of dengue has posed a serious public health threat in the Asia-Pacific region, creating a need to strengthen dengue surveillance, prevention and control systems.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore (MFA), the World Health Organisation (WHO), and the National Environmental Agency of Singapore (NEA), co-organised the first Asia-Pacific Dengue Workshop from 10 March to 19 March 2009.

The 10-day workshop, conducted under the auspices of the Singapore-WHO Joint Training Programme, brought together 42 participants from 29 countries across the Asia Pacific region. Also supporting the workshop were Nanyang Polytechnic, Regional Emerging Diseases Intervention (REDI) Centre, and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC).

Addressing programmatic gaps, one of the workshop's objective was to strengthen dengue laboratory and vector surveillance in the Asia Pacific region, so as to better pre-empt and respond to dengue epidemics. The workshop provided programme managers, laboratory personnel and other key personnel with important tools to address dengue outbreak preparedness and served as a useful platform to share knowledge and experience on dengue surveillance and vector control.

Mr Andrew Tan, Chief Executive Officer of NEA, in his welcome address cautioned against complacency and highlighted the need to sustain dengue prevention efforts. Mr Tan also mentioned that by sharing Singapore's experiences, and by working with regional countries to develop a good surveillance mechanism, dengue could be dealt with more effectively.

WHO Southeast Asia Region's Communicable Diseases Control (CDC) Coordinator, Dr Chusak Prasittisuk, highlighted the increased number of deaths caused by dengue in Southeast Asian countries, from 1202 in year 2003 to 3255 last year. Dr Prasittisuk also said, "The medical community may need more training because the younger generation of practitioners may not be aware of the early detection and proper case management. This is our big concern."

The keynote speaker, Professor Duane Gubler, Director of Program on Emerging Infectious Diseases, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School, elaborated on the challenges faced in the fight against dengue, including the movement of viruses with more people travelling across countries and more people living in dense urban areas, and the lack of effective sustainable strategies for mosquito control.

50 Thai emergency department physicians were in Singapore for training on real life trauma cases at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH)'s Trauma Training Centre. This collaboration was part of the Singapore - Thailand Civil Service Exchange Programme, supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Singapore Cooperation Programme. The physicians were here from 22 February to 7 March 2009. Included in the programme was an intensive 2-day Advanced Trauma Life Support course and the 10th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Society of Emergency Medicine in Singapore (27 - 28 February). They were also attached to the hospital's emergency department and networked with regional practitioners. On their return to Thailand, the physicians will return to the various provinces to help manage emergency and trauma cases.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and the Colombo Plan Secretariat have joined hands to co-sponsor a post-graduate scholarship programme. Up to two post-graduate scholarships will be offered annually for government officials of Colombo Plan member countries, tenable at the National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University of Singapore and the Singapore Management University.

The inaugural post-graduate scholarship has been awarded to Mr Kiran Prasad Acharya from the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, Nepal. Mr Acharya is pursuing a Master of Information Technology in Business (Financial Services) at the Singapore Management University, starting in January 2009.

Singapore joined the Colombo Plan in 1959 and had benefited from technical assistance provided by the Colombo Plan in the past. In return, Singapore has, as far back as 1961, been providing technical assistance to Colombo Plan member countries through the Singapore Colombo Plan Training Award Scheme and the Singapore-Colombo Plan TCTP. To date, Singapore and the Colombo Plan have jointly trained more than 400 senior government officials from Colombo Plan member countries in various capacity-building programmes. More than 38,000 government officials from the Colombo Plan member countries have also benefited from training under the Singapore Cooperation Programme.

Said Mr Kiran Prasad Acharya: “As the first Singapore-Colombo Plan Post-graduate scholar, I am extremely grateful to the Government of Singapore and the Colombo Plan Secretariat for awarding me this post-graduate scholarship. While I am proud to have won the scholarship, I am also conscious that I have a big responsibility to achieve my ambition to be a "Business IT Leader" who could contribute to the development and modernisation of Nepal”.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the Singapore Cooperation Programme, awards fellowships to under-graduate students through the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) DUO-Singapore Exchange Fellowship Programme. The objective is to promote learning and understanding between the European ASEM member countries and Singapore. The Programme allows Singaporean and European students to spend one or two semesters of studies in universities in Europe and Singapore respectively, through an exchange system.

Since 2002, a total of 267 students have been awarded the ASEM DUO-Singapore Exchange Fellowship. Participating in this Programme offers an excellent opportunity for students to make friends, to build networks and to learn about other cultures. The following exchange students attest to this.


"Coming to Singapore as an exchange student from Sweden has been very interesting and enriching. This part of the world is very different from a Scandinavian country in terms of both culture and climate. Having countries as Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam within two hours by flight makes Singapore much bigger than it looks like on the map. Although Singapore is still a country far beyond its neighbours when it comes to technology, education, safety and quality of life, I will always remember the exchange period here in Singapore as a tough, instructive and inspiring study period combined with unforgettable relaxing trips around in southeast Asia."

Mr Stig Joel Engstrom, Linkoping University, Sweden who studied in NTU during Semester 1 AY2008/2009

"It was a great experience to study in Singapore. Today, racism is spread all over the world and when people from different cultures meet, opposition often arise. Singapore is a good example that those kinds of clashes don’t have to exist. I made a lot of new good friends from all over the world, and even though I’ve never had problems with people from other cultures before, the time in Singapore gave me a deeper understanding for other people’s behaviour. I think it would be useful for many people to spend some time in Singapore and see different races with various religions live side by side in harmony."

Mr Carl Christian Emanuel Rurfors, Lund University, Sweden who studied in SMU for Semester 1 AY2008/2009

"As a student of Social and Cultural Anthropology from Germany, specializing on Southeast Asia, I could not have chosen a more challenging and excellent place of study than the National University of Singapore… This opportunity I was given by the generous Duo Award Scholarship program, for which I am most grateful.

I particularly enjoyed the two courses on S.E.Asian Literature and on S.E.Asian music. The latter I could complement by practical involvement in learning to play gamelan, both in practical gamelan courses within the SEAsian Studies Department as well as in courses offered off campus, such as Javanese dance at Artifats…

When, years ago at my home university I met and became friends with a Singapore exchange student who was a Duo scholar herself, I never envisaged I would one day have the privilege to become a Duo Award recipient myself. I now gratefully look back on a semester in Singapore which will certainly be an important stepping stone for my future university studies and later my professional career."

Ms Mirjam Hasita Sonn, Albert-Ludwigs University of Freiburg, Germany who studied in NUS for Semester 1 AY2008/2009

"I am proud of having had the possibility to spend a study-abroad semester in Singapore. My expectations of the university, the studies and the country itself were exceeded by far. Different educational measures showed me a new perspective of studying and my goal to get to know the social components was accomplished with the help of friendly Singaporeans. Furthermore, the central location of Singapore facilitated the opportunity to visit its neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand and lead me through a journey of cultural approachment and rediscovery."

Ms Sophie Andrea Fleischmann, University of Mannheim, Germany who studied in SMU in Semester 1 AY2008/2009

Singapore and ICAO sign an MOU to provide 50 training fellowships for developing countries to mark the occasion of Singapore Aviation Academy’s 50th Anniversary

Singapore and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 1 December 2008 to provide 50 training fellowships to ICAO member States for training at Singapore Aviation Academy (SAA) in 2009. The MOU was signed by Mrs Lim Hwee Hua, Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport, and Mr Roberto Kobeh González, President of the Council of ICAO. These 50 fellowships, which are co-sponsored by Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the Singapore Cooperation Programme and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), mark SAA's 50th Anniversary, cementing the long standing and close collaboration with ICAO in human resource development. Through the MOU, specialised aviation training programmes at SAA will be made available to developing countries to help them build up their human resources critical to the sustainable development of civil aviation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) partnered with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy by co-sponsoring the participation of senior government policy advisors and officials from East Asia and the Pacific in a conference on the "Impact of the Economic Crisis on Children" in Singapore from 6-7 January 2009 under the SCP.

In the conference opened by Minister of Community Development, Youth and Sports Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, no less than 12 Ministers and Deputy Ministers from the region joined with leading academics and child development experts to share lessons from the 1997-8 economic crisis and share good policy practices in health, nutrition, education and family income maintenance. The closing remarks were given by Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, MFA.

This exchange has heightened the consciousness of senior government policy makers and academics alike of the importance of safeguarding the welfare of our children in this time of economic crisis and resource scarcity. The conference reiterated the importance of regulating policy and social spending to ensure that children are not deprived of essentials in health and education, which could stunt growth and decrease intellectual capacity and productivity in the long term. The polices that we make today would impact on future generations, as our children are our future. The conference served to sensitise national governments in East Asia and the Pacific to these issues and enhance their policy-making capacity, so as to enable them to adopt the right policies to protect our children in the ongoing economic crisis.

MFA and UNICEF also co-hosted a conference dinner for all participants on 6 January 2009.

This collaboration of MFA with UNICEF under the SCP is but our most recent. Singapore and UNICEF have been working together since 1999 to conduct some 10 joint courses and workshops in Early Childhood Education and Development for more than 200 government officials from 19 developing countries under the auspices of the Singapore-UNICEF Joint Training Programme.

To access the press statement, please click here.

Head of Civil Service/Permanent Secretary (Foreign Affairs) Mr Peter Ho hosted a lunch on 26 Nov 2008 for 21 Permanent Secretaries from 14 Commonwealth countries and British overseas territories attending a Study Programme for Permanent Secretaries in Singapore from 24-28 Nov 2008. This programme is jointly sponsored by Singapore and the Commonwealth Secretariat under the auspices of the Singapore-Commonwealth Third Country Training Programme.
The Permanent Secretaries, who hailed from South Asia, Africa, the Carribean and South Pacific, are participating in a customised programme on "Managing Complexity in Networked Government", Singapore will share its experience in areas like shaping public sector reforms, and stewarding good governance and public interest in complex, networked settings.

Over lunch, Mr Peter Ho and the Permanent Secretaries exchanged views on various matters. The Permanent Secretaries informed Mr Peter Ho that although they came from very different countries and regions, many of the challenges they faced were the same. They found various aspects of Singapore's experience interesting, such as performance-based budgeting in government, and would assess if some of these could be adopted or adapted in their own systems.

At the Annual Meeting of the Community of Practice on Managing for Development Results (CoP-MfDR) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from 11-14 November 2008, Singapore pledged its 2008 contribution to the CoP-MfDR, an ADB platform for developing countries to share best practices in the implementation of results-based management.

In 2008, Singapore worked with ADB to co-fund two programmes on Performance-based Budgeting in Governments in February and October, which were attended by some 50 government officials from Southeast and South Asia. Through the programme conducted by Civil Service College, Singapore shared with participants its experience in adopting a Whole-of-Government approach to performance management that ensures resources and budget are aligned with national goals and priorities. Singapore's collaboration with ADB in this area dates back to 2006, when it hosted the inaugural CoP-MfDR meeting.

ADB's Mr Bruce Purdue, Head, Results Management Unit, expressed appreciation for Singapore's contribution to capacity building within the CoP-MfDR.

The country statement made by Ms Denise Cheng, Assistant Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on behalf of the Singapore delegation is given below.


Click here to read country statement

15 participants from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam joined their Singapore counterparts in the 9th Integrated Narcotics Enforcement Programme (INEP) which is jointly sponsored by Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), under the Singapore Cooperation Programme, and the Australian Federal Police (AFP). The training programme was conducted in Singapore from 10 to 14 November 2008.

Through classroom lectures and learning journeys, the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) and AFP shared with the ASEAN government officials, who are involved in narcotics work, strategies to curb the drug problem in areas such as anti-drug legislation, preventive drug education, drug enforcement at entry and exit points and strategic intelligence. Participants also learnt about the importance of international law enforcement cooperation in the fight against the drug scourge. In addition, the programme encouraged the sharing and exchange of information between participants through their presentations on strategies for drug control undertaken in their respective countries.

This programme marks the ninth year of collaboration between MFA, CNB and AFP in building up the capacity of the ASEAN region in drug control efforts since 2000 and is a testament to the ongoing collaborative efforts by Singapore and Australia in fighting the drug problem. Two media reports on the programme are attached below (Click Link).

Click here to view attachments

Law enforcers worldwide face new challenges everyday. To meet these challenges, there is a need to diligently improve policing methods and policies.

To share our knowledge and experiences in law enforcement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) joined hands to sponsor the 14th run of "The Koban System of Japan and Its Adaptation as a Neighbourhood Police Centre System" seminar, held in Singapore from 11 to 13 November 2008.

The 3-day programme, conducted by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and the Japan National Police Agency, shared with the participants the Koban system, a concept of community policing and how this system enhances community safety in Singapore, and how Singapore had adapted the Koban System to suit its own policing needs.

The opening ceremony held on 11 November 2008 was graced by Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Home Affairs, Mr Masagos Zulkifli Bin Masagos Mohamad and Ambassador of Japan to Singapore, H.E Makoto Yamanaka. In his opening speech, Mr Masagos Zulkifli highlighted that a key objective of the seminar was to provide an invaluable platform for the participants to build their networks and facilitate the sharing of experiences beyond the context of the seminar. Addressing the participants, H.E Yamanaka remarked that the Koban System, which originated from Japan and adopted in parts by some countries, enables law-enforcers to interact with members of the public on a more intimate basis than they could from a distant station.

Through the seminar, participants were able to learn and share the current and emerging crime trends and its implications on the Koban system and community policing strategies. The seminar also discussed the various benefits and challenges of the Koban System and its implementation in selected countries.

Senior Minister of State (SMS) for Foreign Affairs, Zainul Abidin Rasheed, hosted lunch for Lao Minister for Labour and Social Welfare Mrs Onechanh Thammavong, Lao Minister of Prime Minister's Office and Chairperson of Public Administration and Civil Service Authority Mrs Bounpheng Mounphoxay and their delegation on 7 October 2008. The ten senior Laotian officials are in Singapore to attend an English Language training programme from 12 August to 31 October 2008 under the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP).

During the lunch, SMS highlighted to the delegation that relations between Singapore and Lao PDR have been warm and growing, and noted the regular exchange of visits between the two countries.

While in Singapore, Mrs Onechanch will also attend the ASEAN HR Summit dinner hosted by Acting Minister for Manpower, Mr Gan Kim Yong and meet Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan. Minister Bounpheng Mounphoxay, who also heads the Public Administration and Civil Service Authority, met Permanent Secretary for Public Service Division, Ms Lim Soo Hoon, on 25 September 2008. The delegation will also attend briefings by Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore and Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports.

Singapore and Japan jointly organised the seminar "Capacity Development for Senior Officials in African Countries - Public Governance for Leaders" under the framework of the Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21). The opening ceremony of the seminar was officiated by Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and Mr Masaru Todoroki, Resident Representative, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The seminar was conducted by the Singapore Civil Service College International over a 3-day period from 6 to 8 October 2008. The participants include a Chief Minister, Ministers of State, Permanent Secretaries and Senators from Ghana, Mauritius, Nigeria, Rwanda, and Tanzania were briefed on various aspects of public governance, centered on the effective strategies of good governance and the experiences of Singapore.

The seminar included a dialogue session with Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Mayor of North East Community Development Council. During the engaging session, Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed fielded questions on issues such as leadership and governance, racial harmony, multi-culturalism and community development.

Speaking on behalf of the participants at the closing ceremony, Mr. Charles Mordi from the Central Bank of Nigeria said that the seminar helped them realise that natural resources and financial capital alone are not sufficient for socio-economic development. Human capital, committed and transparent leadership and long-term planning are also required for successful development. Mr Mordi also observed that besides having appropriate institutions and an effective education system, Singapore's zero tolerance on corruption and pragmatic and flexible policies have been important factors for its success. Another participant, Professor Rwigamba Balinda, a Senator from the Republic of Rwanda, lauded Singapore for her political stability, which he felt was one of the factors that contributed to Singapore's success.

Singapore and Japan have cooperated to provide technical assistance since 1994. An average of 20-25 courses, workshops and seminars are conducted annually under the Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21). The JSPP21 is one of the many successful international partnerships forged by Singapore under the overall framework of the Singapore Cooperation Programme.

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Singapore and Dr Shyamal Majumdar, Director General of the Colombo Plan Staff College for Technical Education (CPSC), met on two occasions on 8 January 2008 and 19 February 2008 to discuss about the collaboration between MFA and CPSC. The two parties agreed to collaborate in a pedagogy course to be held in Singapore from 7 to 13 October 2008. The collaboration between MFA and CPSC was covered in the March 2008 issue of the "CPSC Quarterly"1. A short extract of the article is presented below:

"Joint programme with Singapore Foreign Ministry set

With the support of the Technical Cooperation Directorate of the Government of Singapore, CPSC is set to co-organize a Regional Program on "Enhancing Pedagogy Skills for Teachers Trainers" with the Government of Singapore during fiscal year 2008-2009. The program will be participated by delegates from all member countries of CPSC, and is one of the series of programs sought to be collaborated with the TCD under the Third Country Training Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), Government of Singapore.

This is the outcome of the fruitful discussion Dr Shyamal Majumdar, Director General, had with the officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Education in an effort to strengthen ties and seek cooperation with the Government of Singapore. Dr Majumdar met with Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, and other officials of the Technical Cooperation Directorate, MFA on different occasions in January and February, 2008."

1 The article and photo are used with kind permission from the CPSC Quarterly.

Permanent Secretary (PS) for Foreign Affairs, Mr Peter Ho hosted lunch for five senior Vietnamese officials on 16 September 2008. The delegation is in Singapore to attend an "Intensive English Course" from 25 August to 3 October 2008 under the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP). The head of delegation Vice-Chairman of Commission for External Relations, Central Committee Communist Party of Vietnam Dr Pham Xuan Son is accompanied by Vice Minister for Construction, Mr Nguyen Tran Nam; Vice Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Vu Van Tam; Vice Minister for Education and Training, Dr Nguyen Vinh Hien; and Deputy Director of the National Administrative Academy, Mr Pham Quang Huy. Also present was Vietnam Ambassador to Singapore, His Excellency Nguyen Trung Thanh.

PS Peter Ho shared with the delegation Singapore's education and language policies and spoke of the strong ties between Singapore and Vietnam. Ambassador Nguyen Trung Thanh also reiterated the close friendship between the two countries by highlighting how Singapore and Vietnam have cooperated in various areas such as construction, education, trade and food. On behalf of the delegation, Dr Son expressed gratitude for the opportunity to learn the English Language in Singapore and affirmed the good relationship between Singapore and Vietnam.

At the 41st Consultative Committee Meeting of the Colombo Plan held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 21 to 22 August 2008, Singapore pledged to expand its cooperation with the Colombo Plan Secretariat by conducting two to four training courses each year under the Singapore-Colombo Plan Third Country Training Programme. Singapore also pledged to provide two post-graduate master scholarships per year for government officials of Colombo Plan member countries, tenable at the National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University and Singapore Management University.

The Meeting expressed appreciation to Singapore for its contributions. The country statement made by Mr Koh Tin Fook, the Singapore Head of Delegation and Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs is given below.


STATEMENT BY SINGAPORE HEAD OF DELEGATION MR KOH TIN FOOK, DIRECTOR, TECHNICAL COOPERATION DIRECTORATE, MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, AT THE 41ST COLOMBO PLAN CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE MEETING, 21-22 AUGUST 2008, KUALA LUMPUR

Chairman

Excellencies and Friends from the Colombo Plan member countries


     I am pleased to say a few words about Singapore's support for the work of the Colombo Plan.

2      Singapore joined the Colombo Plan in 1959. In our early years, we had benefited from technical assistance provided by the Colombo Plan. The technical assistance provided, like training fellowships and scholarships, had contributed to Singapore's economic development in the early years of our nation-building.

3      In return, Singapore has, as far back as 1961, been doing its bit to give back to fellow Colombo Plan developing countries. From 1961 to 2004, Singapore provided technical assistance to Colombo Plan member countries through the Singapore Colombo Plan Training Award Scheme. This framework was then discontinued with the establishment of a new framework, called the Singapore-Colombo Plan Third Country Training Programme (TCTP), in 2006, which was implemented under the Singapore Cooperation Programme coordinated by our Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

4      To date, Singapore and the Colombo Plan have jointly trained a total of 402 senior government officials from Colombo Plan member countries in some 24 capacity-building programmes. Since 1997 to date, we have been conducting an average of 2 to 4 courses per year. In more recent years, the average has been 2 courses per year.

5      Under the Singapore Cooperation Programme, eligible Colombo Plan member countries have also benefited from our other technical asssistance programmes beyond the umbrella of the Colombo Plan, such as the Singapore Cooperation Programme Training Awards and the various joint programmes that we conduct with over 30 partners from the developed countries and international organisations. To date, more than 38,000 government officials from the Colombo Plan member countries have benefited from such programmes under the Singapore Cooperation Programme.

6      To show our continued commitment to the work of the Colombo Plan, from 2008 onwards, Singapore will ramp up its collaboration with the Colombo Plan by jointly conducting 2 to 4 courses each year with the Colombo Plan Secretariat under our Singapore Cooperation Programme. We hope this will bring added benefits to government officials from the Colombo Plan member countries. In Financial Year 2008, we have planned for 3 courses. In the September course, we will share Singapore's experience in public governance and administration. The October course will address the impact of competition law and policy on export promotion and foreign direct investment. And in the February 2009 course we will cover the important issues of climate change, energy and the environment. We will also be collaborating with the Colombo Plan Staff College on a course on enhancing pedagogy skills for teacher trainers in October.

7      Just as Singapore has benefited from the Colombo Plan Scholarship in the past, I am glad to inform the Meeting that Singapore will from this year work with the Colombo Plan Secretariat to sponsor 2 post-graduate Master scholarships each year for government officials of Colombo Plan member countries, tenable at the National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University or Singapore Management University.

8      On another aspect, Singapore supports Secretary-General Patricia Chia's call to increase the annual membership fee for the Colombo Plan by 20%, as this will help the Colombo Plan Secretariat to do more. This annual membership fee increase notwithstanding, Singapore’s main contribution will continue to be focused on our various human resource capacity building programmes in collaboration with the Colombo Plan under the Singapore-Colombo Plan Third Country Training Programme, and with effect from 2008 our sponsorship of post-graduate scholarships.

9      In closing, allow me to thank the Colombo Plan Secretariat, the Colombo Plan Staff College, and fellow Colombo Plan member countries for the strong support and partnership over the years. On behalf of the Singapore delegation, I also wish to convey a very special thanks to Malaysia for being a very effective and gracious host of the 41st Consultative Committee Meeting. We look forward to continue working together for the benefit of our fellow Colombo Plan member countries.

Thank you.

19 Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) participants from the ASEAN countries attended the "Trade Investment Promotion” course conducted at the International Trade Institute of Singapore (ITIS) from 1 to 7 August 2008. Participants came from 7 ASEAN countries, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines and Vietnam.

The 7-day course was jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), Singapore and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) under the auspices of the Japan – Singapore Partnership Programme for The 21st Century (JSPP21).

The Japan-Singapore partnership began in 1994 and was formally established in May 1997 as the JSPP21. The partnership has since reached out to more than 3,000 participants in diverse fields including trade, public governance, banking and finance, productivity management, food security, maritime navigation, policing, information technology, and the environment.

The main objective of the course was to impart to participants the knowledge and skills in trade and investment promotion as well as the current international trends in foreign direct investment. A wide range of topics was covered during the course, including the following:

- Issues of Globalisation and Trade and Investment Trends
- International Trade and Foreign Direct Investment
- Developing Investment Strategies
- Understanding and Dealing with Foreign Investors

The course included case studies and also required participants to form groups for discussions and presentations. Participants had the opportunity to visit International Enterprise (IE) Singapore which is the lead agency spearheading the development of Singapore's external economic wing under the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

During the official lunch hosted by MFA and JICA for the course participants, Mr M. Ridwansyah Saidi Ungsi, a participant from the Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board praised the value of the course. He commented that it was relevant and of great help as it had enhanced his knowledge on international trade and related issues. Mr M. Ridwansyah Saidi Ungsi said that he hoped to use the knowledge he had acquired in Singapore to help boost investment in his country.

On 4 August 2008, the Singapore Government awarded 40 university scholarships to outstanding students from 9 ASEAN countries at the Singapore Scholarship Certificate Presentation Ceremony at the Marina Mandarin Hotel. The occasion was graced by Senior Minister of State (SMS) for Foreign Affairs and Mayor of North East District, Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed.

The Singapore Scholarship was initiated by then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong at the 6th ASEAN Summit in December 1998 during the Asian financial crisis. Into its 10th year, it is part of the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP), under the framework of the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI). The Singapore Scholarship is a Government-to-Government initiative that provides students from member countries of the ASEAN with good education opportunities in Singapore as well as to provide the scholars with the skills and knowledge to contribute towards the development of their home countries upon graduation.

Since 1999 when the program started, a total of 488 successful applicants from the 9 ASEAN countries of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam have been awarded the Singapore Scholarship.

"As tomorrow's leaders, you must build on the efforts made by your predecessors and help steer the future direction of ASEAN, making it more relevant to the world at large." urged Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed during his speech at the Certificate Presentation Ceremony. SMS Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed also shared a proverb with the recipients "If you want to think 1 year ahead, plant rice. If you want to think 10 years ahead, plant trees. But if you want to think 100 years ahead, give education to people." to highlight the importance of educating young talents and the positive impact it will have on the long-term future of the ASEAN and the region.

One of the scholarship recipients, Mr Jong Ming Chuan from Brunei who would be pursuing a degree in Civil Engineering said that he was grateful to Singapore for awarding him this scholarship and he planned to give back to the society by building and developing basic housing for the less developed countries and improve the lives of the people there.



Click here to read full speech by Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed.

The Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently welcomed five Director-Generals of Civil Aviation from Albania, Benin, Nauru, Senegal, and The Solomon Islands to attend the 16th Civil Aviation Chief Executives Programme (CACEP) conducted by the Singapore Aviation Academy (SAA) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) from 22 - 28 July 2008. The CACEP is sponsored under the Singapore Cooperation Programme Training Awards (SCPTA) and the Small Island States Developing States Technical Cooperation Programme (SIDSTEC).

"The CACEP aims to share with civil aviation chief executives, Singapore’s experience and insights in civil aviation development. It is also part of our continuing efforts to forge close ties with the leadership of other aviation authorities all over the world." said Mr Lim Kim Choon, Director General and Chief Executive Officer of CAAS during the Opening Ceremony of the CACEP.

The programme provided participants with an overview of civil aviation development in Singapore and an understanding of the changing roles and new challenges faced by the global aviation industry.

During the programme, the participants were briefed about Airport Marketing and Commercial Management, Current Developments in Civil Aviation, Aviation Safety, Security and Facilitation, Airport Infrastructure Development, and Best Management Practices for Leaders.

One of the participants Ms Melaney Bill, Director of Civil Aviation, Nauru said that the class found the CACEP useful and she was glad to be able to witness the official opening of Terminal 3 of Changi Airport.

The Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China have come together to organise a Singapore-China Third Country Training Programme (TCTP) held in Beijing from 10 - 29 July 2008. The joint collaboration, a first for both the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China, will provide 15 participants from the ASEAN countries with training in the field of Information and Communication Technology with a focus on information planning in developing countries, information network security and e-government.

The idea of a Singapore-China TCTP was mooted at the 2nd Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation with China in 2005, and the inaugural run of the programme, titled "Seminar on Information Network Construction for ASEAN Countries", was a product of an agreement between the leaders from both sides. China's participation in engaging and providing training for ASEAN countries is a show of China's support for ASEAN integration, which in turn strengthens Sino-ASEAN relations. Being the flagship installment in this milestone collaborative project between the governments of Singapore and China on providing joint technical assistance to third countries, this unprecedented collaboration also enhances bilateral relations between Singapore and China.

It is clear that the inaugural Singapore-China TCTP is not all work and no play though. The 20-day programme includes visits to the Great Wall of China, Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and Three Gorges Dam, amongst other Chinese attractions. The participants, most of whom have not been to China, were glad to have the opportunity to do some sightseeing, and at the same time pick up valuable skills that will help them contribute to the development of their countries when they return.

The Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently welcomed 26 participants comprising Judges, Senior Court Administrators, Senior Legal Officers and public sector officials, who are primarily involved in court administration, to attend the Regional Judicial Symposium conducted by Singapore Subordinate Courts from 8 - 12 May 2008.

The Symposium shared with the SCP participants our experiences with policy planning and the way these are translated from vision to reality, as well as recent developments in law and jurisprudence.

Distinguished speakers from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy were also invited to the Symposium to give insights into the Singapore legal and judicial processes.

Other than the academic sessions and briefings, the participants were also brought to site visits of the Supreme Court of Singapore and Attorney-General''s Chambers. This allowed for networking opportunities with the various stakeholders in the justice and legal processes within Singapore.

Singapore and Japan signed a Memorandum of Discussion (MOD) to enhance the existing Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21) to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the JSPP21. The Memorandum was signed by Singapore Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr George Yeo and Japan Foreign Minister Mr Masahiko Koumura in Tokyo.

The JSPP21 is Singapore's largest and most successful partnership under the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP). Since cooperation began under the framework, more than 3,000 officials from developing countries around the world have participated in the joint training courses covering diverse areas.

Under the Enhanced JSPP21 MOD, Singapore and Japan will strengthen their support of ASEAN integration by providing more human resource development programmes in the areas of trade and investment facilitation, information and communications technology development, and energy security. To reaffirm their commitment to regional integration, both countries will establish a flagship Joint Initiative for ASEAN countries. Details of the flagship Joint Initiative will be decided through further consultations. In addition, both countries will also deepen cooperation in helping third countries in infectious disease management, governance and the maintenance of stable financial systems, and environmental protection.