Sir Dryden Spring, Chairman of the Asia 2000 Foundation

Mr Peter Sung, Honorary Adviser to the Asia 2000 Foundation

Professor Ivan Png, Vice Provost of the National University of Singapore

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to be invited for this dinner in celebration of the Asia 2000 Singapore Scholarship.

Singapore and New Zealand have always enjoyed strong ties. The commencement of the New Zealand Singapore Close Economic Partnership in January 2001 marks another significant milestone in the economic links between the two countries. Under this program, our trade links have been strengthened. This shows in the increase in trade between the 2 countries, which grew by 7.7% in 2001, in stark contrast to our overall fall in trade by 9.4%.

Beyond economics, we will be enriched if there is a wealth of exchange between our people, to facilitate the flow of ideas and promote a better understanding of our different cultures. Singapore recognizes New Zealand as an important friend. We have sent more than 240 government scholars to study in the top universities in New Zealand since the early Colombo Plan days in 1964. Singapore has much to learn from New Zealand especially in the areas of urban planning and horticulture, and we continue to send our scholars to New Zealand in such fields of study.

This exchange of people has helped produced numerous top talent for Singapore. Mr Choo Thiam Siew, now Executive Director of the National Arts Council, studied in New Zealand, majoring in horticulture in the University of Canterbury. Prior to joining the Arts Council, Mr. Choo was Deputy Commissioner of the Parks & Recreation Department. He certainly put what he learnt in New Zealand to good use as he played a pivotal role in transforming Singapore into a garden city. Mr Lau Wah Ming, who is Deputy Secretary of MinLaw and Mr Lim Hock Chuan, who is the CEO of the Singapore Broadcasting Authority are another 2 examples of the illustrious alumni from New Zealand who continue to make important contributions to our country.

Knowing the importance of cultural exchange, Singapore welcomes students from all over the world. And the Asia 2000 Singapore Scholarship is one key component cementing the relationship between Singapore and New Zealand. This was made possible because in 1997, a Singaporean businessman Mr Stanley Tan had the vision to push ahead with such an initiative and generously contributed $500,000 to help make the vision come true. The scholarship program will help to expose New Zealand students to Singapore and to make a rich network of friends here. When they return to New Zealand to serve their country eventually, both countries will benefit from the mutual understanding and the friendships that have grown over this period of immersion in Singapore.

Apart from the Asia 2000 Singapore Scholarship, I am happy to learn that there is also strong interest from New Zealand universities to send their MBA students to Singapore to learn about the Asian market. The majority of the students would be business executives. We welcome them and we hope that in the time they spend with us, they will better understand what makes Singapore tick, our business and regulatory environment and the quality of life that is possible in this city. Greater familiarity and knowledge will result in a better personal comfort zone. When they return to New Zealand after completing their MBA here, they will be well-placed to consider how Singapore could feature strategically in the international business development plans of their respective companies and how Singapore can be the springboard to expansion in the larger Asian market.

Singapore also welcomes New Zealand universities to tap on Singapore’s links to the rest of Asia. I understand that Lincoln University in New Zealand has expressed strong interest to study the feasibility of siting an academic facility in Singapore. Singapore, being at the crossroads of Asia, can help the universities located here to reach out to the best in Asia.

I wonder if any of you have seen the latest HSBC ads in the media. It highlights the importance of local knowledge and this is crucial in doing business globally. Education links are about the exchange of people, knowledge and culture. The HSBC ads show how knowledge of culture can be linked to business growth as it facilitates the business operations in a market that may otherwise be alien to you.

Many pitfalls await those who venture into the unknown. We learned it the hard way in China when Singapore’s venture into the Suzhou Industrial Park had many problems initially due to our lack of knowledge of how to do business in China. Now we are sending our staff from the economic agencies to China to do their MBAs precisely so that they can learn about their business culture. If only we had a Singapore China Scholarship back in the 80s!

Tapping on these education linkages will serve to promote greater economic ties between Singapore and New Zealand. The review of the Singapore New Zealand Economic Partnership in November 2001 has highlighted opportunities for collaboration in the area of broadband deployment, and in sectors, such as the creative services, and film & animation clusters.

Our local film industry is just budding, and pales in comparison to the quality of the films that are produced in New Zealand. Lord of the Rings which was brilliantly directed by New Zealander, Mr Peter Jackson, showed the world that New Zealand can take on the likes of US and Europe in film-making by clinching 4 awards in the Oscars. Singapore certainly hopes to learn from New Zealand in the pursuit of such standards.

There is also further room to expand on the cooperation on research between the two countries. We are happy to have 2 New Zealand Crown Research Institutes forming joint ventures with Singapore companies and institutions.

Materials Performance Technology (MPT), a spin-off of Industrial Research Limited, recently formed joint venture with Matcor Technologies in Singapore to offer consultancy services in material technology.

Crop & Food Research Ltd also formed a joint venture in October 2001 with Singapore Polytechnic called SPANZ, which stands for Singapore Polytechnic And New Zealand to commercialise a trans-generic plant technology.

Singapore can be a place for New Zealand companies and research institutes to establish a presence through which they can then link up to the Asian market and the world. Facilities such as the New Zealand Centre in the Phase Z.ro technopreneur park help companies to achieve this by minimizing the costs of doing so through providing a suite of shared facilities and services.

I have given just a few examples of the broad spectrum of co-operation between Singapore and New Zealand. There will be many more opportunities, arising from educational links such as the Asia 2000 Singapore Scholarship.

The experience the Asia 2000 Singapore Scholarship will provide the scholars with greater understanding of Singapore and Asia. I am sure that the scholars will, through their stay in Singapore, develop friendships and a network that will spur cooperation in areas beyond what we have today.

Karen, Haydon and Scott, you have all done well and achieved much during the time you spent in Singapore. I hope that you had made full use of the opportunity to learn more about what Singapore has to offer. We will be glad to continue to extend to you our warm hospitality and friendship in the future. May you be very successful and happy in your future endeavours.

Thank you.

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