Mr Richard Kogan, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, Schering-Plough Corporation;

Mr Steve Chellevold, Senior Vice President, Technical Operations,

Schering-Plough Corporation;

Dr Patrick Gyselinck, Managing Director, Schering-Plough Ltd (Singapore Branch);

Dr Patrick Yeung, Executive Project Director, Schering-Plough Ltd (Singapore Branch);

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen

Good morning. It gives me great pleasure to join you today for the joint opening of Schering-Plough Ltd’s latest investments - a biotech sterile manufacturing facility and a tablet facility in Singapore. These projects demonstrate the significant developments we have made in this industry over a very short time.

The S$180 million biotech sterile facility is the first of its kind in Singapore. This state-of-the-art facility will carry out the lyophilization or freeze-drying, and finishing and packaging of leading biotech drugs such as PEG-INTRON™ for the treatment of Hepatitis C, and Remicade® for the treatment of Crohn’s disease.

The S$140 million tablet facility is another key component of Schering-Plough’s presence in Singapore. Expected to be ready for commercial production in 2003, this plant will manufacture Zetia^® tablets, a novel drug for cholesterol management, in a highly-automated facility. Together, the two facilities will create more than 260 jobs.

Singapore strongly values Schering-Plough’s presence. Since its first investments in a chemical bulk actives and medicinal steroids facility on this site in 1995, Schering-Plough continues to blaze new trails here. As the first major US pharmaceutical company to invest in Singapore, Schering-Plough’s strategic investment signalled a strong vote of confidence in Singapore as a globally competitive location for pharmaceuticals manufacturing and heralded a strong growth impetus. This in turn encouraged other industry leaders to establish world-class facilities here, thus developing the strong cluster of manufacturing activities we see today.

I am very pleased to hear that Schering-Plough will be establishing yet another new multi-purpose plant which will cost around US$200 million to manufacture chemical bulk actives. Schering-Plough’s successful and rapid growth in Singapore has made the company the largest pharmaceuticals investor here. Its total investment commitments exceed S$1.5 billion and its staff strength will be around 800 when the projects are fully implemented.

Today’s announcement clearly reflects Schering-Plough’s continued confidence in Singapore as a strategic partner in its business growth. Schering-Plough is exemplary of many companies that are increasingly extending the breadth and depth of their manufacturing activities, adding greater diversity and resilience to the pharmaceuticals manufacturing sub-cluster. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Schering-Plough for your strong vote of confidence and contribution to our economy, and assure you of the Singapore government’s support in facilitating your investments and strengthening your presence here.

Our drive to develop the Biomedical Sciences industry as a key pillar of the manufacturing sector has placed Singapore firmly on its path to becoming Asia’s premier biomedical hub. Today, Singapore has become the preferred manufacturing base for leading pharmaceutical companies. We are now home to six top pharmaceutical companies. They manufacture a diversified range of high value-added products for global markets and operate a range of facilities from process development and primary manufacturing of chemical bulk actives to formulation and finishing of final dosage forms.

Schering-Plough’s biotech sterile manufacturing and tablet facilities represent the type of technology-driven value manufacturing that is important to Singapore’s future. In line with the recommendations submitted by the Economic Review Committee’s Subcommittee on Manufacturing on October 18, to continue attracting such investments, the Singapore government will focus on strengthening our track record in high value-added manufacturing, technology leadership and intellectual property protection. We are also continuing to enhance our education system and research infrastructure as these play a key role in providing a steady flow of skilled workforce and R&D professionals to meet industry’s needs.

Given Singapore’s strong focus on the Biomedical Sciences arena, it is critical to ensure that the necessary education is available for the long-term development of a highly-skilled talent pool to support the increasing employment opportunities offered by global companies such as Schering-Plough. One of the most important tasks for Singapore ahead is to train our young in the knowledge and skills required to meet the growing needs of this knowledge-driven industry.

Several initiatives have been implemented in our schools and Institutes of Higher Learning to ensure that students are equipped with the necessary foundation for biomedical sciences. The science curriculum in our schools has been revised to enable our students to develop an appreciation of biomedical sciences. They are provided with a foundational understanding and appreciation of the breadth of biomedical sciences knowledge as well as basic training in scientific investigative skills.

At the post-secondary level, our Institute of Technical Education, polytechnics and universities have already mounted programmes related to biomedical sciences. We are preparing our people to contribute to the entire value chain in the biomedical cluster. Starting from January 2002, ITE took in 64 students for its Chemical Process Technology (Pharmaceuticals) certificate course to train them as process technicians or operators for the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry. Our four polytechnics offer 3-year diploma programmes ranging from biotechnology to biomedical informatics and engineering. These diploma courses are gaining popularity amongst our polytechnic students. In July 2002, more than 1,200 students had signed up for the various diploma programmes to be trained as process technicians and middle-level managers for the biomedical sciences industry in our polytechnics.

Similarly, our universities are actively pursuing the life sciences initiative. In 2002, the NUS Science faculty had revamped its curriculum for life sciences to offer a new integrated degree programme for students who are majoring in life sciences so as to provide them with strong fundamentals in biological and biomedical sciences. There are currently 530 students enrolled in this programme. The recently established NTU School of Biological Sciences had its first intake of 100 students in July 2002 for its 4-year BSc (Honours) degree programme in Biological Sciences. This programme offers a broad-based, multi-disciplinary curriculum to prepare its graduates for challenging and rewarding careers in biomedical sciences-related research and industry. Both Engineering Schools at NUS and NTU have set up multi-disciplinary centres to conduct research and training at undergraduate and postgraduate levels in biomedical engineering.

In terms of industrial training, there are programmes that target the new technology areas to meet the growing demand for highly skilled and highly-trained manufacturing engineers and scientists for the industry. I am pleased to announce that in its latest initiative, the EDB has committed to train up to 50 engineers and scientists under its Training and Attachment Program (TAP) for Biopharmaceuticals Manufacturing. To commence in January 2003, selected trainees will be sent for a period of 12-18 months of training and attachment at leading companies in Europe and US. They will be trained in areas such as process development, validation, cGMP [Current Good Manufacturing Practice] production, and quality assurance.

On top of this Training and Attachment Program, the EDB has also supported some 300 technicians and professionals for on-the-job-training in the various pharmaceutical companies in Singapore and abroad over the past 12 months. Upon completion of their training, these trainees will form a valuable pool of trained manpower to support the Biomedical Sciences industry in Singapore.

Overall, Singapore’s Biomedical Sciences initiative has made significant progress and captured the mind-share of the Biomedical Sciences community with our plans and commitment to develop the cluster. The development of Biomedical Sciences requires patience and long-term commitment, but with the support of valued partners such as Schering-Plough, we are confident that this cluster will grow and become a key pillar for the Singapore economy in the years ahead.

In closing, I congratulate the management and staff of Schering-Plough on the opening of their two new world-class facilities in Singapore. We look forward with confidence to our shared future here, as we work in partnership with you to grow your presence in Singapore.

On this note, it is now my pleasure to declare the Schering-Plough biotech sterile manufacturing and tablet facilities officially open. Thank you.

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