Singapore and Guangdong partnership widens to include healthcare

Heightened business interest by Singapore companies in Guangdong resulted into numerous MOU / agreements signed.

The establishment of the Singapore-Guangdong Collaboration Council (SGCC) last year was a key milestone in the deepening of bilateral ties between Singapore and Guangdong. At the 2nd SGCC council meeting held in Singapore on Wednesday, it was agreed that in addition to the continued strengthening of bilateral cooperation in sectors identified last year, namely port and logistics, information and communications technology, small and medium enterprises’ collaboration and exchange, education exchanges and training of Guangdong officials and internationalisation of Guangdong enterprises, efforts would also be put into promoting collaboration in the healthcare sector for the upcoming work year. The progress of key projects such as the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City would continue to be monitored and supported under the SGCC.

The SGCC meeting was co-chaired by SGCC Co-Chairmen Mr Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Minister for Information, Communications & the Arts, and Guangdong Vice Governor and Guangzhou Mayor Wan Qingliang. Following the meeting, Acting Minister Lui and Vice Governor Wan signed the workplan for 2010/2011.

Said Acting Minister Lui, “The SGCC has created a platform whereby officials and businessmen from both Singapore and Guangdong have an active avenue for regular interaction. This has created more awareness and allowed us to better share our experience and expertise with Guangdong.”

He continued, “We are encouraged by the number of achievements and developments that have been attained just one year after the Council was established. More Singapore companies are seeing Guangdong’s potential and have indicated interest to explore projects in the province. Building on this heightened business interest, we hope to accomplish even more by expanding our areas of focus. One such new area is the healthcare sector in which our Singapore-based enterprises will have much to share.”

Vice Governor Wan is in Singapore from 12 to 15 July 2010 with a delegation of over 60 government officials and business representatives.

New focus area in healthcare sector
The Chinese central government’s move to adopt broad-ranging healthcare reforms has generated interest from established overseas players. These include Singapore companies who are looking to develop greater exchange and partnership opportunities with Chinese healthcare organisations. Further supported by Guangdong’s rising affluence and increasingly urban lifestyles which see a rapidly growing demand for accessible and quality healthcare in the province, the SGCC has highlighted the healthcare sector as a new area of collaboration to focus on.

Singapore healthcare players are keen to develop long-term partnerships with relevant partners including local health bureaus, public and private hospitals. The first healthcare business mission to Guangdong was organised by IE Singapore in May 2010 for Singapore-based companies to explore opportunities and understand the market needs better. Besides the provision of healthcare services, what Singapore companies can offer span across a holistic value-chain of solutions, from consultancy services, provision of equipment and IT solutions, to hospital administration and nurse training, etc.

Following the business mission, Singapore-based SGP International Management Academy (SIMA) went into in-depth discussions with Chancheng District Central Hospital of Foshan City (CDCH). During the meeting today, the two companies signed a Collaboration Agreement under which SIMA will help CDCH develop a comprehensive Service Excellence Framework over a nine-month period. One key feature of this project involved training of a group of internal trainers for CDCH who will eventually be responsible for seeing through the successful implementation of the Service Excellence Framework within the hospital.

Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City Project
The SGCC will also continue to monitor and provide support to projects that are already underway, such as the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City Project, which just held its groundbreaking ceremony in Guangzhou on 30 June 2010. The vision of the commercially-driven Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City is to develop a world-class, unique and sustainable city that is highly attractive to talent and knowledge-based industries. It aims to catalyse the economic and environmental transformation of Guangdong and serve as a development model for the province and beyond.

During the groundbreaking event, 33 MOUs were also signed, including a three-party MOU by IE Singapore, Singbridge International and Guangzhou Development District through which IE Singapore will support and facilitate Singapore-based companies to explore potential collaboration opportunities in the Knowledge City project.

The first phase development of the Knowledge City, which comprises of a six sq.km. Start-Up Area (SUA), has commenced. The SUA will be substantially developed over five years to contain a mix of residential, commercial, industrial and high-tech business parks. The fully developed SUA is expected to be home to a population of about 77,000 and provide employment for 35,000. Singbridge, the Singapore-based company leading this project, organised a Guangzhou Knowledge City seminar before the SGCC meeting today to introduce the project and its progress to more local companies which may be interested to invest in it.

Cultural exchanges - ‘Guangdong Today’ Photo Exhibition
Apart from economic collaborations, the SGCC also encourages exchanges on the cultural front. In conjunction with the SGCC meeting held in Singapore, the SGCC organised the ‘Guangdong Today’ Photo Exhibition at VivoCity, from 12 to 14 July 2010. The exhibition featured a series of 60 photos that showcase the different facets of Guangdong province, including its rich Lingnan culture and the lives of the population. The photo exhibition will help Singaporeans better understand Guangdong and see how it has developed and transformed since opening its economy to the world.

Strong performances in bilateral trade and investment
From January to May 2010, bilateral trade between Singapore and Guangdong amounted to US$6.91 billion, an increase of 41% over the same period in 2009. The total bilateral trade last year had increased by 8% to almost US$16 billion, while exports had amounted to US$9.79 billion (+18%) and imports reached US$6.16 billion (-5%).

In the first five months of 2010, Guangdong approved 22 Singapore projects with a contractual amount of US$120 million, an increase of 135.9% over the same period in 2009. Actual investments during this period totalled US$250 million, an increase of 80.9% over the same period the previous year.

Signings and events during the meeting
Following the SGCC meeting on Wednesday, Acting Minister Lui and Vice Governor Wan witnessed six MOU / agreement signings. The Singapore-based companies / organisations include NCS, SGP International Management Academy, Yeo Hiap Seng Ltd, Megabite (HK), MK Marine Pte Ltd, Vermont UM Bunkering Pte Ltd, etc.