The 15th meeting of the Singapore-Guangdong Collaboration Council (SGCC) was held in Guangzhou on November 25. During the meeting, Guangdong Governor Meng Fanli and Singapore's Coordinating Minister for Social Policies and Minister for Health, Ong Ye Kung, outlined key areas for strengthening ties between Guangdong and Singapore in the future.

According to the SGCC, 20 Guangdong-Singapore cooperative projects were launched, covering sectors such as scientific innovation, education and talent development, biomedicine, financial services, green energy, and platform development.

Meng Fanli, Co-Chair of SGCC Guangdong, stressed the significant achievements of Guangdong-Singapore cooperation. According to his speech, the bilateral trade volume between Guangdong and Singapore exceeded RMB 153 billion in 2024, making Guangdong Singapore's largest provincial trade partner in China for 36 consecutive years. From January to September 2025, bilateral trade remained robust, increasing by 5.6 percent to RMB 123.83 billion, while import volume grew by 44 percent to RMB 52.35 billion during the same period.

Meng emphasized the vital role of SGCC in enhancing bilateral cooperation through major collaborative platforms, including the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City (CSGKC), the Singapore-China (Shenzhen) Smart City Initiative (SCI) , and the implementation of other key collaborative projects. 

Meng highlighted Guangdong is currently formulating its 15th Five-Year Plan to guide its development over the next five years. “We look forward to further cooperation with Singaporean partners, especially in areas such as trade, investment, finance, technology, education, health, culture and tourism, artificial intelligence, digital economy, and green development,” he said.

Ong Ye Kung, Co-Chair of SGCC Singapore, remarked that Singapore consistently attaches great importance to cooperation within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and is willing to work hand-in-hand with Guangdong to deepen collaboration in areas such as green development, digital economy, innovation technology, and biomedicine.

Ong Ye Kung considers China's upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan crucial for guiding economic policies and shaping the market, while Guangdong continues to serve as an engine of the Chinese economy. He highlighted five main areas of focus to enhance cooperation with Guangdong, that is, strategic-level exchanges, logistics, market access for innovation and high technology, cross-border talent flow, and people-to-people exchanges through transportation, cultural activities, and tourism.

In addition, progress on the two major bilateral projects, CSGKC and SCI, was presented at the meeting. Representatives from the Guangdong and Singapore governments and businesses exchanged views, shedding light on cooperative fields including smart technology and digital connectivity.

Reported by Yin Juewen

Photo provided by Guangdong Foreign Affairs Office