180 people from Singapore and China attend digital economy seminar and business-matching session in Chongqing
SINGAPORE/CHONGQING – 23 August, 2018: The Singapore-Chongqing Digital Economy High-Level Seminar and Business Matching Session brought together technology companies from Singapore and Chongqing, and encouraged them to collaborate for international growth opportunities. The dual event was jointly organised by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and the Chongqing Municipal People’s Government at the inaugural Smart China Expo.
Around 180 people from Singapore and China attended the four-hour seminar and business-matching session.
The Digital Economy Seminar featured speakers from both governments and technology businesses. They shared their expertise and experiences across four themes: Singapore’s Digitalisation Journey, Smart Tourism, Smart Cities and Internet of Things, and Trade and Connectivity.
In his opening remarks at the seminar, Dr Tan Wu Meng, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Trade & Industry, said: “Technology has tremendous potential to uplift everyone, in countries, sectors and industries globally. According to a Microsoft study, the digital economy could add US$10 billion to Singapore’s GDP by 2021.
“Opportunity and challenge often come together. While digitalisation will transform and create jobs, some workers will face disruption. New skills will be needed in the Digital Economy. Workers will need to be retrained with these new skills to remain employable in the digital economy.
“Businesses must also change. Small or big, businesses also need to collaborate and think global. Collaboration with companies around the world can be a real game-changer in this era of digitalisation.”
IMDA, which drives Singapore’s push to be a leading digital economy, shared how Singapore is building from a position of strength as a global technology hub and explained its framework for action.
Singapore’s strategic location in the heart of South-east Asia also gives a great advantage to Chinese and international companies partnering Singapore businesses. South-east Asia is seen as the next frontier of a booming digital economy - the region represents the world’s sixth largest economy, with a combined GDP of US$2.5 trillion.
Speakers from Fooyo and Chongqing Tourism Investment Group, which are partners in the digitalisation of the tourism industry in Singapore and Chongqing, spoke about their collaboration experience.
Other speakers included representatives from ST Electronics, iSoftStone, NCS, veriTAG, Y3, and vCargoCloud.
At the Business Matching and Networking Session after the seminar, four thematic areas were set up to facilitate interaction among companies interested in specific business ecosystems. The themes were selected based on the capabilities of the Singapore companies, as well as on Chongqing’s Smart City development plans for 2020: Smart Cities and Internet of Things (IoT), Cloud and Data Analytics, Trade and Logistics, and Smart Enterprise.
IMDA is leading a delegation of more than 40 Singapore ICT companies to Chongqing for Smart China Expo, held from 23 to 25 August, to explore business opportunities with Chinese partners. It is IMDA’s largest delegation to China to date, and Singapore is one of two countries-of-honour at the event.
The business-matching session aimed to ally the strengths of Singapore companies – robust processes, strong project management capabilities, exposure to best practices, and proximity to the thriving South-east Asian markets – to the immense market potential of Chongqing, which is the largest and fastest-growing city in China with a 30-million population.
Mr Lim Khing Tat, VP of Sales and Marketing at Singapore-based video analytics company Vi Dimensions, was among the seminar participants. He said: “With the international markets getting increasingly competitive, it’s always helpful to attend events that specifically help match companies with expertise and interests in similar fields. We are very glad to have been a part of the Singapore-Chongqing DE Seminar, and we think we have made some headway.”
Mr Zen Chin, co-founder of Overdrive IOT, a Singapore-based Internet of Things solutions company, said: “It was great to hear directly from the Chinese companies that spoke at the seminar — what they are good at, what they are looking for in their potential international partners. In China, and perhaps in many other countries, business relationships are always more fruitful when you can put faces to names and when those faces become familiar during such events as the seminar and business-matching sessions.”
Mr Gong Longyou, Deputy Director of China-based Changan Minsheng APLL Logistics Co., Ltd. participated in both the seminar and business-matching session. He commented in Mandarin: "The seminar is very organised and the presentations gave me more insights on Singapore's use of Artificial Intelligence and other smart technologies."
ISSUED BY THE INFOCOMM MEDIA DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
About Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA)
The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) leads Singapore’s digital transformation with infocomm media. To do this, IMDA will develop a dynamic digital economy and a cohesive digital society, driven by an exceptional infocomm media (ICM) ecosystem – by developing talent, strengthening business capabilities, and enhancing Singapore's ICM infrastructure. IMDA also regulates the telecommunications and media sectors to safeguard consumer interests while fostering a pro-business environment, and enhances Singapore’s data protection regime through the Personal Data Protection Commission.
For more news and information, visit www.imda.gov.sg or follow IMDA on Facebook IMDAsg and Twitter @IMDAsg.
For media clarifications, please contact:
Gerald LIM (Mr)
Senior Manager, Communications & Marketing, IMDA
DID: 6751 2769
Email: gerald_lim@imda.gov.sg
Andy CHEN (Mr)
Assistant Director, Communications & Marketing, IMDA
DID: 6751 2786
Email: andy_chen@imda.gov.sg
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