Ms Yong Ying-I, Chief Executive Officer Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore Speech - Satyam's Asia-Pacific Operations Launch, Fullerton Hotel
Ms Yong Ying-I, Chief Executive Officer
Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore
Speech - Satyam's Asia-Pacific Operations Launch, Fullerton Hotel
Singapore, 16 April 2001
Mr B Ramalinga Raju, Chairman of Satyam Computer Services Ltd
Mr Virender Aggarwal, Vice President, Satyam Asia Pte Ltd
Ladies and Gentlemen
Good evening,
1. I am very pleased to be here at the reception to celebrate the launch of Satyam's Asia-Pacific Software Development Centre & Headquarters in Singapore.
2. Government officials like me tend to speak at the office openings of America, European and Japanese MNCs in Singapore. This is because they have historically been the strategic investments that have helped propel Singapore to the top ranks of industrialised economies in Asia and created good jobs for our people.
3. Satyam's opening of its Asia-Pacific operations is testimony to a fact that the world has come to realise in the last few years - that India has world-class IT companies able to compete in the top-end of the value chain. India's IT companies had earlier cut their teeth on more basic work, but they have expanded rapidly upwards into more sophisticated work with higher returns. Instead of only supplying programmers to write routine software code, the leading Indian IT companies like Satyam are designing and building very high value work from e-business consulting to full product development. Indian companies have consciously differentiated themselves in quality from low-cost competitors in Asia through aggressively pursuing certification like SEI CMM. This is a great competitive advantage.
4. This year, technology and telecoms companies have been going through a very difficult time. What is thought-provoking against this economic backdrop is that American companies are expected to push even more aggressively to outsource their IT and business process functions due to the intense pressure to cut costs. IT companies in India are expected to be the primary beneficiaries of this behaviour. NASSCOM's survey showed that 185 of the Fortune 500 companies presently already outsource software to India. 85% of the companies that NASSCOM spoke to said that they did not plan to scale down their orders to Indian companies. So I would expect companies like Satyam to fare reasonably well despite the global economic slowdown.
5. Satyam's decision then to set up a Software Development Centre in Singapore is an expression of confidence, both in its business growth prospects and for Singapore's capability in higher-end software development. Their investment represents the type of operations we hope to encourage Indian infocomm companies to do here. On our part, Singapore believes that we can be a good launchpad for Indian infocomm companies looking for markets across the Asia-Pacific. Singapore is one of the region's best telecommunications- and internet-connected cities, with large pipes going to every major economy in the region. We also have a base of some 5,000 MNCs operating out of Singapore serving the region, which provides a compelling customer base for companies like Satyam. In addition, the long history of strong socio-cultural links and business relations between Singapore and India also makes it easier for Indian companies to establish and strengthen their presence in Singapore quickly and smoothly.
6. When I was in Bangalore last month, IDA jointly organised a CEO Forum together with the CII at Infosys's Bangalore campus. The Indian and Singaporean CEOs who attended shared a strong belief that our companies and Indian companies typically have complementary capabilities to each other. Thus, there is a significant potential for win-win joint ventures targeting business opportunities on a global or regional scale. Our local infocomm companies make good strategic alliance partners because they are strong in systems integration and complex customised solutions and have much experience selling into markets in North-East Asia. IDA and the CII agreed to follow up with specific areas of potential that interested companies from the 2 countries can work together on. May I take this opportunity to invite guests here today to join us in these collaborative efforts. For your information, the bilateral collaboration between the companies of the 2 countries is now known as the "Crouching Tiger Roaring Lion" collaboration framework!
7. The proof of the synergies from collaboration is the growing number of successful business collaborations in the infocomm sector between Singapore and Indian companies that we have seen in recent months. A number of the leading Indian companies have also substantially expanded their presence in Singapore. I am delighted that Satyam has likewise chosen Singapore as the location of its Asia Pacific operations. I congratulate Mr Raju on your decision to set up your software development centre here. It is my sincere wish that Satyam's success will serve to inspire other Indian companies here in Singapore as well as those considering entering Singapore in the future.
8. My congratulations.
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