On 5 June 2023, U.S. Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade Marisa Lago and Singapore Permanent Secretary (Policy) Gabriel Lim met in Singapore for the second U.S.-Singapore Partnership for Growth and Innovation (PGI) annual dialogue. The dialogue aims to enhance bilateral economic collaborations by strengthening the relationship of both countries in new and forward-looking areas such as advanced manufacturing and supply chain resilience, clean energy and environmental technologies, digital economy and smart cities, and healthcare.
For the first half of the year, both countries worked together on specific partnerships under the digital economy and smart city pillar, where initiatives to ensure cybersecurity, assist cross-border data flows, promote responsible AI frameworks, and facilitate digital capabilities in the region took centerstage. For the second half the year, the U.S. and Singapore will focus on the clean energy and environmental technologies pillar, where both countries are expected to organize events and host collaborative engagements to promote sustainable practices and the adoption of high-quality climate standards in Southeast Asia.
During the week of the annual dialogue, the Council also co-organized a workshop on Infocomm Media Development Authority’s (IMDA) TradeTrust Framework. Members had the opportunity to learn more about TradeTrust – a framework that comprises globally-accepted standards that connect governments and businesses to a public blockchain to enable trusted interoperability of electronic trade documents across digital platforms. The Framework aims to reduce the inefficiencies and complexities of cross-border trade arising from the current paper-based documentation.
The joint statement issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce and Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry can be found here.
