PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s Ministry of Investment Trade and Industry (Miti) and Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) have established the Annual Ministerial Dialogue (AMD), a regular platform, to boost trade and investments between the two countries, as well as strengthen ties between officials from both ministries.
Investment Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz and Singapore’s Trade and Industry Minister, Gan Kim Yong, co-chaired the inaugural AMD in Kuala Lumpur today.
During the dialogue, the ministers reviewed the progress of the two frameworks on Cooperation in the Digital Economy and Green Economy, signed between the two governments during Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s visit to Singapore earlier this year.
On the progress of the frameworks, the ministers jointly announced a new task force to explore the promotion of cross-border business trade, leveraging Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation’s (Matrade) Digital Trade Platform and Singapore’s Business sans Borders initiative.
“The task force will involve Miti and Matrade, together with MTI, Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore,” according to a Miti statement.
Both ministers welcomed the collaborative efforts between Matrade and Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) in the Capacity Development Programme for Exporters, aimed at supporting exporters’ sustainability transition.
As part of the programme, there will be a series of engagements between Singaporean and Malaysian enterprises to share experiences and solutions in sustainability. The first session will focus on sustainability reporting frameworks and green financing, scheduled to be launched next month.
“Both ministers reaffirmed the importance of advancing cooperation in multilateral and plurilateral fora, and keeping trade and supply chains open, amidst volatility in the global economic environment,” it said.
Furthermore, they reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen bilateral ties and agreed to continue collaborating closely to deepen Malaysia and Singapore’s bilateral economic relationship, for the benefit of the two countries’ economies, businesses and citizens.
Meanwhile, both countries have held dialogues between policymakers on digital trade and the green economy to increase understanding and explore opportunities for collaboration.
On digital trade, the two ministries acknowledged that good regulatory and governance frameworks play a significant role in facilitating business opportunities presented by digitalisation, as both countries embrace the next generation of international trade arrangements and rules.
Miti and MTI will also continue discussions on potential collaborations in the carbon credits industry, and standards for renewable energy technology.
Source: https://www.thesundaily.my/business/malaysia-singapore-ministries-to-hold-annual-dialogue-to-boost-trade-investments-KB11104583