The 14th meeting of the Guangdong-Singapore Collaboration Council (SGCC) was held at the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City on July 31. Wang Weizhong, governor of Guangdong province and co-chair of the SGCC, and Ong Ye Kung, Singapore's minister of health and co-chair of the SGCC, delivered keynote speeches at the meeting.

Wang noted that China and Singapore are friendly neighbors and important partners. In 2023, the leaders of both countries elevated China-Singapore relations to a comprehensive, high-quality, forward-looking partnership, charting a clear course for future relations. Guangdong and Singapore have a strong foundation for cooperation and maintaining positive momentum. Guangdong has consistently been Singapore's largest provincial-level trading partner in China for the last 35 years.

Thanks to the SGCC, nearly 200 cooperation memorandums and framework agreements have been signed, according to Wang, driving the progress of Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City and the implementation of key collaborative projects. 

Guangdong is fully implementing the guiding principles from the 20th CPC National Congress and related meetings, steadfastly promoting comprehensive reform and expanding high-level opening up, Wang said, adding that the province is expanding efforts to attract and utilize foreign investment, all in service of high-quality development, Greater Bay Area construction and China's modernization. These initiatives will create greater opportunities and broader space for Guangdong-Singapore cooperation.

Wang said Guangdong welcomes more Singaporean companies to invest in Guangdong, sharing in the benefits of the Greater Bay Area's development and the province's reform and growth.

He said that Guangdong is committed to implementing the important consensus reached by the leaders of China and Singapore and to leveraging the SGCC to enhance coordination, policy communication, business matchmaking and project follow-up, deepening practical cooperation in areas such as technology and industry, education and talent, financial services, green energy and platform construction, further advancing Guangdong-Singapore collaboration.

Ong Ye Kung remarked that the mutually beneficial cooperation between Singapore and Guangdong has deepened in recent years, yielding fruitful results. He expressed hope that both sides will continue to make full use of high-level mechanisms to further deepen exchanges and cooperation in areas including trade and investment, financial services, technological innovation, biomedicine and the green economy.

A signing ceremony for Guangdong-Singapore business cooperation projects was also held, with 20 agreements signed across sectors such as biomedicine, financial services, green development, agricultural technology, education and talent, smart transportation and platform construction.

Before the meeting, Wang Weizhong met with Ong Ye Kung and his delegation, introducing the key messages from the third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and providing an update on Guangdong's economic and social development.

The pair discussed strengthening Guangdong-Singapore cooperation and enhancing the role of platforms like the SGCC to promote practical collaboration across various sectors.