DPM Heng Swee Keat to visit United Kingdom and Japan (Sep 2024)

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat will make a working visit to the United Kingdom (London and Manchester), and Japan (Tokyo and Nagoya) from 29 Sep to 11 Oct 2024.

Deputy Prime Minister Heng's visit builds on the positive momentum of high-level exchanges between Singapore and the two countries, including the Joint Declaration last year to elevate Singapore-United Kingdom relations to a Strategic Partnership. The visit will further explore ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in areas of mutual interests, as well as exchange views on regional and international developments.

As part of his visit to the United Kingdom, Deputy Prime Minister Heng will meet senior political leaders and business leaders. He will also engage leading research institutions, venture builders, and financial institutions in the UK to strengthen the linkages between the Singapore and UK research and innovation ecosystems. In this regard, he will witness the signing of Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) between Singapore's agencies and UK-based research institutes, including an agreement between Enterprise Singapore and InnovateUK to drive co-innovation and support two-way market access. In addition, Deputy Prime Minister Heng will host an engagement with Singaporeans working and studying in the UK.

In Japan, Deputy Prime Minister Heng will engage business leaders and leading research institutions in Tokyo. He will also visit Nagoya to preside over the launch of NUS's BLOCK71 at Station Ai, a global start-up hub in Nagoya. These engagements serve to deepen economic engagement with Japan, as well as research and innovation collaboration on common global challenges like demographics change, climate change, and technological disruptions.

DPM Heng will be accompanied by officials from the Prime Minister's Office, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Trade and Industry, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and National Research Foundation.

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PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE
SINGAPORE
29 SEPTEMBER 2024