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SINGAPORE: Singapore should stay focused on containing COVID-19 and provide health assurances that it can safely host the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting next year, said the Minister of Trade and Industry on Wednesday (December 9). , Chan Chun Sing.
The WEF Special Annual Meeting, usually held in the Swiss city of Davos, will take place in Singapore from May 13-16.
“After careful consideration, and in light of the current situation regarding COVID-19 cases, it was decided that Singapore was in the best position to hold the meeting,” the WEF said on Monday explaining the change of location. .
READ: Singapore to host special annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in May
While the WEF’s move reflects its confidence in Singapore’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chan said the country should not be complacent.
“We are at this moment, taking a step forward. It’s like a baseball game, we’re getting ready to hit. We haven’t hit the home run yet, we’ll get it after May when we stay focused and do the job well, “he said.
“And to get the job done right, we need to make sure we contain the virus, keep the numbers as low as possible to keep ourselves safe and the guests to come. So this is above our previous competitive advantages in being a safe and efficient place to do it. “
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of his visit to Siemens’ Advanced Manufacturing Transformation Center, Chan said there are three levels of security that Singapore must achieve.
This includes assuring Singaporeans that the meeting can be held safely with visitors entering the country. Participants must also be assured that people from different countries can interact safely, he added.
“Then there is a third level of assurance that we have to give our participants that after attending this meeting before they move on, or back to their own countries or other places, they receive a clean health certificate, so that they don’t there will be misunderstandings that someone has contracted the virus in Singapore while they were here, “Chan said.
He noted that Singapore will have a competitive advantage if it can host the event successfully. Unlike other countries that can access a large domestic market to support the MICE industry, Singapore is not the case, he explained.
“Our orientation is always the big international markets, so we have developed health protocols that can allow us to allow people from different countries to come and meet in Singapore,” Chan said.
Meanwhile, Singapore is in talks with the WEF about the logistical details that need to be worked out.
“They have seen the options that Singapore can offer. And now they are making their own internal decisions on how they want to conceptualize the thing … and we will work with them to execute this, ”Chan said.
It would be the first time that the WEF has held its meeting in Asia since its inception in 1971, and the second time outside of Switzerland. The first was in 2002 when it was held in New York as a show of solidarity with the United States after the terrorist attacks of September 11.
