PM Lee meets officials from 8 Sub-Saharan African nations to discuss stronger ties

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong met ministers and deputy ministers from eight Sub-Saharan African nations on Thursday to discuss ways to strengthen cooperation between Singapore and Africa.

“We discussed strengthening cooperation between Singapore and Africa, and exchanged experiences on our respective development journeys,” PM Lee said in a Facebook post.

He recounted

his visits to Rwanda, South Africa and Kenya

over the past two years, as well as other high-level exchanges since borders that were closed because of the Covid-19 pandemic reopened.

“Africa is a continent with vast potential, and we look forward to working together with our African friends to build a sustainable and resilient future,” said PM Lee.

Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan hosted the 4th Singapore-Sub-Saharan Africa High-Level Ministerial Exchange Visit held from Tuesday to Thursday.

The visit is a biennial platform hosted by Singapore to foster closer links and exchange development experiences between Singapore and Sub-Saharan African countries.

In a Facebook post on Thursday, Dr Balakrishnan said he was delighted to host the exchange visit after a five-year hiatus due to the pandemic.

“Africa is a dynamic and vibrant region with a young population of over 1.4 billion people,” Dr Balakrishnan said.

“There is immense potential for business and trade to grow between Africa and South-east Asia. There are many opportunities for us to explore in the digital and green economies,” he added.

The ministers and deputy ministers who were in Singapore came from Botswana, Ghana, Mauritius, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Uganda.

While in Singapore, they also attended on Tuesday the 7th Africa Singapore Business Forum, which was organised by Enterprise Singapore to promote economic exchanges between Africa and Asia.