China-Singapore SIP Joint Steering Council Adopts Five New Policies to Promote Sustainable Growth in SIP
Five New Supporting Policies for Suzhou Industrial Park:
1. On promoting its industrial optimization and upgrading, public technical platform construction, and making it a pilot area in experimenting new favorable measures;
2. On further improving the functions of a demonstration park of logistic operation in accordance with the requirements of port for medicine import;
3. On making it a pilot area in settling cross-border trade with RMB;
4. On exploring Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and developing financing channels;
5. On making it a pilot area for experimenting bonded supervision on the services imported by service outsourcing companies in SIP.
The 11th China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) Joint Steering Council Meeting was held in Singapore on August 24 to review the achievements in the past 15 years, the factors contributing to the success, and the actual progress in attaining the established goals in the new decade. The both sides agreed to introduce five new supporting policies in four fields of technology, logistics, finance, and outsourcing in SIP at the meeting. Mr. Wang Qishan, Chinese Vice-Premier and Chinese Chairman of the Council co-chaired the meeting with his Singapore counterpart Mr. Wong Kan Seng.
Chinese Vice-Premier praised SIP for being a model cooperation project between the two countries and serving as a constructive exploration in accelerating the industrialization and urbanization in China. During its 15-year history, SIP has stood up to various tests and finally realized rapid growth. Since the second half of last year, SIP has managed to maintain a steady and healthy growth in spite of the recession, which fully demonstrates its vitality and potential. Mr. Wang pointed out that SIP take the 15th anniversary as the beginning for pursuing higher goals instead of taking it as a conclusion. At the new starting point, it's imperative for both sides to further strengthen the cooperation on promoting industrialization and urbanization in China on the basis of summarizing the past experience and carrying out the scientific outlook. More importantly, SIP authorities should continuously serve as a pioneer in introducing new policies so as to accelerate the industrial upgrading and structural adjustment, to innovate systems, and to build an innovative, green, and harmonious industrial park. He also promised that Chinese government would provide comprehensive support to SIP as usual and wished to join hands with Singapore in achieving more fruits from the cooperation. Singapore Deputy PM Wong Kan Seng agreed that the 15th anniversary marked the beginning of a new development stage and hoped that SIP would harvest more achievements in the future.
The Council reviewed current progress towards the new 10-year goals at the meeting on August 24 and concluded that SIP had accomplished the first-phase construction while the comprehensive development of the second and the third phases had achieved outstanding results, which paved the way for future development with adequate functions and sufficient material supplies.
To ensure a more rapid and solid growth in the future, the Council adopted five new policies in support of the development in the four fields of technology, logistics, finance, and outsourcing in SIP. These policies encourage the industrial optimization and upgrading, public technical platform construction, and the experiment of new favorable measures; its building of pilot logistics area with the port function of importing medicines; the settlement of cross-border trade with RMB in SIP; the exploration of REITs so as to develop financing channels; and the launching of pilot project by introducing bonded supervision on the services imported by local outsourcing companies.
Both parties promised at the meeting to continuously support and promote the development in SIP and expressed confidence in its future. With the strong support of the leaders of the two countries, SIP enjoys a bright prospect by achieving the new 10-year goals set forth by the Council and becomes a hi-tech industrial park with international competitive edge and an internationalized, modern, information-based, ecological, and innovative new city district.
The Council also discussed and endorsed SIP Development Report, and summarized and analyzed the achievements and contribution factors in the past 15 years.
In an interview with the press, Mr. Jiang Hongkun, Executive Member of CPC Jiangsu Provincial Committee and Secretary of CPC Suzhou Municipal Committee, said that glorious achievements had been achieved in SIP in infrastructure construction, industrial development, and environment building. Today, SIP has become a role model among development zones and a window for China's reform and opening-up. It is also the highlight of economic and social growth in Suzhou. In the new historical era, SIP still enjoys great potentials in accelerating industrial upgrading and improving development level. Jiang pointed out that SIP should develop the brand value of China-Singapore cooperation and maintain a healthy growth trend, while both the CPC Suzhou Municipal Committee and the Municipal Government will give consistent and stronger support to the development of SIP and to enhance China-Singapore cooperation by adhering to the four principles of not changing the cooperation framework, the nature and the status of CSSD as a leading developer, the long-term goals, and the status of both parties as investors. He expressed the hope that China-Singapore cooperation would reach higher level, cover more extensive fields, and progress faster, so as to make SIP an important carrier of the cooperation and a symbol of friendship between the two countries as well as a key growth source in Suzhou.
Originally published on Suzhou Daily
August 25, 2009
