Singapore at 57, A call for more rules based multilateralism

Pictured (l-r) Alex Ho, Director of Enterprise Singapore’s Overseas Centre in Johannesburg, Jennifer Cheng, Deputy Minister Candith Mashego-Dlamini and High Commissioner Zainal Mantaha

16 August 2022

The city nation of Singapore draws its strength, charm, charisma and inspiration from the diversity of its people. On August 9th Singaporeans celebrated their 57th national day. It marks the establishment of an independent sovereign state as it separated from Malaysia in 1965.

Singapore High Commissioner Zainal Arif Mantaha and spouse Jennifer Cheng hosted a reception to celebrate this special occasion at Baba House at the High Commission in Pretoria, City of Tshwane, South Africa on August 11th, as August 9th is celebrated as Women’s Day in South Africa. Deputy Minister Candith Mashego-Dlamini of International Relations for South Africa (DIRCO) was chief guest at the event.

The Singapore Hawker Culture, which has been recently inscribed into the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, was on full display at Baba House for guests to experience and enjoy. This set the lively, vibrant atmosphere for the celebration. The diversity of Singapore was reflected in the cuisine offered by the hawkers which included Laksa, chicken rice, satay, roti prata fried carrot cake and much more which was enjoyed at communal tables as is customary in Singapore.

For photos and videos of the celebration follow the link Singapore National Day

In welcoming guests Mantaha acknowledged the Heads of Mission of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) represented in South Africa. ASEAN celebrated its 55th anniversary since its formation on 8 August 1967. “We are indeed stronger together as we work to strengthen regional cooperation and integration of a community that encompasses 680 million, and a combined GDP of US$3.2 trillion, effectively the 5th largest economy in the world,” said Mantaha. He also referred to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia on 10 November 2020 signed by South Africa as an enhancement and a commitment to increasing cooperation between the country and the region.

In 2016 President Cyril Ramaphosa visited Singapore in his capacity as Deputy President and was very impressed at the rapid development of Singapore, said Mashego-Dlamini in her address. The visit to Singapore by Minister Naledi Pandor of Dirco in July this year was to deepen the interactions on innovation, science and skills development among others and has been central to linkages and exchanges. The purpose of her visit was also to re-affirm the invitations to Prime Minister Lee and Foreign Minister Balakrishnan of Singapore to visit South Africa.

A number of South African public servants have benefitted with skills development through the Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. A beneficiary of the programme, Tshihumbudzo Ravhandalala from Dirco, interviewed at the event, attested to gaining valuable knowledge and skills while training in Singapore. She was also in awe of how efficient, innovative and dynamic the country is. The training courses which continue to contribute to the skills base in South Africa include governance, administration, leadership, ICT, energy, tourism and environmental management.

Singapore and South Africa established diplomatic relations in 1993. Two years before that, in 1991, Mantaha was a bag carrier for Singapore’s Special Envoy Herman Hochstadt in a reconnaissance visit to South Africa. “Mr Hochstadt was subsequently appointed Singapore’s first, but non-resident High Commissioner. I never forgot the warmth of its people and the beauty of the country,” said Mantaha. As fate would have it, Mantaha returned to join the team at the Singapore High Commission seeking to grow bilateral relations with South Africa, and also with Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.

Participating in the panel discussion are (l-r) High Commissioner Mantaha, Logashri Sewnarain, CEO of SMEC South Africa, Will Green, Programme Director at Grindstone, Dr Thulani Dlamini, CEO at CSIR, Alex Ho, Director of Enterprise Singapore’s Overseas Centre and Daan du Toit, DDG International Cooperation and Resources at DSI

Several Singaporean companies are investing in South Africa, and Singapore is host to several South African companies. Alex Ho, the current Director of Enterprise Singapore’s Overseas Centre in Johannesburg, tasked with reconnecting the two private sectors hosted a brief panel discussion on the work that is being done in this regard.

As the world is still reeling from the effects of the recent global pandemic, addressing guests Mantaha said, “Just as we were hoping to see the back of a devastating pandemic, the geopolitical situation has worsened. It has exacerbated disruptions of global supply chains - of energy, food and other commodities. This has in turn exacerbated global inflationary pressures, adversely affecting growth prospects in many countries. Climate change is becoming less and less an abstract concept.

“But even as the global environment is now characterised by more frequent global shocks, and greater economic and financial volatility, unfortunately, the multilateral system needed to address such challenges effectively, seems to be weakening.

“As it is, the world already has a full agenda – strengthening the multilateral trading system, mitigating and adapting to climate change, promoting digital, technological and green transition, tackling inequalities, preparing for the next pandemic, among many others. Resolving these issues would require more multilateralism, not less.

"Beyond the mutual benefits of our bilateral cooperation, it is also against this larger strategic backdrop that Singapore attaches importance to its relations with South Africa. We look forward to working with South Africa and other like-minded countries to strengthen the rules-based multilateral system,” said Mantaha.

TDS