Singapore Is Seeking to Become a High-Tech Center

 

Armed with incentives², Singapore has been increasing its efforts to get technology businesses and investors⁴ interested in the country.

Companies and government officials say the goal of the campaign is to make Singapore into a high-tech⁵ center.

But now, the city-state is turning its attention to finding skilled workers, and even the government says its work is not done.

Attracting talent

U.S.-based investor³ Paul Bragiel said he had to be asked three or four times before he accepted an invitation from Singapore to come see its tech industry.

Bragiel made the nearly 13,000-kilometer trip from the United States in 2010. Back then, he said, the city-state’s chances of becoming a leading Asian tech center were “bleak⁶, to say the least.”

But he saw some promise, and like many other investors and tech companies since then, he was attracted by generous terms from government agencies.

“They gave us a very aggressive deal. Very few countries would have matched it,” added Bragiel. He also considered Hong Kong and Tokyo for an Asian expansion before helping⁷ to set up Golden Gate Ventures in Singapore in 2011. The Reuters news agency reported that he would not say what the terms of his deal were.

Golden Gate Ventures is a venture capital company. It connects investors with startup companies and other businesses.

Singapore, Southeast Asia and the tech industry

Singapore is one of the smallest nations in Southeast Asia.

Internet users in nearby Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia spend four hours or more every day on mobile internet. That information comes from a 2018 study by social media platform Hootsuite.

Manufacturing, finance and insurance businesses made up more than a third of Singapore’s $356 billion economy last year.

The information-communications sector⁸, which includes tech companies, represents about 4% of that total. But it is growing faster than any other sector, based on information released last week.

Information and communications grew at about 6.6% in the first three months of 2019. The next fastest of the nine sectors⁹ Singapore follows was finance and insurance at 3.2%.

Chng Kai Fong is managing director of Singapore’s Economic Development Board, or EDB. The EDB is the government agency that negotiates some deals between local companies and foreign investors.

Fong said he is now hoping to attract “Jedi Masters”, or high-level tech people, to Singapore. With the help of those “Jedi Masters,” he hopes can finally turn Singapore into a major tech center.

Details on the deals negotiated with the EDB are hard to come by. The government makes businesses sign nondisclosure agreements, noted¹⁰ companies, advisors¹¹ and officials.

Tax holidays, financial aid for research and development and co-funding for investments are among the incentives from different agencies, they added.

The secretive nature of the deals means it is unclear how much the country spends to attract such companies and whether it proves profitable.

Challenges and criticisms

Yet a number of issues remain. Some tech companies have expressed concern about Singapore’s recently passed fake news law, which critics say could limit free speech. Alphabet’s Google said it was worried the law would hurt innovation and the growth of the digital information ecosystem¹².

Also, Singapore only has a single local “unicorn” - a startup worth over $1 billion - in ride-hailing company Grab. That information comes from researchers at CBInsights.

Indonesia has four such “unicorns:” taxi app Go-Jek, travel website Traveloka, and market places Bukalapak and Tokopedia. Hong Kong has two, in online travel agency Klook and logistics business Lalamove.

At a time of tensions between the United States and China, Singapore seems to be on neutral ground while still enjoying free trade with both. Last year, the city-state added a free trade deal with the European Union.

Political issues also threaten to pull Hong Kong further under China’s influence, which should help Singapore, noted one banker.

For Bragiel, any concerns he had about Singapore almost 10 years ago are long forgotten.

“Silicon Valley attracts the whole world; Singapore is catching¹³ up,” he said.

I'm John Russell.

And I'm Alice Bryant.

Words in This Story

incentive¹ – n. a thing or action that motivates someone to do something

bleak - adj. not hopeful

attract – v. to cause to have an interest or liking¹⁴ in something

generous – adj. showing a willingness to give more of something

match – v. to be equal to something

mobile – adj. able to move or moved easily

insurance – n. the act of a company promising¹⁵ a guarantee of payment for a loss, damage or health condition

nondisclosure – n. legal term - failure to report information

fake news – n. news stories that appear to be news, but which are often sensational¹⁶ and have factual mistakes

innovation - n. the act or process of proposing new ideas, devices, or methods

1 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

2 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

3 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

4 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

5 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

6 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

7 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

8 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

9 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 advisors   

n.顾问，劝告者( advisor的名词复数 )；（指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。 来自互联网

12 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

13 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

14 liking   

n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢

参考例句：

• The word palate also means taste or liking.Palate这个词也有“口味”或“嗜好”的意思。
• I must admit I have no liking for exaggeration.我必须承认我不喜欢夸大其词。

15 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

16 sensational   

adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的

参考例句：

• Papers of this kind are full of sensational news reports.这类报纸满是耸人听闻的新闻报道。
• Their performance was sensational.他们的演出妙极了。