Singapore Update: Singapore Committee Quarterly Call Notes

Singapore Update | December 21, 2016
Authors: Riley Smith and Sarah Eustace

SINGAPORE COMMITTEE QUARTERLY CALL NOTES

On December 14, the Singapore Committee held a planning call to discuss the 2017 Work Plan for the Committee. The call featured a briefing by Ms. Margaret Hanson-Muse (bio can be found here), Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs for ASEAN at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore, and Mr. Ryan Hollowell (bio can be found here), Regional Commercial Officer and Digital Attaché for ASEAN at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore. The briefing covered the U.S. Government’s Digital Attaché Program and how it is working with Singapore's Smart Nation initiative. A summary of the items discussed is provided below.

A new draft of the 2017 Singapore Committee Work Plan can be accessed here. Please contact Sunita Kapoor at skapoor@usasean.org and Riley Smith at rsmith@usasean.org if you have any additional suggestions or questions.

Opening Remarks
1. This is the last Singapore Committee call of 2016 but the first planning call for the Committee for 2017
2. Will be treated to briefing by Ms. Margaret “Maggie” Hanson-Muse and Mr. Ryan Hollowell on the U.S. Government’s Digital Attaché Program and how it is working with Singapore's Smart Nation initiative
  1. Maggie is the Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs, ASEAN, at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore
    1. She runs the Commercial Service for Southeast Asia
    2. She oversees trade policy and promotion programs and the administrative operations for Department of Commerce offices and the SelectUSA program, the US Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) and Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) in seven ASEAN countries, including Singapore
  2. Ryan is the Regional Commercial Officer and Digital Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore
    1. Ryan oversees efforts to promote U.S. business expansion into Singapore as well as help coordinate and streamline Commercial Service programs throughout ASEAN
    2. As the Digital Attaché, he assists in helping U.S. companies navigate the policy challenges they face with foreign internet regulations when selling digital products, transferring data abroad or data localization requirements in ASEAN
3. After the briefing, will go over the draft work plan for the Singapore Committee for 2017

Briefing: The U.S. Government’s Digital Attaché Program and Singapore’s Smart Nation Initiative
1. Ms. Maggie Hanson-Muse
  1. On December 12, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker announced expansion of Digital Attaché Program to six new markets:
    1. South Korea
    2. Indonesia
    3. Mexico
    4. South Africa
    5. Germany
    6. France
  2. David Kincaid at U.S. Embassy in Jakarta is the new Digital Attaché for Indonesia
  3. Expansion doubles number markets covered by Digital Attaché Program
  4. Asia accounts for half of all Digital Attachés
    1. With expansion, Digital Attachés now cover ASEAN, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, and South Korea
  5. Digital Attaché Program officially launched in March 2016
  6. There is now new board of advisors for the digital economy
    1. Advisors will serve two-year terms
    2. Coupled with growth in this sector, see role of Department of Commerce as increasing with addition of this industry group
  7. Department of Commerce currently has seven offices in ASEAN (Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam)
    1. Commercial Counselor in Thailand, Greg Wong, is planning to start a partnership program with the Department of State in Laos
    2. That partnership should start up in 2017
    3. We see Laos as a market with great potential and receptivity for U.S. products
    4. Also see partnership as a good way to start teaching Laos how to access the digital economy
  8. November 1-3, U.S. Commercial Service held “Discover Global Markets: Building Smart Cities” event in Chicago
    1. Event was well-attended, including by Mayor of Ho Chi Minh City, who brought a delegation of 14 people to the conference
  9. Nov 14-18, Commercial Service led delegation of 10 U.S. start-up companies to inaugural Singapore FinTech Festival
    1. This was first time ever in Commerce history that we brought a delegation of U.S. start-ups over
    2. Was expected that FinTech Festival would attract 3,000-4,000 people; 12,000 people ended up attending
    3. Commerce certified the festival and became strategic partner of organizers (Monetary Authority of Singapore)
  10. In Vietnam, Commerce has launched a Smart Cities Industry Group that will encompass all the ASEAN offices
  11. In Indonesia, with Commerce’s Power Working Group, we see Smart Cities as being a big component of the Energy Connect pillar of the U.S.-ASEAN Connect initiative
    1. Role Smart Cities can play in power generation and transmission
  12. During Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s visit to Washington, DC, in early August, Singapore and the United States signed a historic MOU to foster greater collaboration and promote technology partnerships between Singapore and U.S. companies in third-party markets
    1. MOU establishes United States-Singapore Collaboration Platform
    2. Collaboration Platform will focus on opportunities in infrastructure sector, including smart city solutions and digital infrastructure necessary for e-commerce and FinTech sectors
    3. To enhance international competitiveness of Singaporean and U.S. companies, will also work on capacity-building initiatives focusing on project structuring and procurement
    4. Key deliverable of MOU, which will be implemented by International Enterprise (IE) Singapore, was the Smart Cities conference in Chicago in November where Singapore was a featured country
    5. Second follow-up item was the FinTech Festival
    6. Also believe the Smart Nation initiative will be of interest to Health & Life Sciences and Financial Services companies
    7. Plan to partner with Singapore in their next Smart Cities engagement, which is slated for May 2-4, 2017, in Singapore
  13. Commerce is also supporting colleagues in State Department on third-country training program that is totally focused on the digital economy and is slated for July 2017
2. Mr. Ryan Hollowell
  1. Smart Nation Initiative is a really important aspect of the Digital Attaché Program
    1. Not just in Singapore, but in the Smart Cities context throughout the region
  2. As with digital economy, Smart Nation cuts across all industries
  3. Our focus is more on the policy issues related to Smart Nation and smart city programs across ASEAN
    1. Example is e-commerce, some markets in ASEAN are only just now drafting e-commerce legislation
    2. Also deal with data localization issues, OTT regulations
  4. Third-Country Training Program (TCTP) with State Department in July 2017
    1. Focus for July 2017 program is digital economy
    2. TCTP is joint program between U.S. State Department and Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs
    3. Program brings in ASEAN government officials from across region to provide training on crafting effective policy and related topics
      1. Topics have included cybersecurity, water, energy, government procurement, and e-commerce
    4. Most programs have predominantly been on the government-to-government level
    5. One of our goals for 2017 is to give private sector more of a voice
      1. Private sector input was valuable for program on e-commerce
    6. Hope to use TCTP as opportunity for private sector to promote best practices in the digital economy
      1. Private sector can provide insight on how to craft policies to promote innovation and growth
      2. Will be opportunities for participating companies to present on best practices; possibly will be able to visit an off-site innovation center (if time allows)
  5. Also want to increase engagement with Singapore Smart Nation Programme Office
    1. We met with them a couple of weeks back to get idea of what they are looking to do in the new year
    2. The Smart Nation Programme Office saw the great success of the FinTech Festival in November
      1. It opened the eyes of those in the office to the types of successes they could have in positioning Singapore as a test bed for technology before it is deployed out to the region
    3. Commerce will be learning more next week about program they will be putting on May 2-4
      1. Once we learn more, hope to organize similar events as we did with the FinTech Festival
      2. Hope to include private sector in similar capacity as to TCTP
      3. Senior Commercial Specialist Chia Swee Hoon is lead on Smart Nation issues
        She recently published a market research report entitled Singapore - Smart City Report 2016
      4. In July, Commerce Department also published a Smart Cities - Top Markets Report that give a global perspective to opportunities around the world

Q&A
1. Question: Are opportunities for engagement with policymakers, including Smart City conference in May 2017, taking a holistic approach or focusing just on the associated sector? Changes in one sector could have unintended consequences in others if holistic perspective is not taken. What is interesting about the Smart Nation program is that it already takes a holistic approach by spanning many sectors
2. Answer:
  1. We have not gotten agenda for May conference yet. Will have a better idea after we meet with them on December 19, but we have struggled with who we think should be included in the conference
    1. We are considering including Myanmar, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Singapore in the conference
  2. Challenge is that, when look around ASEAN, smart city programs are driven at various administrative levels
    1. Bandung and Makassar in Indonesia and Davao in the Philippines are tackling it at the municipal level
    2. Even though there are smart cities in Vietnam, appears to be prerogative of national government to be the guiding hand in implementing smart city programs
    3. We are encouraging countries to take a whole-of-government approach to smart city programs
      1. For example, you cannot have financial regulators enacting laws that hurt e-commerce, which then hurts small businesses in the country
    4. MOU with Singapore is to help U.S. companies partner with Singapore companies to help third countries formulate and implement effective and supportive policies in healthcare, energy, transportation, e-commerce, and digital economy sectors
      1. We want to focus on ASEAN countries as the third countries because believe Singapore can have a bigger impact in Southeast Asian countries
3. Question: The digital innovation space is a subject on which we are focusing in APEC in 2017. Vietnam wants to fold a lot of ASEAN agenda into APEC and vice versa. What are the performance indicators you will use for the MOU so approach can be revised as necessary?
4. Answer:
  1. We have not yet thought about how would use MOU in APEC forum
  2. We will send further information to Council for them to disseminate to Singapore Committee

2017 Singapore Committee Work Plan Themes and Policy Priorities
1. Themes and Policy Priorities
  1. Development of Ecosystems of Cross-Sector Innovation
  2. Regulatory Frameworks That Promote Innovation and Support the Use of New Technologies
  3. Improving Human Capital Development and Management for Singapore’s Future Economy
  4. How U.S. private sector can help Singapore as it prepares to be 2018 ASEAN Chair
  5. Relevant Public and Private Stakeholders to Engage to Advocate Policy Priorities
2. We arrived at these themes and priorities because we wanted to use this year’s work plan as a way to follow up on the recommendations that we submitted to the Singapore government’s Committee on the Future Economy (CFE) several weeks ago
  1. The CFE was first announced in October 2015
  2. It was tasked with devising economic policy recommendations to strengthen Singapore’s business environment

Development of Ecosystems of Cross-Sector Innovation
1. Identify opportunities for the US private sector to play roles in GOS efforts to develop ecosystems of cross-sector innovation via initiatives such as the Smart Nation vision, Partnerships for Capability Transformation (SPRING PACT), and the implementation of recommendations from the Committee on the Future Economy.
2. Encourage the use of new technologies with cross-sector applications to open new spaces for innovation where ICT, Infrastructure, health, finance, and other priority sectors overlap.
3. Promote expansion of GOS initiatives such as SPRING PACT that encourage collaborative R&D to harness inter-firm and cross-sector synergies between less obvious partners.

Discussion of “Development of Ecosystems of Cross-Sector Innovation” Theme
1. Over next 2-3 months we should focus on the strategic vision of the 2017 Work Plan and how to translate it into actions and deliverables
  1. We will want to keep the high-level themes in the Work Plan, but then attach detail-specific issues
  2. This will help us develop a tactical plan to carry out the 2017 Work Plan
    1. An example of a tactical issue/topic would be Tourism 2.0 initiative, which falls under the Smart Nation program

Regulatory Frameworks That Promote Innovation and Support the Use of New Technologies
1. Encourage the adoption of regulatory frameworks that promote innovation and support for new technologies in a “Runway Economy,” where ideas are conceived and products are tested and developed within regulatory frameworks that are proactive, consultative, evidence-based, and proportionate to the identified opportunities and risks.
  1. Encourage the adoption of policies supportive of data sharing and freer data flows that make the examination of large data sets using analytics and big data easier.
  2. Encourage innovation in financial services and the adoption of regulatory frameworks that promote the use of new financial technologies (FinTech).
2. Promote “Regulatory Free Zones” as one model for encouraging the experimentation of small scale activities for “proof of concept” purposes.
3. Encourage continuation of reforms that were to be implemented under TPP. Advocate for relevant chapters to serve as the basis for reforms in specific sectors and industries.

Discussion of “Regulatory Frameworks That Promote Innovation and Support the Use of New Technologies” Theme
1. Consider changing “Regulatory Free Zones” to “Enhanced Innovation Zones” so we don’t risk contradicting earlier point about encouraging adoption of regulatory frameworks that promote innovation
2. Singapore is pushing forward with research on blockchain. Because blockchain poses a risk to the business models of some Financial Services firms, the Council should conduct a survey of its member companies in the Financial Services sector to get their views on whether the Council should support blockchain research or take a different position
  1. Singaporeans want to move forward with their own digital currency, but members might not have a unified opinion on the subject
  2. Some members see blockchain as an opportunity, but others see it as a threat
  3. Consider holding a call in early January with Financial Services member companies to get their opinions on blockchain
3. Should emphasize that regulatory frameworks intended to promote innovation should not be relegated to just “new technologies”
  1. The traditional innovative economy includes other sectors, so the Work Plan should encompass those sectors, too
  2. Insert “innovation in new business models in the demand-side economy” when talking about regulatory frameworks that encourage innovation

Improving Human Capital Development for Singapore’s Future Economy
1. Identify potential partnerships between foreign businesses and local firms or educational institutions to co-develop an educational learning program.
2. Support government initiatives promoting human capital development, such as the SPRING PACT and SkillsFuture initiatives.
3. Encourage the adoption of a policy framework or an action plan to increase flexibility of working arrangements and improve workforce diversity in skilled labor positions aligned with potential future economy growth sectors and technologies, such as cyber, analytics, and FinTech.

Discussion of “Improving Human Capital Development for Singapore’s Future Economy” Theme
1. Should include human capital management along with human capital development
  1. Suggest including a separate bullet point on workforce transformation as a consequence of the digitally-enabled innovation economy
2. Want to be sure that for this topic we focus first on working with and enhancing existing programs instead of trying to devise new initiatives; no need to “re-invent the wheel” when it comes to human capital development and management programs

Relevant Public and Private Stakeholders to Engage to Advocate Policy Priorities
1. Ministry of Trade and Industry (A*STAR, Economic Development Board, SPRING PACT)
2. Ministry of Communications and Information (Info-communications Media Development Authority, Cyber Security Agency)
3. Office of the Prime Minister (Smart Nation Programme Office, National Research Foundation)
4. Monetary Authority of Singapore (FinTech Office)
5. Ministry of Finance
6. Ministry of Health
7. Ministry of Education (SkillsFuture)
8. Association of Banks in Singapore

Upcoming Events
1. 2017 Singapore Business Mission – dates will likely be in late April or early May
  1. Before business mission, we should find a way to map the 2017 Work Plan to the Philippines’ and Vietnam’s themes and priorities for ASEAN and APEC, respectively
    1. The Philippines is ASEAN Chair for 2017; Vietnam is hosting APEC for 2017