Joint Press Statement: Third Meeting of the Qatar-Singapore High-Level Joint Committee, 3 March 2009

1 The third meeting of the Qatar-Singapore High-Level Joint Committee was held in Doha, Qatar on 3 March 2009 at the Diwan Amiri. It was co-chaired by His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, Heir Apparent of the State of Qatar, and His Excellency Mr Wong Kan Seng, Deputy Prime Minister & Minister for Home Affairs of the Republic of Singapore.

2 On the Singapore side, the High-Level Joint Committee meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister & Minister for Home Affairs Mr Wong Kan Seng, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mr Zainul Abidin Rasheed, Senior Minister of State for Finance & Transport Mrs Lim Hwee Hua, Senior Minister of State for Education & Information, Communications and the Arts RADM (NS) Lui Tuck Yew, Minister of State for Trade and Industry Mr Lee Yi Shyan, Permanent Secretary (Ministry of Health) Ms Yong Ying-I, Permanent Secretary (Ministry of National Development) Mr Tan Tee How and Permanent Secretary (Ministry of Manpower) Mr Leo Yip.

3 On the Qatari side, the High-Level Joint Committee meeting was attended by the Heir Apparent of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani, Minister of State of Interior Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Minister of Finance and Economy Yusuf Hussein Kamal, Minister of Education and Higher Education Sheikha Ahmed Al-Mahmoud, Minister of Municipality and Urban Planning Sheikh Abdulrahman Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Minister of Business and Trade Sheikh Fahd Bin Jassim Bin Mohamed Al-Thani, Head of State Security Bureau Mohammed Al-Missned, and Undersecretary of Labour Hussein Yusuf Al-Mulla.

4 The High-Level Joint Committee agreed that Qatar and Singapore had made significant progress in bilateral cooperation since the Inaugural High-Level Joint Committee meeting in October 2006 in Doha, Qatar. The High-Level Joint Committee welcomed the excellent friendship and cooperation between Qatar and Singapore and agreed to accelerate the pace of bilateral engagement as well as strengthen strategic cooperation in key areas under the "Qatar-Singapore Connect" initiative that had been agreed to by His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Amir of the State of Qatar, and His Excellency Mr Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore, during the historic visit of the Amir of Qatar to Singapore in June 2005.

5 The High-Level Joint Committee noted the progress made since the Second High-Level Joint Committee Meeting held in Singapore in October 2007. The High-Level Joint Committee welcomed the signing of the MOU on Financial Supervisory Cooperation between the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority and the Monetary Authority of Singapore in October 2008 and the MOU on Business Cooperation between the Qatari Business Association and the Singapore Business Federation in January 2008.

6 The High-Level Joint Committee agreed that Qatar and Singapore would focus on the following areas of collaboration: security, finance, trade and investment, the environment, ICT, energy, labour, health, culture and education. The High-Level Joint Committee expressed satisfaction with the progress made during discussions at the third meeting and welcomed the opportunities and potential to elevate bilateral cooperation between Qatar and Singapore to a higher level.

7 The High-Level Joint Committee welcomed the signing of three Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) between Qatar and Singapore, as concrete and tangible outcomes of bilateral cooperation. First, the Qatar Ministry of Public Health and the Singapore Ministry of Health signed an MOU to foster greater cooperation and facilitate future exchanges in the areas of healthcare and healthcare information technology. Second, the Qatar Ministry of Labour and Singapore Ministry of Manpower signed an MOU to further labour cooperation between both countries. Third, the Qatar Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning and the Singapore Ministry of National Development signed an MOU to encourage greater collaboration in the area of land use and urban planning.

8 The fourth meeting of the Qatar-Singapore High-Level Joint Committee will be held in Singapore at a mutually convenient time.

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