China-Singapore industrial park sees rapid development

The China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park has seen rapid development and attracted about 5,000 foreign companies since it was established in 1994, according to information from a meeting held Friday in celebrating the 25th anniversary of the park in eastern China's Jiangsu Province.

The industrial park -- the first flagship intergovernmental cooperation projects between the two countries -- has received 31.5 billion U.S. dollars in foreign investment and realized a total import and export volume of over 1 trillion dollars over the past 25 years.

Nearly 5,000 foreign-funded enterprises from more than 70 countries and regions have registered and operated in the industrial park, and more than 500 enterprises at home and abroad have set up research and development centers in the park.

Suzhou Industrial Park has given support to 309 Chinese enterprises in investing in 53 countries and regions and participated in the establishment of 12 industrial parks.

Zhou Naixiang, secretary of Suzhou city committee of the Communist Party of China, said the industrial park has continuously boosted the cooperation between China and Singapore. So far, more than 350 Singaporean firms have participated in the construction and development of the Suzhou Industrial Park.

The 278-sq-km park has about 80,000 companies. Its gross domestic product increased 227 folds from 1994 to 2018.

"Drawing on experience from Singapore, the park has made great efforts to build a law-based, international and facilitated business environment, which is the key to its development," said Wu Qingwen, a senior official of Suzhou and the park.

The park has formulated 110 practical rules and regulations in line with international standards, laying a solid foundation for its rapid growth, he added.

Cooperation in financing and technology is expanding. Since its establishment in 2010, the National University of Singapore (Suzhou) Research Institute had incubated 54 high-tech enterprises by the end of 2018.

In December 2018, China and Singapore launched cooperation on another industrial park in Jiashan, Zhejiang Province. The 16.5-sq-km park will make use of the Suzhou park's experience in construction and business services.

Suzhou Industrial Park will play an important and active role in the integration of the Yangtze River Delta area and a "demonstration" role in the Belt and Road Initiative, said Wu.

Besides the Suzhou Industrial Park, other major intergovernmental projects between China and Singapore are the Tianjin Eco-City and the Chongqing Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity.

Premier Li Keqiang and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Friday respectively sent congratulatory letters to the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park on its 25th anniversary.

The Suzhou Industrial Park has introduced and absorbed international advanced technology and management experiences, implemented an innovation-driven strategy and achieved a leap forward in development. It has played an important role in promoting mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Singapore, Li said in the letter.

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in the letter that the successful development of the Suzhou Industrial Park reflected close cooperation between China and Singapore at all levels, and he hoped the park would continue to play a pioneering role in promoting bilateral cooperation.