• Series of ten sessions over five years
• Inaugural Dialogue held on 31 March 2016
• Promoting greater awareness and understanding of Sino-Singapore developments

The Singapore Management University (SMU) has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with strategic business advisory firm Stratagem Group, officially sealing a five-year partnership to conduct a series of events called the Sino-Singapore Dialogue.

Under the agreement, the Sino-Singapore Dialogue will be conducted twice annually, with a total of ten sessions to be held by 2021, under the auspices of SMU’s Wee Kim Wee Centre. This dialogue will encourage discussion and debate on China’s bilateral relations with Singapore and Southeast Asia and the impact on the world stage. It aims to promote greater awareness and understanding of Sino-Singapore developments, and how these can influence and be impacted by regional and international affairs. 

Speakers for the SMU-Stratagem Group Sino-Singapore Dialogue sessions will include retired senior government officials, established academics and renowned businessmen from China, who will share their expertise and knowledge at SMU.

Kickstarting the series, the first SMU-Stratagem Group Sino-Singapore Dialogue, generously supported too by Star Route, was held on 31 March at SMU’s Mochtar Riady Auditorium. The inaugural event was attended by 100 guests from the academic, business, government sectors and SMU community.

[Photo: Professor James Tang, Dean of SMU’s School of Social Sciences who moderated the Dialogue, introducing the speakers.]

The distinguished guest speakers were Mr Hu Zhengyue (胡正跃), former Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs of China; Mr Xie Senshu (谢森树), currently Secretary-General of the organising committee of China International Crowdfunding Industry Forum and Secretary-General of China Crowdfunding Industry Alliance; and Mr Zhang Qi (章琦), Co-Founder and Executive President of China Development Research Institute. The session was moderated by Professor James Tang, Dean of SMU School of Social Sciences.

 [Photo (left to right): The distinguished speakers Mr Hu Zhengyue, Mr Xie Senshu and Mr Zhang Qi.]

All three guests presented and spoke passionately on their areas of expertise including Sino-Singapore and Sino-ASEAN relations, crowdfunding’s economic and consumer opportunities, and joint development prospects, on a strategic level. Singapore has been China’s largest foreign investor for the last three years, and both countries’ relations offer distinct advantages for bilateral, regional and global growth. The strong political ties, unique economic cooperation formats, thriving resources and talents, and timely market opportunities have catapulted progress and will continue to provide vast joint development potential.

[Photo: The speakers answered questions from the floor during the question-and-answer session moderated by Prof Tang.]

Stratagem Group is a strategic business advisory firm specialising in business and competitive intelligence for multinational corporations and government-linked companies, with government and military networks in Asia, particularly Southeast Asia.

The Wee Kim Wee Centre has been bringing diverse communities together and promoting deeper understanding of the impact of cultural diversity on the business environment. It aims to advance learning and thinking about cross cultural issues through the conferences and activities it organises.

[Photo: The inaugural Dialogue held on 31 March 2016 at the SMU Mochtar Riady Auditorium.]

[Featured Photo: The MOU for the SMU-Stratagem collaboration was signed by Mr Adrian Phua, General Manager of Stratagem Group (left), and Professor James Tang, Dean of SMU’s School of Social Sciences (right), in the presence of Associate Professor Kirpal Singh, Director of SMU’s Wee Kim Wee Centre (centre).]