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Minister Costello celebrates 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Singapore
The Minister for Trade and Development, Mr Joe Costello T.D., is marking the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Singapore during his two-day visit, which starts today.
Minister Costello is attending Singapore’s St. Patrick’s Day parade, followed by an official reception at which he will meet Mr Sam Tan Chin Siong, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Affairs, a number of Members of Parliament, and members of the 3,000-strong Irish diaspora in Singapore, many of whom are employed in the financial services and banking sectors, in pharmaceutical and the ICT sectors, in the health services, and in education.
The Minister will have a range of business and education meetings in Singapore. These include meetings with members of the Irish Chamber of Commerce (Singapore) including its President, Mr Allan Schouten, and the Executive Director of the Farmleigh Fellowship, Ms Una McGirr. The Minister will also receive a briefing from the Embassy of Ireland in Singapore, the IDA, and Enterprise Ireland on Ireland’s engagement in the South East Asia Region and ongoing work to promote trade and investment.
Minister Costello said:
“This year we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Singapore. This important milestone in our longstanding relationship will provide our Governments with an opportunity to review the historic and enduring ties which bind our two island nations. Singapore is an important trading partner for Ireland with bilateral trade in goods and services close to €2 billion.
“Singapore continues to be a vital hub for Irish business looking to expand into Asia. Irish companies greatly value the dynamism of the people of Singapore and the can-do business attitude. Six Irish Government Ministers have visited Singapore since 2012 and we welcomed Minister Grace Fu, Second Minister for Foreign Affairs and for the Environment and Water Resources, to Ireland last year. More recently, Minister Richard Bruton led the first-ever joint trade mission with UK and NI Ministers to Singapore in February of this year, a hugely successful mission in terms of business generated for aviation sector firms from Ireland, Northern Ireland and Britain.”