Speech by Minister Chee Hong Tat at the 2026 China-Singapore Green Development Forum

His Excellency, Vice-Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Song Youchun (宋友春),
His Excellency, Hebei Vice Governor Zhao Dachun (赵大春)，
His Excellency, Vice Mayor of Tianjin Hu Xueming（胡学明),
Colleagues and friends from China and Singapore,

Good morning. It is my pleasure to join you at the 3rd Singapore-China Green Development Forum. I would like to thank colleagues from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Hebei Provincial Government and the Xiong'an New Area Administrative Committee for your warm welcome and kind hospitality.

This is my first visit to Xiong'an, and I am very impressed by what I have seen. President Xi Jinping has described Xiong'an as a thousand-year project, or 千年大计, 国家大事. It is planned as an innovation hub and a model of high-quality development. I look forward to seeing this ambitious vision continue to take shape.

Singapore-China Cooperation

This year's Forum focuses on the partnership between Singapore and China in developing new urban areas. This is a domain where our two countries have a long history of working together. Over the past 36 years, our relationship has grown from strength to strength, including through our three bilateral Government-to-Government projects.

We started with Suzhou Industrial Park in 1994, drawing on Singapore's urban planning and public administration expertise to develop a world-class, technology-driven township.

In 2008, we embarked on the Tianjin Eco-City Project, with the vision of developing a socially harmonious, environmentally-friendly and resource-efficient city - a model for sustainable development.

In 2015, we launched the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative, to boost the economic development of Western China and strengthen its regional integration with Southeast Asia, through financial services, transport and logistics, and digital media.

Each project was launched at a different stage of China's development and responded to different needs and opportunities. This reflects an important feature of Singapore-China relations, which is that our cooperation remains relevant to the times, and is based on mutual learning and mutual benefit. But we remain true to the original values of our cooperation, which is to build a win-win partnership. If I may use a Chinese phrase to describe this approach, it is 不忘初心，与时俱进.

The Tianjin Eco-City is a good example. When the project first started almost two decades ago, sustainable urban development was already becoming increasingly important. Today, with climate change and the global transition to a low-carbon economy, this mission has become even more relevant.

We have made good progress in establishing the Eco-City as a model of green development and it is a project that the Singapore and Chinese government, and the Tianjin government, are very proud of. And we hope to be able to build on this to take our collaboration in Tianjin Eco-City further.

From the outset, the Eco-City set high environmental standards and strict rules, including a requirement for all buildings to meet green building standards. Today, all the buildings in the Eco-City are carbon- and energy-efficient. Many also double as clean energy catchments, featuring rooftop solar panels and wind power grids. Over the years, we have continued to raise our ambitions and explore new solutions in areas such as renewable energy and low-carbon development.

In 2025, China's State Council approved the designation of the Eco-City as an upgraded National Green Development Demonstration Zone. This was an important recognition of what Singapore and China have achieved together, and it gives us a strong foundation to do more together.

One area we that we want to do more is in Research & Development. Our efforts are anchored around the Singapore University of Technology and Design Eco-City Research and Innovation Centre, or SERIC. SERIC was launched in 2024, to bring together researchers from Singapore and China to explore and develop green, low-carbon and smart city technologies.

Importantly, SERIC does not stop at research. It also has an enterprise element. Through its accelerator programme, it is also supporting start-ups to develop and commercialise promising green products and solutions. This connection between research, industry, and real-world application is important because we want good ideas to be able to move from the lab, from experiment and pilots, to being able to be commercialised, so that it can achieve impact at scale. And this is something which we have seen many successful examples from the companies in China, whether big companies, the state-owned enterprises, or the smaller start-ups, and it is an area that our two countries can continue to work together for win-win benefit.

At the same time, the Eco-City has grown into an attractive and liveable home for more than 200,000 people, with residential, commercial, community and recreational amenities supported by excellent public infrastructure, and well-connected by landscaped roads and green spaces.

I saw this for myself during my previous visits. At one of these visits, we went to take a look at a community centre, and I saw how public services, healthcare and medical facilities, social spaces, retail and other amenities could be brought together conveniently within a neighbourhood for the benefit of its residents. We also had a chance to speak to some of the residents and they told me they were very happy to stay in Tianjin Eco-City.

I also visited the upcoming Central Business District, where new developments such as Innova Green will provide additional commercial, recreational and cultural amenities once it opens in the coming years. I also travelled on the newly opened Z4 rapid transit line which further strengthens the Eco-City's connectivity to Tianjin Binhai New Area, central Tianjin, and through the wider high-speed rail network across China. I am confident that with this railway, once it is completed, you can travel conveniently from the Tianjin Eco-City, not just to the Binhai area, but also to Tianjin City itself, and also later on to Xiong'an.

Ultimately, a successful city is not measured only by its buildings and infrastructure. It is about whether we can create a good living environment for our people, with good homes, convenient amenities, efficient transport, quality jobs, a sustainable and liveable city, very much like what we see is happening here in Xiong'an too.

The Eco-City reflects many urban planning and design principles developed in both Singapore and China. Its Master Plan was developed by our two countries, and I am glad to see how these principles being adapted to suit the local circumstances and translated into tangible outcomes for the benefit of the residents of Tianjin Eco-City.

Next Phase of Singapore-China Cooperation

In 2028, in two years' time, we will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Tianjin Eco-City. As we reflect on what we have achieved together, we should also look ahead. The challenges facing our cities are changing. Our populations are ageing. This is true for China, and it certainly is true for Singapore. Climate change is becoming more urgent. The global economic environment is also now more uncertain.

This means that the next phase of urban development cannot simply be about building more and more. We must also build better and create cities that are more liveable, sustainable, and resilient. Vice-Minister Song mentioned some of these points earlier too in his speech. So there is much that Singapore and China can continue to learn from each other.

One area is housing and neighbourhood development. China is placing greater emphasis on developing 好房子. Singapore is similarly looking at how our homes and neighbourhoods can better meet the changing needs of our people, for example, as our population ages.

We can exchange knowledge and share best practices in areas such as building design, neighbourhood planning and how we deliver public services conveniently and efficiently to our people. The objective is not only to build more good quality houses but to create inclusive, healthy, sustainable and liveable neighbourhoods and communities. This ultimately reflects what both China and Singapore believe in - that when we build cities, we build them for our people, 以人为本.

Another area is sustainability and innovation. The Tianjin Eco-City provides an excellent platform for us to develop and pilot new technologies in areas such as waste management and environmental protection. We should make fuller use of its strong research and innovation ecosystem, to bring promising solutions from the laboratory to the market, and support the growth of the green and low-carbon sector.

Our cooperation must also extend beyond the Eco-City. We use the Eco-City as a cooperation platform, but our cooperation does not stop at the Eco-City. Our cooperation can extend to other parts of Tianjin, and also to other parts of China. And if you go further to other countries - that was something that I have discussed with Minister Ni Hong yesterday when we met - how Singapore and China can make good use of our cooperation in the built environment sector, where we plan cities, when we develop good quality housing, and take this concept to extend beyond Singapore and China. Because there will be many other countries, many other cities in different parts of the world that can benefit from what both China and Singapore have gone through, our developmental journey, our experiences, our best practices, our technologies. And this is something that I think we can continue to work together.

Later, we will be witnessing the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Enterprise Singapore, the Eco-City Administrative Committee, and the Xiong'an New Area Administrative Committee. I am very happy to see this MOU being signed, because it will help to strengthen business exchanges and collaboration in the green and digital economies and other emerging industries, and it will help our companies to explore opportunities in the Jing-Jin-Ji region and Southeast Asia.

I will be visiting Tianjin later today. In fact, after Xiong'an, we will be driving to Tianjin, and we will be accompanied by a delegation of some 80 company representatives from Singapore. Some of these companies are already operating in Tianjin, while others are interested in exploring opportunities and expanding their operations in Tianjin, both within the Tianjin Eco-City and also in other parts of Tianjin. I also encourage them to also likewise explore collaboration opportunities here in Xiong'an.

Together with the companies, we will attend the inaugural Green and Low-Carbon Expo, where entities from both countries will showcase some examples of innovations in the built environment and housing sectors.

I am also very honoured to co-chair the Singapore-Tianjin Economic and Trade Council meeting with Mayor Zhang Gong, and to discuss how we can further strengthen our partnership.

I will also meet Tianjin start-ups and companies to learn more about their operations and plans, including their plans to expand overseas. And just as Singapore companies would want to explore opportunities in Tianjin and in China, I would like to encourage Chinese companies to use Singapore as a regional HQ and as a launchpad, 跳板, to Southeast Asia, and to other international markets.

Conclusion

The story of Singapore-China cooperation has always been one of adapting to changing circumstances and finding new areas where we can learn from one another and achieve mutual benefit.

From Suzhou to Tianjin and Chongqing, our cooperation has continued to evolve with the times. As our cities face new challenges, we should continue in this same spirit - sharing our experiences, testing new ideas and developing practical solutions that can improve the lives of our people.

I am confident that by working closely together, Singapore and China can contribute new ideas and solutions for greener, more liveable, and more sustainable cities, as we continue to strengthen our economic partnership.

Once again, it is my privilege to participate in the third Singapore-China Green Development Forum. I wish all our friends and all our participants here good health, and I wish all of you a meaningful and productive event ahead. Thank you very much.