Speech by MOS Koh Poh Koon at the Ground-breaking Ceremony of KR Apollo Sdn Bhd
Feb 13, 2017
It is a pleasure to be here, and thank you for the kind invitation to witness this momentous occasion. Singapore and Brunei Darussalam are old and firm friends. It has been this way since the time of the late Seri Begawan and the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew. As two small countries in a turbulent sea, we share common interests and face similar challenges. This has led us to forge a firm and enduring partnership over the years. We offer support to one another. Standing together has amplified our voices and allowed us both to thrive as sovereign nations.
2017 is a very special year. One important reason is that it is the Golden Jubilee of His Majesty the Sultan’s prosperous and peaceful reign. I offer my deepest congratulations to His Majesty and to all people in Brunei Darussalam for this auspicious occasion.
2017 is also the 50th anniversary of our Currency Interchangeability Agreement. Now this is a unique arrangement that few countries in the world share. It is indicative of the trust and confidence that our countries have in each other. The elimination of currency risk has facilitated trade and investment flows between our two countries. I should also highlight our close bilateral defence ties. Both our Armed Forces train together regularly and Singapore will always be grateful to Brunei for its provision of training areas for the Singapore Armed Forces.
We cooperate and collaborate in so many areas that I think it would take too long for me to name them all today. But suffice it to say, what we have is a very special relationship, a very special friendship, and for this, Singapore is truly grateful to have a friend in Brunei.
Today, I am honoured to be part of this inaugurating ceremony, which is another example of the close bilateral cooperation between Singapore and Brunei. KR Apollo is a joint venture between Singapore’s Apollo Aquaculture and His Excellency Pengiran Haji Kamarulzaman. The joint-venture will transform this 12 hectare site you see today into a high-tech vertical fish farm. It will look very different from what it is, a year from now. The farm will produce grouper fish using aquadeck and multi-storey raceway system. There will be offices, a staff dormitory, and an ornamental fish packing facility. Eventually, the yield is expected to reach 5,000 tonnes per year. This is hungrily being anticipated by consumers in Singapore and Brunei! You can tell that eating is very much a national hobby in Singapore.
This joint-venture is the first overseas venture for Apollo Aquaculture, and we are very proud of that. This Singapore company has transformed itself from an ornamental fish trader in its early years into a high-tech indoor aquaculture operation today. They have developed their own technology like multi-storey raceway, recirculation systems, and sensors that allow for the farm to be monitored and operated remotely, even from Singapore. Today, Apollo rears high-value seafood like groupers and crabs in Singapore. I am confident that KR Apollo will enjoy the same success here in Brunei.
I am glad to see that Apollo picked Brunei for their first overseas venture. It is an opportune time for Singapore and Brunei to explore such collaboration. Globally, climate change is affecting ocean currents and temperatures. This has led to unpredictable and severe weather conditions. These trends have affected global catches of wild fish from the ocean. And this is taking place at a time when the global population is growing and there is increased demand for food, especially seafood. But in the midst of all these challenges, there are opportunities for businesses, for companies that can leverage on technology to provide more predictability and sustainable yields that cater to this growing market demand.
On a bilateral level, Singapore is always looking to strengthen our food security by importing from a variety of sources. Now we have a vibrant farming sector, but as you can all understand, there are very obvious space constraints in Singapore. Brunei, on the other hand, is looking to diversify its economy and agriculture is a potentially lucrative sector. One can see the potential for synergy, collaboration and sharing of know-how in this partnership. In this regard, we encourage Singapore companies, especially those who are here today, to look overseas to places like Brunei for production and export back to Singapore and other markets. Let us work together to take the agricultural partnership between Singapore and Brunei to a new level.
Before I end, I would like to extend my thanks to Dato Ali Apong for his kind invitation to me to attend this ceremony and to visit beautiful Brunei, and also for his warm hospitality that Your Excellency and your officials have extended to me and my team. Allow me to also congratulate once again KR Apollo. As a Singapore-Brunei joint-venture, I can only wish you great success! And I think Insha’Allah, Dato Ali Apong and myself would hope to be able to taste the first harvest from this facility by the end of this year. Thank you very much.