Four prominent maritime leaders were added to the Board of the Singapore Maritime Foundation (SMF), bringing it to 10 members, at the annual SMF New Year Cocktail Reception. Minister for Transport, Mr Lui Tuck Yew, was the Guest of Honour for the event at the Regent Singapore. He joined over 300 maritime leaders from the private and public sectors in ushering in the new year and celebrating SMF’s 10th year anniversary. Minister Lui also witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding that evening between the SMF, Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), and Singapore Scout Association (SSA).
The event also saw the renewal of the SMF Board of Directors, which comprises prominent personalities from the maritime industry, and sets the direction for SMF’s industry promotion activities and initiatives. Since the inception of SMF in 2004, SMF has been working in sync with the public and private sectors of the maritime community to spearhead new initiatives to propel Singapore towards its vision to be an international maritime centre and attract talents to pursue maritime education and maritime careers.
That evening, MPA Chairman, Mr Lucien Wong, presented SMF Chairman, Mr Michael Chia (Managing Director, Marine & Technology of Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd), with his reappointment letter. Five other Board members were re-appointed, along with four new appointments. The new SMF Board members are Mr Andrew Tan, Chief Executive of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore; Mr Andreas Sohmen-Pao, Chief Executive Officer of BW Maritime Pte Ltd; Mr Tan Puay Hin, Regional CEO, Southeast Asia, PSA International Pte Ltd; and Lee Keng Mun, Head of Shipping Asia, HSH Nordbank AG. Please refer to Appendix A for the list of the SMF Board members.
In his opening address, Mr Michael Chia, SMF Chairman, highlighted some of the Foundation’s key initiatives to boost the development of Maritime Singapore in the past decade since its formation on 27 January 2004. He cited the Sea Asia conference and exhibition – the iconic maritime event of Singapore and SMF flagship event started in 2007, as one example. Sea Asia goes into its fifth run next year. Other noteworthy initiatives include the reconstitution of the Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration in 2009, the launch of the Singapore Ship Sale Form in 2011, as well as the work leading up to the choice of Singapore to represent the Asia region as the seat for maritime arbitration for the BIMCO Standard Dispute Resolution Clause 2013.
On the work ahead for 2014, Mr Chia touched on SMF’s work with the Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO) and the Association of Ship Brokers and Agents (ASBA), to revise the NYPE Form – the industry’s most widely used standard form of dry cargo time charter party, to reflect changes in commercial practice and recent legal decisions.
“The acceptance and recognition from BIMCO and ASBA of SMF’s role in providing the Asian perspective for this revision process, which began in July 2012, is something that we are proud of. And it is also testament of how far Singapore has come in establishing itself as a dependable and credible representative for this part of the world,” said Mr Michael Chia, SMF Chairman. Please refer to Appendix B for information on SMF’s key initiatives and the press kit for the transcript of the speech.
In his speech, Minister Lui highlighted the overall performance of the Singapore maritime industry and port performance in 2013. He also shared insights about key initiatives to strengthen Maritime Singapore. Please refer to the press kit for the transcript of the speech.
During the event, Mr Andrew Tan, MPA Chief Executive, Mr David Chin, SMF Executive Director, and Mr Tan Cheng Kiong, SSA Chief Commissioner also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to promote maritime awareness and youth outreach. Students from eight primary and secondary schools who had successfully completed the pilot run of the Young Mariner’s Badge Programme also received their badges from Minister Lui. Please refer to the press kit for the joint press release by MPA, SMF and SSA.
