Singapore and China advance cooperation in trusted commercial data flows and AI governance

30 July 2024

On 27 June 2024, the inaugural Singapore-China Digital Policy Dialogue (“DPD”) was held in Beijing where participants from government, industry, and academia gathered for high-level discussions on developments and policy matters in the digital domain. 

Digital cooperation between Singapore and China is long-standing and multifaceted, characterised by numerous collaborative efforts that have strengthened over the years. Building on this foundation, the DPD provides a pivotal platform for both countries to elevate collaborations to the next level and to systematically grow bilateral partnership in the digital domain. 

Senior Minister of State (“SMS”) for Ministry of Digital Development and Information Tan Kiat How highlighted the DPD’s key objectives as being: 

  • To enhance mutual understanding of each other’s digital ecosystems 
  • To foster policy innovation that supports industries and companies 
  • To address the challenges faced by ground-up projects and initiatives

At the first DPD in Beijing, discussions focused on two key areas: 

  • To advance Singapore’s interests in trade and business facilitation through trusted commercial data flows: Under the reporting of the work group for Trusted Flow of Commercial Data, both parties agreed to promote common baseline standards to facilitate the cross-border flow of data, and to exchange knowledge on cross-border data sharing mechanisms. 
  • To enhance mutual understanding of approaches to artificial intelligence (“AI”) governance: Under the reporting of the work group for Artificial Intelligence Governance, both parties agreed to promote mutual learning across the private sector and research institutions in AI governance, and to enhance mutual understanding of governance frameworks. 

Overall, the DPD will strengthen technical exchanges and cooperation on the digital economy between government agencies, universities, research institutes, enterprises, and businesses of both countries. 

The second DPD is scheduled to take place in 2025 in Singapore. 

Reference materials 

The following reference materials are available on the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (“MDDI”) website www.mddi.gov.sg: