SERT to undergo economic strategy review to sharpen Singapore’s economic competitiveness

Douglas Toh, Felicia Tan and Jovi Ho
04 Aug

The review will comprise five committees co-chaired by two political office holders, with members like DBS’s Tan Su Shan, Sats’ Kerry Mok, SIA’s Goh Choon Phong and AEM’s Loke Wai San.

The Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce (SERT) will undergo an Economic Strategy Review (ESR) in a bid to come up with a new economic blueprint for Singapore, announced Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and chairman of SERT, Gan Kim Yong, on Aug 4.

The ESR will replace the SERT’s third workstream, which is meant to review longer-term strategies. It will comprise five committees covering global competitiveness, technology and innovation, entrepreneurship, human capital and managing the impact of restructuring. 

Each committee will be co-chaired by two political office holders, spanning acting ministers to senior parliamentary secretaries. The committees will also include “relevant members” from the private sector, unions and other relevant stakeholders. 

Recognisable names include DBS Group Holdings’ CEO Tan Su Shan, Sats Group’s president and CEO Kerry Mok, Singapore Technologies Engineering’s (ST Engineering) president and CEO Vincent Chong, Sembcorp Industries’ group CEO Wong Kim Yin, Singapore Airlines’ (SIA) Goh Choon Phong, AEM’s non-executive chairman Loke Wai San and The Lo & Behold Group’s managing partner Wee Teng Wen.

According to Gan, the ESR will revisit past economic reviews and explore new ideas and approaches to sharpen the city-state’s economic competitiveness. The review also seeks to deepen Singapore’s economic resilience and secure its economic future.

The ESR will gather feedback and ideas from businesses, workers and relevant stakeholders over the next few months. The committees will publish a report with their recommendations by mid-2026.

SERT, a taskforce comprising government leaders and tripartite partners, was set up in April to help Singaporean businesses and workers navigate the uncertainties arising from tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump.

Committee members

The first committee, focused on global competitiveness, will be co-chaired by Jeffrey Siow, Acting Transport Minister and Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Finance (MOF); and Low Yen Ling, Senior Minister of State of both the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) and the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY).

Members of the Committee on Global Competitiveness are:

  • Brian Tan, corporate vice president and president SEA, Applied Materials
  • Jenny Lee, senior managing partner, Granite Asia 
  • Kerry Mok, president and CEO, SATS 
  • Khoo Boo Hor, CEO and executive director, Sunningdale Tech
  • Lim Hock Heng, vice president and site director, GSK
  • Ong Kim Pong, group CEO, PSA International
  • Sandeep Naik, advisory director, General Atlantic 
  • Tan Su Shan, CEO and director, DBS Group Holdings
  • Vincent Chong, president and CEO, ST Engineering
  • Vishal Sharma, group CEO, DSV
  • Wong Kim Yin, group CEO, Sembcorp Industries

The second committee, focused on technology and innovation, will be co-chaired by Jasmin Lau, Minister of State of both the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) and the Ministry of Education (MOE); and Goh Hanyan, Senior Parliamentary Secretary of both MCCY and the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE).

Members of the Committee on Technology and Innovation are:

  • Chen Zhenghao, director (machine learning), Calico Life Sciences 
  • Emily Tan, CEO, Thales Solutions Asia 
  • Natalia Goh, CEO, Maribank
  • Ng Lai Yee, CEO, Temus
  • Tan Peng-Wei, senior managing director, Blackstone
  • Tan Yew Kong, senior vice-president and general manager, GlobalFoundries 
  • Tianyi Jiang, co-founder and CEO, AvePoint
  • Vaishali Rastogi, managing director, Boston Consulting Group

The third committee, focused on entrepreneurship, will be co-chaired by Alvin Tan, Minister of State of both MTI and the Ministry of National Development (MND); and Dinesh Vasu Dash, Minister of State of both MCCY and the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).

Members of the Committee on Entrepreneurship are:

  • Arrif Ziaudeen, partner, Susquehanna Asia Venture Capital; and founder, Chope
  • Candice Ong, partner and chief operating officer, Xora Innovation
  • Declan Ee, co-founder, Castlery
  • Dione Song, CEO of Love, Bonito
  • Ervin Yeo, CEO, commercial management; and chief strategy officer, CapitaLand Investment
  • Lee Sze Yeng, managing partner, KPMG Singapore
  • Marcus Tan, co-founder of Carousell and deputy chairman, Action Community for Entrepreneurship
  • Shi Xu, founder and group CEO, Nanofilm Technologies International
  • Wee Teng Wen, managing partner, The Lo & Behold Group
  • Willson Cuaca, co-founder and managing partner, East Ventures

The fourth committee, focused on human capital, will be co-chaired by David Neo, Acting Culture, Community and Youth Minister and Senior Minister of State for MOE; and Koh Poh Koon, Senior Minister of State of both MOM and Ministry of Health (MOH).

Members of the Committee on Human Capital are:

  • Abdul Samad Abdul Wahab, vice-president of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) central committee
  • Elaine Yew, senior partner, Egon Zehnder
  • Feon Ang, managing director, Asia Pacific, LinkedIn; board member, SkillsFuture Singapore
  • Goh Choon Phong, CEO, Singapore Airlines; deputy chairman, Institute of Technical Education (ITE)
  • Professor Ho Teck Hua, president, Nanyang Technological University (NTU); founding executive chairman, AI Singapore
  • Loke Wai San, non-executive chairman, AEM Holdings; board chair, Temasek Polytechnic (TP)
  • Marcus Lam, executive chairman, PwC Singapore; honorary treasurer, Singapore National Employers Federation
  • Ong Chin Yin, chief people officer, Grab; board member, Workforce Singapore; board member, Human Capital Leadership Institute

The fifth committee, focused on managing the impact of restructuring, will be co-chaired by Goh Pei Ming, Minister of State of both the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF); and Desmond Choo, Minister of State of the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) and deputy-secretary general of NTUC.

Members of the Committee on Managing Impact of Restructuring are:

  • Benjamin Boh, president of the Restaurant Association of Singapore; regional vice president, Asia, Middle East, & Africa Markets, Domino's Pizza
  • Caryn Lim, CEO, Employment & Employability Institute; assistant secretary-general, NTUC
  • Dave Ng, chairman, Singapore Logistics Association; group CEO Bok Seng Group
  • Ernie Koh, president, Singapore Retailers Association; chairman, Commune Lifestyle
  • Ian Lee, board member, Institute for Human Resource Professionals; executive committee member and President of Geographies, The Adecco Group
  • Kohe Hasan, deputy honorary secretary of the Singapore National Employers Federation; co-founder and CEO of M Kapital Consulting
  • Lennon Tan, president of the Singapore Manufacturing Federation and group chairman of Adera Global
  • Lim Teck Chuan, vice-president of NTUC’s central committee and president of the Advanced Manufacturing Employees’ Union

Read more about the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce

  • Singapore facing ‘most serious challenge’; taskforce to conduct three-pronged approach
  • New grant for local firms to seek advice, subsidies as Trump’s tariffs bite
  • Inclusion of first-time political office holders in economic strategy review to provide ‘new perspectives’, says DPM Gan

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

Most Discussed

  1. 1
     
     
     
     
  2. 2
     
     
     
     
  3. 3
     
     
     
     
  4. 4
     
     
     
     
  5. 5
     
     
     
     
  6. 6
     
     
     
     
  7. 7
     
     
     
     
  8. 8
     
     
     
     
  9. 9
     
     
     
     
  10. 10