Latest news with #Ng
IOL News
an hour ago
- Business
- IOL News
Singaporean firms seek deeper trade ties with South Africa as gateway to Asia
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Singapore ranks among the top 10 investors in Africa based on foreign direct investment stock, with Singaporean companies investing over $20 billion in the continent by the end of 2023. Singaporean companies have shown a keen interest in partnering with local businesses and State entities, signalling a strategic move to position the continent as a vibrant alternative for investors looking to extend their reach into Asia. This interest coincides with South Africa's government ramping up structural reforms through Phase 2 of Operation Vulindlela, which aims to modernise key sectors, including electricity, water, transport, and digital communications. The move towards liberalising the economy has opened the door for public-private partnerships (PPPs), allowing State-Owned Enterprises like Eskom and Transnet to explore previously sealed industries for domestic and international collaboration. Recently, Transnet inked a 10-year contract with United Manganese of Kalahari (UMK) for the rail transportation of manganese from its Northern Cape mine to export ports. Additionally, the company has engaged Filipino-based International Container Terminal Services (ICTSI) for a 25-year contract to operate and expand the Durban Container Terminal Pier 2, reflecting a newfound openness to international investment. Speaking with Business Report on Wednesday, Jean Ng, regional director for Southern Africa at Enterprise Singapore, said companies like PSA International were particularly keen on establishing a stronger footprint across the continent, seeing South Africa as a critical transport corridor. In Singapore, PSA operates the world's largest transshipment hub and had submitted a bid in the Transnet tender that was won by ICTSI. 'They definitely are interested to land a flag, I would say in terms of South Africa as a key critical transport corridor on that front. So it's just, I guess on that particular project they're just waiting to see what would be the final outcome and if there's a new tender then of course they would proceed to submit their needs accordingly,' Ng said. 'But generally across the continent, even for PSA and some of our other logistics companies, they're also looking at opportunities in which they can do a lot more. When I say do a lot more, traditionally if they're only port operators, they may not look at the logistics end. So now they're also looking into a complete integration to then basically bring more value on the ground when they come in to say I can do end-to-end for the customer. So it's not that different for PSA.' Singapore's strong bilateral relationship with Africa has evolved over the years, fuelled by shared interests in trade, investment, and technology. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Singapore ranks among the top 10 investors in Africa based on foreign direct investment stock, with Singaporean companies investing over $20 billion in the continent by the end of 2023. The he total trade value between Singapore and South Africa reached $1.4bn in 2024, nearly doubling since 2020. Rahul Ghosh, director for Middle East and Africa at Enterprise Singapore, said they were very bullish on the potential of Africa as a continent and see Africa as an opportunity for diversification for Singaporean companies. Ghosh said countries were trying to move away from being commodity-centric and were trying to build more industrial bases. 'So I think those are the fundamentals that we believe are going to enable Africa to kind of unlock the potential that Africa has. But also as an opportunity for diversification, there are Singapore companies who are very relevant to Africa because we've got companies who are very good in developing port facilities, logistics infrastructure, building trade corridors, but not just physical trade corridors, but also digital trade corridors,' Ghosh said. 'We think Asia and Singapore are actually also a good diversification opportunity for African companies, especially in today's context. There are trade and tariff wars happening and there's a lot of uncertainty in terms of geopolitics. The global supply chains are all being reordered. 'So all of this also means that Asia and Singapore can be a perfect bridge for South African companies, South Africa as a country, and Africa at large to diversify their own portfolio of trading partners and investment partners as well. So that's the first point on why Africa is important. It's really an opportunity for diversification.' BUSINESS REPORT
The Star
7 hours ago
- The Star
Jail for man who fatally hit his daughter, two, while driving van without licence in Singapore
SINGAPORE: While driving a delivery van, a man ran over his wife and a stroller carrying their two-year-old daughter, who later died in hospital. At the time of the accident, the 36-year-old man did not have a driving licence and was on the run for a previous unlicensed moneylending offence. The accident occurred on March 13, 2023, at the carpark of Block 326 Woodlands Street 32, and his daughter died the same day. On Wednesday (July 16), the man was sentenced to 12 weeks' jail and disqualified from driving for three years after pleading guilty to two charges of driving without a valid licence and driving without motor insurance. Two other charges of driving without due care and attention were taken into consideration for his sentencing. The man cannot be named as the identities of his other children are protected under the Children and Young Persons Act. The court heard that the man was sentenced in December 2021 to a year's jail and three strokes of the cane for an unlicensed moneylending offence. He was supposed to start serving his sentence in January 2022 but did not surrender himself on the scheduled date. A warrant was issued for his arrest, but he remained on the run till the day of the accident. That day, his wife was driving a rented delivery van to the Woodlands Street 32 area to deliver parcels. The man, their son and daughter were with her. After the couple delivered some parcels, the man asked to drive the van to several other blocks to clear the remaining deliveries quickly so the family could have lunch. His wife knew he did not have a valid driving licence but allowed him to drive. She walked to a block to deliver parcels while pushing their daughter in a stroller. Their son was with the man in the van. Footage played in court shows the van making a turn in the carpark as the man's wife was pushing the stroller by the roadside. The crash happened off-camera. Deputy Public Prosecutor Ng Jun Chong said the van, which was not driven at a safe distance from the wife, toppled the stroller and ran over the daughter and the wife's right foot. Seeing their daughter motionless on the road, his wife screamed. The man immediately braked and reversed the van. The man alighted and ran towards his wife, who was cradling the girl and crying hysterically. He took the girl from his wife's arms and tried to wake her but to no avail. He then walked around aimlessly while carrying the toddler, mumbling: 'Papa sorry.' Some passers-by called for an ambulance, which took the wife and daughter to hospital. The girl suffered a bruise on her forehead and was bleeding profusely from her nose and mouth. She died in hospital at about 3.30pm that day. The man was arrested and started serving his sentence the next day for his previous offence. DPP Ng told the court the man had been fined $1,500 in August 2021 for driving without a licence. He said: 'The consequences which arose from the accused's driving was grave as well as tragic. 'An accident occurred, and the accused caused the death of his own daughter, as well as untold grief to both his wife and himself.' The man, who did not have a lawyer, took issue in court with the timeline of investigations as he was charged two years after the accident. District Judge Shawn Ho found there was no inordinate delay by the police or prosecution as time was needed to obtain various documents, such as medical reports. The judge pointed out that the man had absconded for his previous offence and thereafter had to serve his jail sentence, which also took time. The man said in mitigation that he and his wife were remorseful and still grieving the loss of their daughter. He said: 'As a human, (how) do I feel if I cannot bury my own daughter when I'm inside (prison)?' He said he is the family's sole breadwinner as his wife has not been in the right state of mind to work after the accident. 'It's our own daughter, not an outsider or a passer-by... It's hard for us to move on,' he said. The couple have since had another baby, a six-month-old boy, who was in court with the wife, elder son and other family members. He continued requesting a lighter sentence after the jail term was handed down, but Judge Ho said he had already considered his mitigation plea seriously. The man accepted his sentence and kissed his sons goodbye before he was taken away. - The Straits Times/ANN
AsiaOne
18 hours ago
- Business
- AsiaOne
Retiring OCBC chief Helen Wong drives synergies among markets, business units, bank insiders say, Money News
SINGAPORE — One of OCBC Bank chief executive Helen Wong's greatest contributions is being a leader who fosters collaboration across its different markets and businesses to drive synergies, say the bank's insiders. Koh Li-San, head of funding and capital management at OCBC, said Wong believed in the value of collaboration as part of the OCBC's "One Group" strategy — an approach of operating as a unified group across various business units, entities and geographies to capitalise on the Asean-Greater China opportunity. "She really brought people together, got everyone to work more closely and think of new ideas to reach more customers or do more cross-selling," said Koh, who worked in the CEO office for two years during Wong's tenure. Mike Ng, group chief sustainability officer at OCBC, said Wong was able to find synergies in many areas, including sustainability. "For example, best practices, training programmes, sustainable finance product development can be shared across divisions and entities," he said, adding that cross-collaboration became common across the group. OCBC mainly operates across four key markets in Asia — Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Greater China. Under its umbrella also includes private bank Bank of Singapore, insurer Great Eastern (GE) and asset manager Lion Global Investors, among others. Koh and Ng are among staff The Straits Times interviewed following news of Wong's upcoming retirement. They were as one in highlighting the CEO's positivity and empathy as a leader. Lee Shyong, who works with Wong on matters relating to large corporate and institutional clients, described her leadership as a people-centric one. "She pays you the attention. She listens to you. You feel valued, you feel seen as a person. That's very important in today's context, especially amongst the younger generation that values a more empathetic and authentic form of leadership," said Lee, who is group head of public sector, sovereign wealth and pension funds and services for global corporate banking. Ng said Wong is a positive and resilient boss who gives strength to her colleagues in difficult times. During the Covid-19 period, he had worked on a project which suffered supply chain disruptions. As a result, he felt bad and beat himself up over it. Instead of blaming him, Wong gave him words of encouragement. She had said taking risks is just part of the business and no one expected Covid-19. "As a leader, a genuine interest in people and her great sense of empathy give her what I call the superpower for others to want to do the best work to achieve the bank's vision," said Ng. He also said the bank's sustainability task force which Wong spearheaded in her first few months in OCBC provided the seed that grew into the various initiatives and governance structures in the bank today. Wong, who joined Singapore's second-largest bank by assets in February 2020 as deputy president and head of global wholesale banking before becoming group CEO in April 2021, is retiring on Dec 31 to spend more time with her family, after first indicating in 2024 her plans to do so. She will be succeeded by Tan Teck Long, who will assume the CEO role on Jan 1, 2026. For a smooth transition over the next six months, Tan, who has been head of global wholesale banking since March 2022, has assumed the additional role of deputy CEO. Wong, 64, will remain the chairwoman of OCBC China and a director of OCBC Hong Kong post-retirement. She has more than 40 years of banking experience — she started out as a management trainee in OCBC and was its first China desk manager, based at the Hong Kong branch. Before returning to OCBC, she spent 27 years at HSBC, where her last role was as its CEO for Greater China, which she was appointed to in 2015. OCBC has performed well in her years as CEO. OCBC reported a net profit of $7.59 billion for 2024, marking an eight per cent increase compared with the previous year. This achievement represents the third consecutive year of record-breaking profits for the bank. The strong performance was driven by robust income growth across its banking, wealth management and insurance businesses. Wong's total pay rose to $12.8 million in 2024, a 5.8 per cent increase from the $12.1 million she earned in 2023. Since she first took on the role of CEO on April 15, 2021, OCBC's share price has grown about 40 per cent. In February 2025, she unveiled the largest capital return plan in OCBC's history amounting to $2.5 billion, comprising special dividends and share buybacks over two years. In her four-year tenure as CEO, Wong also faced some challenges. Insurer and OCBC subsidiary GE was in the spotlight earlier in July after a vote to delist it from the Singapore Exchange (SGX) fell through and a $900 million conditional exit offering made by OCBC lapsed. OCBC said it has met its objectives with the increase in OCBC's investment in GE to 93.72 per cent in October 2024 and that this would be earnings accretive to the bank. About half a year into her CEO stint, Wong also had to oversee the bank's response to an SMS phishing scam targeting OCBC customers that resulted in about 790 victims losing a total of $13.7 million. OCBC fully reimbursed all affected customers with goodwill payouts. The bank also implemented stronger fraud controls to prevent future occurrences. Thanking Wong for her contributions, Andrew Lee, chairman of OCBC's board of directors, said in a July 11 statement: "Helen sharpened OCBC's competitive edge as an integrated financial services group by ushering in a well-defined corporate strategy. "Together with the team, Helen has executed the strategy in a clear and disciplined manner. She is handing over to Teck Long a very steady ship." [[nid:720104]] This article was first published in The Straits Times . Permission required for reproduction.
The Sun
a day ago
- Automotive
- The Sun
Selangor parking management outsourced since 1996
SHAH ALAM: Parking management through concessionaires in Selangor is not a new practice, as it has been in place since 1996. As of June, five local authorities (PBTs) continue to outsource parking management to private operators, according to State Local Government and Tourism Committee chairman Datuk Ng Suee Lim. Ng stated that the upcoming concessionary parking management system, set to take effect on Aug 1, will enhance the current framework. He explained that while privatisation has its advantages and disadvantages, the state is now ensuring a balanced approach by integrating Smart Intelligent Parking (SIP) with involvement from Menteri Besar Selangor Incorporated (Selangor MBI). The decision to implement this system originated from the 33rd/2024 State Executive Council Meeting (MMKN) on Nov 28, 2024, and was later confirmed in the 34th/2024 MMKN on Dec 6, 2024. The Selangor government agreed in principle to manage parking through a partnership between Selangor MBI and private firms. Further approvals came during the 12th/MMKN 2025 on April 23, 2025, and the 13th/MMKN 2025 on April 30, 2025, which designated Rantaian Mesra Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary under MBI Group, to oversee Smart Parking management statewide. Ng highlighted that the Smart Parking model involves a tripartite collaboration between local authorities (PBTs), Rantaian Mesra as the system coordinator, and appointed concessionaires. A formal agreement will outline each party's responsibilities, ensuring compliance with governance standards. The concessionaire will invest RM200 million in Smart Parking infrastructure, including 1,800 CCTV cameras across four PBTs in the initial phase. However, enforcement remains under PBT jurisdiction as per the Road Transport Act 1987 and Local Government Act 1976. Ng clarified that concessionaires will handle system maintenance and staff salaries, while enforcement actions, including issuing compound notices, will remain with PBT officers. The PBTs will not incur operational costs and are expected to see increased revenue from the new system. – Bernama
Barnama
a day ago
- Automotive
- Barnama
Outsourcing Parking Is Not New In Selangor
SHAH ALAM, July 15 (Bernama) -- Parking management through a concessionaire has been in use in Selangor since 1996 and as of June, five local authorities (PBTs) still outsourced parking management to concessionaires, says State Local Government and Tourism Committee chairman Datuk Ng Suee Lim. Ng said the implementation of concessionary parking management, which will be signed and enforced on Aug 1, will improve the existing system. "This (privatisation) has its pros and cons, so this time the state is ensuring a win-win situation by adopting the approach of using Smart Intelligent Parking (SIP), with the Menteri Besar Selangor Incorporated or Selangor MBI playing a role in parking management," he said at his office at the Selangor State Secretariat Building (SUK) today. Ng said the decision to implement the management system stemmed from the 33rd/2024 State Executive Council Meeting (MMKN) which convened on Nov 28, 2024, and was confirmed in the 34th/2024 MMKN on Dec 6, 2024. 'The Selangor government agreed in principle to implement parking management (TLK) through a collaboration between the Selangor MBI and private companies. 'Then the 12th/MMKN 2025 on April 23, 2025, confirmed by the 13th/MMKN 2025 on April 30, 2025, agreed that a wholly owned subsidiary under the MBI Group, namely Rantaian Mesra Sdn Bhd, be appointed to implement the Smart TLK management in the state of Selangor,' he said. Meanwhile, Ng said the Smart Parking model would involve a tripartite collaboration between the local authority (PBT) as the body determining policy, payment rates and parking zones, Rantaian Mesra as the system coordinator responsible for technical reporting, and the concessionaire appointed. "This implementation will be formalised through a tripartite agreement between the specific PBT, the concessionaire and Rantaian Mesa Sdn. Bhd to define clearly each party's role, scope and responsibility that comply with the prescribed governance," he said. Ng said the concessionaire would invest RM200 million for the Smart Parking Infrastructure, including the installation of 1,800 closed-circuit cameras in the four PBTs involved in the first phase.
