Singapore, 13 August 2008… Six senior Japanese civil servants are in Singapore to understand Singapore’s political systems and socio-economic developments. The delegation, which arrived last evening, is on a five-day visit (August 12–16), under the Singapore International Foundation’s (SIF) Raffles Programme.

Led by Mr Akihiko Tamura, Assistant Vice-Minister for International Affairs of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, the delegation will call on Minister for Prime Minister’s Office Lim Swee Say, Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan and Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo.

Other members of the Japanese delegation include Mr Nobukatsu Kanehara, Director of Policy Coordination Division at the Foreign Policy Bureau; Mr Noriyuki Mita, Director of Economic Partnership Division of the Trade Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry; Mr Shigeru Ariizumi, Director of the Office of Foreign Exchange Reserve Management at the Ministry of Finance; and Mr Yutaka Takimoto, Coordinator for Parliamentary Relations at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

As part of their itinerary, the civil servants will visit the Ministry of Transport; Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts; Ministry of Trade and Industry; Ministry of Education; Ministry of Defence; and Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports. The group will also attend meetings with government agencies and organisations, such as the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Land Transport Authority and the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

The group will also have the chance to sample local culinary delights at a hawker centre and observe a Meet-the-People session at Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC. In addition, the delegates will enjoy a sociological tour of Chinatown, the Malay Heritage Centre and Little India, to catch a glimpse of Singapore’s multi-cultural society.

Launched in 1995, the annual Raffles Programme hosted by the Singapore International Foundation gives Japanese bureaucrats the opportunity to gain perspectives and exchange views on regional and international developments with the leaders of Singapore as well as their counterparts. This year’s delegation is the 14th group to be invited under the programme.