H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, paid an official visit to Singapore during 21 – 22 August 2017 and to co-officiate the Opening of the 13th Coordinating Meeting of the Thailand – Singapore Civil Service Exchange Programme (CSEP) with H.E. Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore, on 22 August 2017 at Regent Hotel, Singapore.

During this visit, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand had a bilateral meeting with the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore on bilateral issues such as cooperation in air services in which at present there are 47 daily flights operating between Thailand and Singapore to promote business and tourism between the two countries and cooperation in trade and investment. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore expressed confidence in the economic potential of Thailand. The two Ministers of Foreign Affairs also exchanged views on the policies of Thailand 4.0 and Smart Nation Initiative which is overseen by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore, cooperation in ASEAN and the role of the United States in the region. After the bilateral meeting, both Foreign Ministers co-officiated the opening of the 13th CSEP stressing on the importance of civil service agencies to be adaptive to the changes in the New Age of digital revolution. Following the opening ceremony of CSEP, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore hosted a luncheon in honour of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and the Thai delegation.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand also paid a courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of Singapore.  The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand reaffirmed the invitation by H.E. the Prime Minister of Thailand to the Prime Minister of Singapore and Madame Ho Ching to pay an official visit to Thailand and to attend the Leaders’ Retreat at a mutually convenient date. The Prime Minister of Singapore shared his views on the Smart Nation policy to develop Singapore to the New Age of digital revolution and the preparation by Singapore to assume the ASEAN Chairmanship in 2018.

The 13th CSEP Meeting was co-chaired by H.E. Mrs. Busaya Mathelin, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and H.E. Mr. Chee Wee Kiong, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore. Senior officials from the civil service agencies in the 13 clusters of cooperation participated in the Meeting. The theme of the Meeting on “An Enduring Partnership for a New Age” reflects the recognition by Thailand and Singapore on the importance in preparing the civil service agencies of both countries to adapt and effectively respond to the New Age of digital revolution. 

The Meeting reviewed the good progress made across the 13 areas of cooperation since the 12th CSEP Meeting in Bangkok on 28 March 2016 and welcomed the cooperation in all clusters reached at the 13th CSEP Meeting such as civil Service cooperation which both sides would organize the Leadership Development Programme (LDP) at the senior officials level, education cooperation which both sides supported the continuation of the Singapore – Thailand Enhanced Partnership (STEP) Camp and the training of educators in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education, cooperation in environment covering the areas of pollution management  and water management, and cooperation in information and communications technology focusing on cyber security and mutual recognition of electronic signatures.

The CSEP was established in 1998 as a bilateral mechanism under the Singapore – Thailand Enhanced Partnership (STEP) framework to promote networking and the exchanges of experiences and best practices between the 13 clusters of cooperation such as foreign affairs, civil service, education, environment, health, information and communication technology, legal and judicial, media, arts and culture, and social welfare, youth and sports. Thailand will host the 14th CSEP in 2018, which also marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of CSEP.