If we agree that digitalisation of our economy is the next step in innovation, and if we agree that Covid-19 has made this move more urgent, then Singapore must remain open and willing to embrace talent from overseas, as long as they benefit Singaporeans.

Minister for Communications and Information S Iswaran touched on this topic in Parliament on Sep. 4.

He emphasised that Singaporeans must stay open while remaining inclusive, and the government must preserve a sense of fairness.

If we close ourselves off and turn away from the world, we risk losing ground in the innovation race, he said.

Singapore should be open to the world

Iswaran defined Singapore's openness as a willingness to engage with the world, embrace novel ideas and seize opportunities.

He pointed to Singapore's network of Free Trade Agreements, which he would be familiar with as the Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations.

Over 750 foreign companies have established their regional headquarters in Singapore, employing nearly 30,000 people and generating economic activity in related services.

Singapore is also home to the regional HQs of tech titans like Google, Facebook and Amazon, which are blazing the trail for digitalisation and innovation.

While they may require talent from overseas, they bring many benefits to Singapore and Singaporeans. Iswaran said:

"In the long-term, these companies can help Singapore become an innovation centre and catalyse the growth of our local tech ecosystem."

But this only happens if Singapore's international partners are confident that she will stay the course and remain open to the world.

No one left behind

While Singapore pursues growth, the government must ensure that the digitalisation journey reaches every citizen to help them take advantage of opportunities in the economy of the future.

The Infocomm and Media Development Authority has the following goals:

• Every business to be digitally-empowered.
• Every worker to be digitally-skilled.
• Every citizen to be digitally-connected.

Existing schemes, like the SG United Jobs and Skills Package, are helping to achieve this by offering more than 18,000 jobs and opportunities in the digital economy.

At the enterprise level, MCI has enhanced the Productivity Solutions Grant and Enterprise Development Grant, to help companies adopt digital solutions.

Seniors are also not left behind, with the Seniors Go Digital Programme and the SG Digital Office.

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Top image from MCI's Facebook page.