Gan Kim Yong to visit Chongqing, China for the 21st Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong will be attending the 21st Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) in Chongqing, China, on Dec. 15.

He will be attending the JCBC at the invitation of China’s Vice Premier of the State Council, Ding Xuexiang, with whom Gan co-chairs the council.

Apex bilateral platform

The JCBC is the apex bilateral platform between Singapore and the People’s Republic of China, and it convenes annually to review the substantive collaboration between the two countries.

2025’s JCBC comes as the two countries commemorate 35 years of bilateral relations, as well as the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative (CCI), and will be held in Chongqing in commemoration of the anniversary.

The CCI was established with the theme of “Modern Connectivity and Modern Services”, and in the decade since, the CCI has strengthened the connectivity between the two countries in areas such as financial and digital services, as well as facilitating broader cooperation between Western China and the broader region.

During his visit, Gan and Ding will visit sites featuring initiatives driven through the CCI, as well as engage in commemorative activities as part of the anniversary.

Gan will also meet Chongqing Municipal Committee Communist Party secretary Yuan Jiajun.

The 21st JCBC will see the convening of the 9th CCI Joint Steering Council (JSC), along with the 26th Suzhou Industrial Park JSC, and the 17th Tianjin Eco-City JSC.

These JSCs review the progress made on the three government-to-government projects, as well as discussing how to further their development.

Gan will be accompanied by other ministers, including Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Digital Development and Information Minister Josephine Teo, Education Minister Desmond Lee, and Manpower Minister Tan See Leng.

They will also be accompanied by Senior Ministers of State Zaqy Mohamad, Tan Kiat How, Low Yen Ling, and Sun Xueling.

What is the JCBC?

The JCBC provides a platform for collaboration between Singapore and China. Over the years, there have been many MOUs and agreements that came out from the JCBC — in 2024 alone, there were 25.

The JCBC was established by then-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong and then-Premier Wen Jiabao in Nov. 2003, "to provide an overarching framework to oversee the growing areas of bilateral cooperation," according to the MFA.

The first JCBC meeting was co-chaired by then-Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and then-Vice Premier Wu Yi, in China in May 2004.

Singapore and China take turns to host the JCBC every year. And since 2004, with only one exception, it has continued ever since. Even during the Covid-19 pandemic years, the JCBC was conducted virtually.

On Singapore's side, the co-chair has always been at the DPM level or higher. Previous JCBC representatives include Lee Hsien Loong, Wong Kan Seng (DPM), Teo Chee Hean (DPM, Coordinating Minister and Senior Minister), Heng Swee Keat (then-DPM), Lawrence Wong (then-DPM), and now Gan Kim Yong (DPM).

This will be Gan’s second JCBC.

On China’s side, the co-chair is usually a member of China’s Politburo Standing Committee, which comprises the top leadership of the country.

2025 will be Ding’s third JCBC, after taking over from former Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Han Zheng.

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