| James Kon |
ENVIRONMENT officials from Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Singapore met yesterday to discuss the progress in areas of cooperation in solid waste management, air quality management, water resources management, and environmental youth exchange since the 12th Meeting of the Brunei-Singapore Joint Committee on the Environment (BSJCE) at The Rizqun International Hotel.
The meeting was co-chaired by Dr Nor Imtihan binti Haji Abdul Razak, Acting Permanent Secretary (Administration and Finance) at the Ministry of Development (MoD), and Albert Chua, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, Republic of Singapore.
Recounting the work done during the meeting, Dr Nor Imtihan said, “The 12th Meeting of the Brunei-Singapore Working Group (BSWG) held at the Badi’ah Hotel on April 24, 2018 produced a fruitful discussion and witnessed substantial progress in the activities and programmes carried out under the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Bilateral Partnership in Environmental Affairs between Brunei and Singapore, through continuous exchanges on environmental programmes ranging from waste management, air quality, water resources management and environmental education.”
She congratulated the working group for their efforts and progress made on the agenda items to be considered at the 12th BSJCE, and highlighted that Brunei Darussalam and Singapore will remain steadfast and committed in working together to address environmental issues and challenges faced by both countries.
The permanent secretary at the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, Republic of Singapore said, “After arriving in Brunei, I saw the flags of Singapore and Brunei Darussalam lining the roads in preparation of the state visit by Singapore’s President on Friday. Looking at the two flags flying high in the sky, I felt the warm friendship that we have.
“This is also the symbol of the core relationship between both countries. We are longstanding friends and good partners because of the leadership from both countries… we have always been very close with each other.”
Besides discussions on work carried out since the 12th BSWG, new areas of collaboration meeting were also deliberated during yesterday’s meeting. This report was presented by BSWG Brunei Darussalam Co-Chair, Martinah binti Haji Tamit, who is also the Acting Director of the Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation.
Other items discussed included the Draft Joint Press Statement for the 12th Brunei-Singapore Annual Exchange of Visits.
The report on the 12th BSJCE will be presented during the 12th Brunei-Singapore Annual Exchange of Visits (12th BSAEV) today.
The MoD and the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources of Singapore on behalf of the Government of Singapore, signed their first MoU on environmental cooperation on August 27, 2005.
To deepen cooperation and foster continuous progress in the already strong relationship between Brunei and Singapore in the environment and water arena, the ministers of both countries renewed the MoU on Bilateral Partnership in Environmental Affairs.
Also in attendance at the meeting were Permanent Secretary (Technical and Professional) at the MoD, Haji Marzuke bin Haji Mohsin; Director General of the Public Works Department, Haji Amer Hishamuddin bin Pehin Orang Kaya Amar Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Haji Zakaria; and other senior environment and public works officials.
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