Minister attends 7th Brunei, Singapore annual exchange of visit

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BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN:  Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Singapore reaffirmed the commitment to further boost cooperation in areas of solid waste management, air quality monitoring, water resource management, 3P (people, public and private) partnerships, climate change and transboundary haze pollution, Borneo Bulletin reported.

Both countries also look set to further strengthen bilateral sharing experience and expertise in the said areas – in particular the enhancement of Brunei’s air quality monitoring network.

The close relationship and collaboration between Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Singapore was raised in the joint statement issued by both countries following the 7th Brunei Singapore Annual Exchange of Visit held in Singapore attended by Brunei’s Minister of Development, Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awg Hj Suyoi bin Hj Osman and Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, the Singapore Minister for the Environment and Water Resources.

According to a joint statement released yesterday, the ministers welcomed the bilateral sharing experience and expertise in the said areas in particular the enhancement of Brunei’s air quality monitoring network. The ministers agreed that both countries should continue with the close collaboration.

The ministers also noted that officials from both countries have exchanged knowledge and experience on promoting environmental education and awareness to drive greater environmental ownership and sustainability.

Recognising the importance of nurturing youths as advocates for environmental ownership and sustainability, the ministers agreed to continue the exchange of youth environmental programmes conducted by both countries.

They also discussed the challenges posed by climate change and the importance of building capability in climate science and modeling to address these challenges.

The ministers encouraged bilateral and regional cooperation to develop better solutions to improve climate resilience in the region.

To build camaraderie among officers of both countries, the delegates also participated in friendly games, which was organised as part of the Brunei Singapore Annual Exchange of Visit.

The ministers reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen cooperation to foster continuous progress in the environmental relationship between Brunei Darussalam and Singapore.

Brunei Darussalam will host the 8th Singapore Annual Exchange of Visit in 2014.