Good morning to all of you.
1. It is a pleasure to be able to see everyone here in-person after two years of COVID. I would like to thank the Temasek Foundation and NUS for making this possible, and for the many fruitful exchanges over the last 10 years. More importantly, I'd like to thank all of you for joining us in Singapore, sharing your perspectives, and brainstorming solutions to the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
Introduction
2. We are at a critical moment in history. A critical moment because there are both challenges and opportunities for us to overcome and seize.
3. There are three overarching issues that I hope you will keep in mind as you share your insights with one another. Hopefully by the time you leave Singapore, we will have forged the strong bonds necessary for us to see through the action plan that we have developed together.
4. The three issues are the global situation, our ASEAN situation, and the issue of technology.
Global Challenges
5. Today, the peace and stability of the past 50 years can no longer be taken for granted. The international rule-based security order, trading and financial systems are all under strain.
6. Amidst these challenges, we have to ask ourselves what is the role of our universities, and what can we do to contribute to the world and to our region? For us to continue enjoying our shared peace, prosperity and progress.
7. Why is the world in such a state? Part of the reason has to do with the lack of strategic trust amongst the big powers. This lack of strategic trust will percolate down to the smaller countries, making it more challenging for different nations to unite and address our shared challenges together – from geopolitical issues, regional security, climate change, international economics, a strained financial system and so forth.
8. This is where I think the universities in ASEAN as the "brain trust" of our societies can play an important role. I've always hoped that the universities will be a neutral platform for us to bring people of different backgrounds, different persuasions, and different perspectives to come together to discuss these challenges and formulate new ideas for us to move forward as one.
9. This is why forums such as the TFI-NUS PLUM are so important. We are here to try and collectively find a way forward to help our societies to build that much-needed strategic trust. And if we want to aim to build the strategic trust across different countries, it must start in the universities. I have always encouraged our universities like NUS to do so and be a convener for people to come together and speak honestly. Only then can we better understand one another and minimise our misunderstandings. And I hope that through the work of the universities, we will plant the seeds in our younger generations and encourage them to grow up understanding one another. And in time, they will be able to do great things together.
10. I too had the great fortune of having work and live in different parts of ASEAN. Today, we are able to talk frankly with one another in ASEAN because we have that deep reservoir of trust. But this deep reservoir of trust cannot be taken for granted. We stand on the shoulders of those who have come before us, and it is our duty to pave the way for the next generation.
11. I hope that through this conference, we will establish both bilateral ties and multilateral ties for us to significantly step up the interactions amongst both our undergraduates and postgraduates , and also amongst the faculties so that we can help our countries build strategic trust. I would like to emphasise that it should not be a competition among ASEAN members, but we should gather as one ASEAN to provide a neutral and trusted platform for the rest of the world to engage us. So that's my first wish for this forum.
ASEAN's Unique Solutions and Challenges
12. My second wish for this forum is that ASEAN needs to develop our unique solutions to our unique challenges. And again, this is where the universities as the "brain trust" of our respective societies have an important role to play.
13. The challenges of ASEAN are in some ways similar to the challenges commonly faced by other parts of the world. But we also face challenges unique to our countries. Especially for a young ASEAN with a growing population. Today, we have about 600 million people. The challenge of educating the next generation, and the challenge of creating sufficient and good quality jobs for the next generation are relatively unique to us.
14. How do we maintain peace in the region? How do we develop solutions to our unique social challenges? We can learn many of these things from others, but we cannot completely duplicate their solutions because we need to develop unique solutions in context. ASEAN is diverse. We can all learn from one another and share with one another.
15. Particularly in the area of governance and social sciences, we need to find unique solutions for our respective communities. It is not just about the STEM subjects, but we also need to grapple with social issues in ASEAN.
Technology as a Tool
16. This is not so much a challenge but an opportunity. Many have lamented about the possible loss of two years in our education system. In Singapore, we would like to believe that we will never let a crisis go to waste. Over the last two years we have learnt to do something well and something differently. We have all learnt to step up our interactions virtually.
17. This allows us to transcend our borders and even expand our network beyond what we could possibly imagine prior to COVID. And I hope that we will continue to make use of new technologies and seize opportunities to strengthen our connectivity interactions.
18. I am certain that our universities in ASEAN already have virtual exchanges, virtual projects, collaborating online for students to meet up much more frequently, more than ever before. This is an opportunity that we should not miss. If we want to connect much better with the rest of the world, we can start within ASEAN. If we can form that solid network, that dense network of connections and interactivity within ASEAN, we will have a solid platform upon which to engage the rest of the world.
19. While virtual interactions will never be the same as the physical interactions, the virtual dimension can also help us to sustain the relationship and grow it in new ways.
20. And I hope that leveraging technologies we will be able to have greater sharing of curriculum, course materials, pedagogies and exchange of ideas for us to do better, individually and collectively.
Conclusion
21. I spoke on three points - our role as the "brain trust" to create that neutral and trusted platform to build strategic trust globally, develop unique solutions in context for our respective and collective needs, and leverage the new technologies available to us to break new grounds and explore new frontiers to bring ourselves all collectively to the next five years. I think these are good challenges and opportunities for us to discuss.
22. And finally, before you leave Singapore, beyond the memories, I hope the most important thing that we can take back to our respective countries is this sense of community. This sense of knowing that we have someone else in ASEAN, who we can pick up the phone or call virtually to discuss with one another on how we overcome our challenges in time to come.
23. This sense of community is most important in ASEAN and it is what we hope to see through forums like this. We look forward to your sharing, and we'll certainly like to keep our ties with you. We'll expand those ties from the undergraduates to the postgraduates and the faculty. And on that note, I wish you all the very best in your discussions and sharing. Thank you very much.