Singapore's Version of Global Common Prosperity

"Singapore + 1" Strategy: Background, Core, Achievements, and Future Outlook

"Singapore + 1" is not a simple geographical combination of "Singapore + one country", but a "hub + support" global strategy built by Singapore based on its own development bottlenecks and regional cooperation needs. With Singapore as the global core for business, R&D, and logistics, it links surrounding regions such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam (the diverse carriers of the "1"). Through complementary advantages, it achieves in-depth industrial chain integration, market boundary expansion, and risk diversification, ultimately becoming a "bridgehead" for enterprises to layout in Southeast Asia and global markets, and a "model room" for regional economic coordination.

I. Strategic Background: An Inevitable Choice Under Internal and External Pressures

The birth of "Singapore + 1" is Singapore's triple response to its own limitations, changes in the global pattern, and regional potential, with both the urgency of "passive breakthrough" and the foresight of "proactive layout".

Southeast Asia Manufacturing Alliance SG+1 - GO GLOBAL GEM

1. "Bottleneck Constraints" of Singapore's Own Development

As a city-state with an area of only 728 square kilometers (including reclaimed land) and a population of less than 6 million, Singapore's core shortcomings have become increasingly prominent:

Scarce Resources: Land resources are nearly saturated; data center construction was suspended in 2019 due to excessive power consumption, with capacity limited to 1.4 gigawatts. Human resources rely on foreign workers, resulting in insufficient local labor supply.

High Costs: Business, residential, and production costs are among the highest in the world, making it difficult for traditional manufacturing to take root sustainably.

Economic Structure Dependence: 48% of GDP comes from global trade, and the ability to resist external shocks needs further strengthening (e.g., global chip shortages once caused a 7-day shutdown of Singaporean car factories, resulting in losses of over 100 million US dollars).

Singapore needs to "link outward" to combine its own "institutional, financial, and technological advantages" with the surrounding "land, human, and resource advantages" to break through the development ceiling.

2. "Restructuring Imposition" of the Global Economic Pattern

In recent years, the global industrial chain has shown obvious trends of "de-simplification" and "nearshoring". Coupled with risks such as deglobalization and geopolitical conflicts, enterprises have an increasing demand for "decentralized layout" and "diversified backup":

Multinational enterprises need to avoid "single-point dependence" and hope to set up headquarters in Singapore while laying out production/R&D bases in the surrounding areas to balance efficiency and risk.

Enterprises from economies such as China and South Korea have upgraded their overseas expansion needs, requiring a hub that "combines adaptability to international rules and accessibility to regional markets" (Singapore's legal environment, tax policies, and global FTA network have become key factors).

"Singapore + 1" precisely responds to this demand by providing enterprises with a mature path of "stationing headquarters in Singapore and connecting production capacity/resources with the surrounding areas".

3. "Potential Dividends" of the Southeast Asian Market

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has become the world's fifth-largest economy and is expected to rise to the fourth-largest by 2030, providing a broad hinterland for the strategy:

Market Scale: The middle class in ASEAN's 650 million population continues to expand, with strong consumption and industrial demand (e.g., smart healthcare, digital economy, semiconductors).

Cost Advantages: Land rent and labor costs in places such as Johor, Malaysia, and Riau Islands, Indonesia are only 1/3 to 1/5 of those in Singapore, making them suitable for undertaking manufacturing, warehousing, and other links.

Policy Coordination: After the entry into force of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), tariffs within ASEAN have been significantly reduced, and the level of trade facilitation has improved, removing obstacles for industrial chain linkage under "Singapore + 1".

4. "Experience Laydown" from Historical Cooperation

"Singapore + 1" is not born out of thin air but an "upgrading and iteration" of previous regional cooperation:

In 1989, Singapore's former Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong proposed the "Singapore-Johor-Riau (SJR) trilateral linkage" concept. Although it did not materialize due to complex coordination among the three countries, it laid the core logic of "complementary advantages".

In 2006, Malaysia's "Iskandar Malaysia" was launched. Although it initially focused on real estate and services, it accumulated experience in cross-border land and policy coordination.

After 2010, the "Singapore-Johor-Riau Growth Triangle (IMS-GT)" gradually took shape. Bilateral trade between Singapore and Johor accounts for nearly half of Singapore's total trade with Southeast Asia, and Singapore accounts for 8.3% of Malaysia's total direct foreign investment, providing a solid economic foundation for the current strategy.

II. Core Strategic Framework: A Collaborative System of "1 Hub + 3 Pillars"

The core of "Singapore + 1" is "clear division of labor, institutional guarantee, and platform support", rather than loose regional cooperation. Its framework can be decomposed into "1 hub (Singapore) + 3 pillars (spatial layout, industrial collaboration, policy support)".

1. Spatial Layout: From "Core Special Zone" to "Regional Network"

The "1" does not specifically refer to a fixed region but forms a multi-layered network of "core-radiation-extension":

Core Node: Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ)In 2025, Singapore and Malaysia reached an agreement to build a "high-tech collaboration zone" in southern Johor, focusing on undertaking data centers, semiconductors, and AI infrastructure overflowing from Singapore. Tech giants such as Microsoft, Amazon, and NVIDIA plan to invest billions of US dollars to leverage Johor's power (Malaysia has promised preferential power policies for data centers) and land advantages, combined with Singapore's talent and global network, to form a digital industrial cluster of "R&D in Singapore + implementation in Johor".

 

 

 

Radiation Circle: Singapore-Johor-Riau Growth Triangle (IMS-GT)Covering Singapore, Johor (Malaysia), and Riau Islands (Indonesia), it focuses on "manufacturing + logistics" collaboration. Enterprises can set up regional headquarters and logistics centers in Singapore, production bases in Johor, and obtain resources in Riau Islands. Relying on the Port of Singapore (the world's second-largest port, connecting over 600 ports) and Changi Airport (over 100 air routes), they can achieve "layout in one place, access to the world".

Extended Network: Southeast Asia Manufacturing Alliance (SMA)A cross-regional platform led by Singapore, covering 10 industrial parks in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam. It provides "one-stop landing services" (policy consulting, factory construction, supply chain docking) to help enterprises quickly expand into other Southeast Asian markets (e.g., electronics manufacturing in Vietnam, new energy in Indonesia).

2. Industrial Collaboration: Value Chain Division of "Singapore for High-End, Surroundings for Supporting"

The core logic of the strategy is "value chain stratification" to avoid homogeneous competition and achieve 1+1>2:

3. Policy Support: Institutional Guarantee of "Government Builds the Platform, Enterprises Sing the Opera"

The Singaporean government reduces the threshold for enterprises to participate in "Singapore + 1" through "financial support + policy guidance + platform docking":

Financial Support:

Market Expansion Grant: Enterprises expanding business to markets outside Singapore can receive up to 50% financial subsidies (e.g., equipment procurement and personnel training costs for setting up factories in Johor).

Enterprise Financing Scheme: Provides low-interest loans and guarantee services for small and medium-sized enterprises to solve the capital pressure of cross-border investment.

Landing Services:

Enterprise Singapore has set up the "Johor-Singapore Special Zone Office" to provide "one-on-one policy consulting".

The Johor State Government has promised to establish a "one-stop investment promotion center" to enable enterprises to quickly complete business license registration, land approval, and other procedures.

Network Docking:The government, in conjunction with institutions such as the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises Singapore (ASME) and the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce, regularly holds "policy briefings" and "enterprise matching meetings" to help enterprises connect with local suppliers, customers, and government resources.

III. Existing Achievements: Initial Results from "Framework" to "Implementation"

After several years of advancement, "Singapore + 1" has transformed from a strategic vision into practical benefits, achieving remarkable results in economic coordination, industrial implementation, and enterprise empowerment.

Economic Coordination: Singapore-Malaysia Cooperation as the "Cornerstone"

Trade and Investment: Singapore has been one of Malaysia's largest sources of foreign direct investment for many years. In 2024, bilateral trade volume exceeded 120 billion Singapore dollars (approximately 630 billion Chinese yuan), accounting for 48% of Singapore's total trade with Southeast Asia. 60% of the foreign investment attracted by Johor comes from Singapore-associated enterprises.

Employment and Industry: Johor's semiconductor industrial park has created over 20,000 jobs, 30% of which are technical positions trained and exported by Singaporean enterprises. The "commuter economy" between Singapore and Johor has emerged—about 30,000 Malaysians commute to work in Singapore every day, driving housing and consumption demand in Johor.

Industrial Implementation: Digital and High-Tech Industries Take the Lead

Data Center Cluster: As of August 2025, Johor has built 8 ultra-large data centers with a total capacity of 2.1 gigawatts, undertaking 70% of Singapore's overflow cloud computing demand (Southeast Asian backup centers of Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure are both located here).

Smart Healthcare Pilot: Sin-Iron, a China-Singapore diplomatic project, has established a "Smart Healthcare Innovation Center" in Singapore, linking private hospitals in Johor to launch an AI pharmacy management system. Through algorithm R&D in Singapore + clinical verification in Johor, it has reduced local hospitals' drug management costs by 25% and plans to promote it to other ASEAN countries.

Semiconductor Supply Chain: South Korea's Samsung has set up a semiconductor R&D center in Singapore and a packaging and testing factory in Johor, forming an industrial chain of "R&D in Singapore - manufacturing in Johor - global distribution". In 2025, its production capacity accounts for 18% of Southeast Asia's semiconductor packaging market.

3. Enterprise Empowerment: A "Springboard" for Chinese and Korean Enterprises to Go Global

 

Chinese Enterprises: Over 80% of Chinese tech enterprises going global (such as ByteDance and Xiaomi) have adopted the "Singapore + 1" model—setting up Southeast Asian headquarters in Singapore and production bases in Vietnam and Indonesia. Relying on Singapore's FTA network, they reduce tariff costs (e.g., Chinese electronic products exported to ASEAN via Singapore can enjoy zero tariffs under RCEP).

Korean Enterprises: South Korea invested 4 billion US dollars in Singapore in 2024, focusing on chips and payment systems, while entering the ASEAN market through Singapore. Agricultural products from Jeju Island are exported via Singapore's cold chain hub, with prices in ASEAN reduced by 15% and market share increased to 12%.  IV. Future Outlook: Short-Term Formation, Medium-Term Radiation, Long-Term Leadership

With the deepening of the strategy, "Singapore + 1" will achieve a leap from "regional coordination model" to "global industrial chain node" within 10 years, with its outlook divided into three phases:

1. Short-Term (2025-2027): JS-SEZ Takes Shape, Industrial Agglomeration Effect Emerges

Goal: The core infrastructure of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (such as cross-strait digital optical cables and dedicated power lines) will be completed, attracting at least 15 global tech giants. The total capacity of data centers will exceed 3 gigawatts, and semiconductor packaging capacity will account for 25% of Southeast Asia.

Benefit: Drive bilateral trade volume between Singapore and Malaysia to exceed 150 billion Singapore dollars, create over 50,000 high-tech jobs, and become the "core digital industrial zone in Southeast Asia".

2. Medium-Term (2028-2030): SMA Network Coordination, In-Depth Penetration of the ASEAN Market

Goal: The 10 parks of the Southeast Asia Manufacturing Alliance (SMA) will achieve "standard unification" (e.g., environmental protection and labor standards), allowing enterprises to "register in one place, layout in multiple parks". Relying on RCEP, tariff barriers between Singapore and ASEAN countries will be further eliminated, realizing seamless connection of "settlement in Singapore + production in ASEAN + global sales".

Benefit: ASEAN will become the world's fourth-largest economy. The "Singapore + 1" model will drive a 30% increase in manufacturing value-added within the region, further consolidating Singapore's position as the "ASEAN hub" (Singapore's investment in ASEAN is expected to rise to 40%).

3. Long-Term (After 2030): Become a "Stabilizer" of the Global Industrial Chain and an Institutional Export Platform

Goal: The collaborative model of "Singapore + 1" will be replicated in Northeast Asia (e.g., AI standard coordination between Singapore and South Korea) and South Asia (e.g., software outsourcing between Singapore and India), forming a global network of "Singapore + N". AI standards (such as AI Verify) and digital governance rules led by Singapore will become benchmarks in the Asia-Pacific region.

Benefit: Singapore will become a "key node in the restructuring of the global industrial chain". By laying out through "Singapore + 1", enterprises can reduce supply chain risks by 30%, while driving industrial upgrading in ASEAN countries (e.g., new energy in Indonesia, electronics manufacturing in Vietnam) to achieve "regional common prosperity".

Conclusion: The Essence of "Singapore + 1" is a "Win-Win Paradigm"

Different from the traditional "center-periphery" model, the core of "Singapore + 1" is "complementary advantages, risk sharing, and benefit sharing". Singapore breaks through resource bottlenecks through surrounding regions, surrounding regions connect to the global market through Singapore, and enterprises achieve "low cost + high security + wide coverage" through this model. In the future, with the rise of ASEAN's economy and the restructuring of the global industrial chain, this strategy will not only reshape the economic pattern of Southeast Asia but also may become a global model of "small countries driving regional development".