Singapore and Montréal, 11 August 2016 – ICAO Secretary General Dr. Fang Liu stressed the critical importance of partnership and cooperation among local States in order to help ensure that Asia-Pacific traffic growth is managed safely and efficiently, during her recent official visit to Singapore.
She commended Singapore as a leading State in the effective implementation of ICAO’s Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs), and encouraged its enhanced cooperation and partnership with States in the Region to build aviation capacity.
“Singapore has been excelling in their adoption of Air Traffic Flow Management (ATFM) and the enhancement of their overall Air Navigation Services (ANS),” Dr. Liu highlighted. “In light of the constant and quite rapid increase in air traffic volumes now being seen in the Asia and Pacific Region, Singapore’s experience and best practices will be of great value to neighbouring States as they embark on similar enhancements to aid the safety and efficiency of Asia-Pacific civil aviation.”
In her meeting with Mr. Khaw Boon Wan, Singapore’s Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport, Dr. Liu discussed ICAO’s role in improving aviation safety and security compliance in States, as per the objectives of the UN agency’s No Country Left Behind initiative, as well as the important contributions which Singapore is making in terms of local capacity-building and human resources development.
“ICAO greatly appreciates that the Singapore Aviation Academy (SAA) conducts over 120 aviation programmes annually for over 90,000 participants from 200 countries and territories, as well as training fellowships and scholarships to some 7,000 participants,” Dr. Liu remarked. “Engaging and empowering youth to pursue technically challenging skilled aviation careers is a key global priority for ICAO under its Next Generation of Aviation Professionals (NGAP) Programme, and it is our hope that Singapore can play an even bigger role in supporting other Asia-Pacific States as they jointly seek to build aviation capacity and improve their adoption and compliance with ICAO’s global provisions.”
She added that “ICAO’s Asia and Pacific (APAC) Regional Office in Bangkok is playing a key role in helping the region’s States to develop deeper cooperation on their civil aviation planning and programmes, and we will be looking to drive further collaborations with Singapore going forward so that its knowledge and expertise can be shared more extensively.”
Dr. Liu also held productive discussions during her trip to Singapore with Mr. Pang Kin Keong, Permanent Secretary of its Ministry of Transport, and Mr. Lee Hsien Yang, the Chairman of the country’s Civil Aviation Authority, regarding support from Singapore to ICAO programmes and collaborative work with States for safe, efficient and sustainable air transport.
Dr. Liu received an additional briefing during her mission from Mr. Kevin Shum, Singapore’s Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), on various civil aviation activities now ongoing in Singapore, including efforts to improve aviation safety and Air Traffic Management (ATM), and aspects of the Changi Airport Master Plan.
Resources for Editors
ICAO's Next Generation of Aviation Professionals (NGAP) programme
ICAO’s Global Aviation Training (GAT) Office
ICAO’s ‘No Country Left Behind’ programme
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