Singapore-New Zealand Comprehensive Strategic Partnership launched

29 October 2025

On 10 October 2025, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (“MTI”) announced the upgrade of the Singapore-New Zealand Enhanced Partnership to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (“CSP”). The CSP aims to prepare both countries’ economies and societies for challenges and opportunities, and extends cooperation further to engage with regional partners. It includes strengthened initiatives to be implemented over the next 10 years, across six pillars: (i) Trade and economics; (ii) Defence, security and safety; (iii) Science, technology and innovation; (iv) People-to-people; (5) Climate change and green economy; and (vi) Supply chains and connectivity.

Under the CSP, MTI and Enterprise Singapore announced the following initiatives to connect the parties’ economies:

  • Agreement on Trade in Essential Supplies: MTI and the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (“MFAT”) signed an Agreement on Trade in Essential Supplies. This agreement is Singapore’s first legally binding bilateral supply chain resilience agreement and will provide reassurance that both sides can continue to receive essential supplies during supply chain disruptions, and help to manage market distortions, give companies greater confidence, and provide consumers with greater price stability and certainty.
  • New Zealand-Singapore Leadership Forum (“NZSLF”) to be held in 2026: The inaugural NZSLF between MTI and MFAT will be held in 2026 to foster dialogue and collaboration between both governments with business leaders, find ways to improve the business environment, and support investments both ways.
  • Enhanced partnership for growth arrangement: Under a refreshed Memorandum of Understanding between Enterprise Singapore and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, both nations will deepen collaboration and promote business ties in common areas of interest such as trade and connectivity and technology and innovation.

Reference materials

The press release is available on the MTI website www.mti.gov.sg.