SPEECH BY RADM (NS) TEO CHEE HEAN MINISTER FOR EDUCATION AND SECOND MINISTER FOR DEFENCE AT THE WBI-NUS MOU SIGNING CEREMONY ON MONDAY 1 MAY 2000 AT STAMFORD RM, 4TH LEVEL PLAZA PARKROYAL AT 5.40 PM

        It is indeed heartening to note that the organising of the East Asia Urban and City Management Course has enabled the National University of Singapore to establish a Memorandum of Understanding with the World Bank Institute in the field of Urban and City Management Training and Distance Learning. This partnership enhances the prestige of the course organised under the Third Country Training Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It also establishes the reputation of the World Bank Institute and NUS as deliverers of quality programmes that benefit developing countries.

2.     Urban and City Management is important in the context of an increasingly urbanised society. Globalisation has sped up the rate of urbanisation and created many challenges for city planners and managers, in the areas of city design, physical and development planning and land management. More often than not, planners find themselves faced with conflicting demands. For instance, do we build more industrial estates to support the economy, or do we set aside space for recreational facilities to help workers maintain a balanced lifestyle. The way these challenges are handled can make a difference to the attractiveness and efficiency of a city and the well-being of its people. Hence, it is indeed useful to bring together experts in urban and city management from various countries to share their experiences.

3      The signing of this MOU between the World Bank Institute and NUS is a significant step in furthering the University's expertise in the field of urban and city management education. The MOU will enable both partners to share knowledge and ideas in their areas of common interest. It will also facilitate a partnership where resources and expertise can be pooled to draw maximum impact, not only in the area of joint training, but also possibly in the area of research and development. In this age of information technology and globalisation, the inclusion of distance learning as an aspect of cooperation opens up more avenues for utilizing the Bank and the University's distance learning networks to mutual advantage and benefit. It will bring education beyond the restricted confines of time and space.

4     I am sure the East Asia Urban and City Management Course is only the first step that NUS is taking with the World Bank Institute. I am confident that there will be many more successful collaborations to come. It gives me great pleasure to wish all the participants of the course an enriching experience.

Thank you.