Singapore govt to tender new plots of farmland with longer 20-year leases

THE Singapore government will tender out new plots of farmland with longer leases of 20 years, instead of the 10 years announced previously, for productive and high-tech farming.

"This follows from feedback we've received from farmers that they needed a longer period to recover the investments for new technologies," Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said in his blog on Tuesday.

In assessing the proposals for these new farm plots, the government will place greater emphasis on quality and productivity considerations, said Mr Wong, who is also Second Minister for Finance.

The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore will release more details on the farm land tenders soon.

Mr Wong noted that a modern agriculture sector will continue to play a key role in Singapore's future, even as our economy evolves and our society becomes more urbanised.

And one way to enhance Singapore's food security is to grow food locally, with new farming technologies helping to significantly boost production levels.

"Not only will this provide us with more locally grown food, it will also help our farmers scale up their businesses," he said. "The government will do more to help farmers adopt these new technologies."