A trade body's Singapore story

SINCE its founding in 1837, the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce (SICC) has been at the heart of the business community in this country. Its niche as Singapore's longest-serving, wholly independent voice of the private sector is as relevant today as it was 178 years ago. SICC's mission is simple and unchanged: to represent business interests in the greater interest of ensuring a vibrant economy in Singapore.

From representing first mainly British and then wider European business interests up to World War II, SICC represented multinational corporations (MNCs) predominantly in the first 20 years of Singapore's independence. Since then, the Chamber's membership has grown much more diverse and more representative of Singapore's business community today.

SICC members represent more than 20 industry sectors and 40 nationalities, and are roughly equally split between MNCs and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This is entirely healthy and this diversity of membership is at the heart of the Chamber's reinvention of itself in the 21st century.