What would it take for Singapore’s office decentralisation to succeed?

DESPITE Singapore’s more than three decades of efforts to move business activity outside the Central Business District (CBD), around 66.3 per cent of office space remains located in the city-state’s central area – scarcely any different from the 66.5 per cent in 1993.

Industry experts cite a cocktail of challenges for developers, companies and employees alike, from the lack of profitability and confidence in suburban commercial developments, to the prestige and convenience the CBD continues to hold. 

To be fair, Tricia Song, CBRE head of research for South-east Asia, highlighted that not all locations and micro-markets within decentralised areas are equal.