Number of firms using EnterpriseSG to expand overseas higher in 2022 than previous year

MORE companies expanded overseas with the support of Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) in 2022, with about half of them doing so for the first time, the statutory board’s year-in-review showed on Wednesday (Feb 1).

Some 2,000 firms ventured abroad in 2022, a 25 per cent increase from the previous two years when international borders were largely closed during the pandemic. This is, however, lower than the pre-Covid level of 2,600 in 2019.

Close to 80 per cent of these companies were starting or restarting their internationalisation efforts and going into new markets for the first time in three years, said EnterpriseSG chief executive Png Cheong Boon. He added that many tapped the Market Readiness Assistance grant.

While South-east Asia remained the top destination, Png said there were also more companies heading to the Middle East, Africa, US, Latin America and Europe.

“This represents the priorities and also the constraints imposed last year; the newer companies who are not familiar with China aren’t able to go to China, but they take this opportunity to go to the other markets,” he said.

“Those who are in China who didn’t want to continue to expand in China are also taking the opportunity to go (to) other markets,” Png added.

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Still, China remained a major market for many Singapore companies already there.

EnterpriseSG helped 450 firms secure new opportunities. Of these, 36 per cent were for companies that were already operating in China, despite strict Covid-19 restrictions, said Png.

These are expected to generate S$3.5 billion of overseas sales and S$1.4 billion of overseas investments, he added.

In total, EnterpriseSG supported 18,100 Singapore companies in 2022, to deepen their capabilities in productivity, innovation and internationalisation.

Such activities are expected to create S$17.8 billion in value-add and 23,800 skilled jobs for the Singapore economy, on par with that in 2021.

But the number of enterprises that embarked on productivity projects to upgrade and transform their business fell to 17,200 in 2022, from 21,900 the year before.

EnterpriseSG chairman Peter Ong noted that there was a surge in productivity projects during the pandemic – there were 14,800 in 2020 – as many companies that had not digitalised needed to do so quickly, due to the “low-contact economy” that the world was experiencing.

“But now, Covid-19 is sort of receding and most companies would have done their payments or digitalisation projects, (so) that number has rightly come down,” he said. Instead, there was a rebound in internationalisation numbers with borders reopening last year.

Still, EnterpriseSG’s network of SME Centres operated by trade associations and chambers assisted more than 25,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through business advisory, capability workshops and upgrading efforts, last year.

At the same time, 700 companies took on innovation projects to develop new products and solutions.

EnterpriseSG enabled 2,700 tech startups to gain access to funding, incubation and mentorship through its Startup SG programmes and assistance from partners.

Last year, the statutory board expanded its Global Innovation Alliance programme to Seoul and Abu Dhabi, allowing startups and SMEs to tap market acceleration programmes in 17 cities in the network.

Png noted that EnterpriseSG last year launched a new Enterprise 2030 strategy to grow promising Singapore companies. It also implemented the Trade 2030 strategy to develop Singapore global traders and strengthen the Republic’s position as a leading global trading hub.

Two key initiatives under the Enterprise 2030 strategies are Scale-Up SG and the Enterprise Leadership for Transformation (ELT) programmes.

Scale-Up SG now has 80 companies, including 15 that joined last year. ELT added 130 business leaders from 90 SMEs in 2022, bringing the total number of trained business leaders to 400 since the programme’s launch in 2020.

In 2023, Ong said EnterpriseSG will focus on four strategies: intensifying internationalisation efforts, accelerating innovation, acquiring sustainability capabilities and growing the next generation of Singapore Global Enterprises.

He noted that Singapore companies are often suppliers or partners in the supply chain of multinational companies (MNCs) and account for their Scope 3 emissions.

“They will have to build up their green credentials in order to stay on the MNC’s supplier list or risk being dropped,” said Ong. “This area is therefore both a real threat but also an opportunity for growth and transformation.”

Beyond driving awareness, Ong said EnterpriseSG will look into building new capabilities in areas such as sustainability standards and carbon accounting.

It will also be diving deeper into sustainability initiatives at a sectoral level, to tailor them for the unique needs of the industry, he added.

“This will be done through a series of sustainability playbooks, courses and sector initiatives with reputable knowledge and industry partners, many of whom have expressed interest to work with us,” he said.

Png said EnterpriseSG hopes to get some of these playbooks up by this year, adding that they are likely to be done sector by sector.

Noting that the number of sectors is not yet fixed, he said: “The logistics one is very important because in logistics, everyone is part of that value chain and everybody contributes to each other’s emissions, and that’s not easy to do because it’s all interrelated, but that’s a good start.”