3,000 SMEs have engaged with Centres of Innovation, yielding 300 projects

FROM 2016 to 2020, about 3,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Singapore engaged with Centres of Innovation (COI) in local institutes of higher learning and A*Star research institutes, said Minister of State for Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling in Parliament on Tuesday (Aug 2).

This has led to 300 innovation projects, ranging from technology translation and adoption to intellectual property licensing, product co-development and co-innovation.

But MTI does not have data on how many of these projects resulted in successfully commercialised ideas, said Low in reply to Member of Parliament Desmond Choo, who had asked for a breakdown of successful cases by industry.

She added that, as announced in Budget 2022, more SMEs will now be able to tap on the capabilities of over 80 technology, innovation and enterprise centres, including COIs. “Over the next 5 years, these centres are expected to undertake close to 2,000 innovation projects across 5 pilot sectors: agri-tech, construction, food manufacturing, precision engineering and retail.”