A momentous year for the partnership between
Singapore and Brazil

Embassy of Brazil in Singapore

The ties that bind Brazil and Singapore go far back to the times of the global maritime empire built by Portugal centuries ago, which left an imprint both in South America and in Southeast Asia, in places like Malacca, Timor and beyond. Still to this day, traces can be found among the Eurasian ethnicity in Singapore. More recently, Brazil and Singapore have grown ever closer, culminating in this year’s celebration of 50 years of diplomatic relations between the two heavyweights in their respective domains.

Brazilian Exports Hit Records
Two years after the independence of Singapore, the two nations decided to establish official relations. One must marvel at how far the bilateral ties have come. Fifty years on, Singapore is a major investor in Brazil, with shipyards, manufacturers, equity and more footholds in Brazil. Brazilian exports to Singapore have hit a record this year, with more volumes crossing the oceans towards this shore. The two nations are bound even further through sports and by many cultural activities such as music events, culinary experimentation, interests in the sustainability of fauna and flora, to name a few.

To crown this half-century of ties and herald the next one, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Brazil came to Singapore in the month of September, a most fortuitous occasion as H. E. Mr. Aloysio Nunes Ferreira took the opportunity to grace the National Day celebration of Brazil held at the Fullerton Bay Hotel. His presence in Singapore saw the staging of a business seminar, which he helmed with a view to boosting yet further the investments of Singapore into Brazil. The event addressed key issues, ranging from agribusiness to credit lines and much more on the business framework now rendered more investor-friendly by the reform-minded government of President Michel Temer.

Making the most of his time in Singapore, Minister Aloysio Nunes Ferreira traded insights with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. He also met with his counterpart in Singapore, Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who displayed in-depth knowledge of the former Portuguese sway over the region and who summed up well the current range of points of interest bringing Brazil and Singapore together. The meeting was marked by the signing of an agreement on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passports. Further in his rounds of the Ministries, Mr. Aloysio Nunes Ferreira met with Senior Minister for Trade and Industry, Mr. Koh Poh Koon, ensuring thus that the door for business between the two partner nations remains open.

The heads of Brazilian corporate branch offices in Singapore likewise had a chance to meet with Minister Aloysio Nunes Ferreira. He also met with the heads of the trade and economic sections of each Brazilian Embassy from around ASEAN as well as the very same region’s Brazilian Ambassadors. At a press conference, he expounded further on the bilateral relations and in fact he is bound to have more good news for the Brazil-Singapore partnership upon his return to Singapore in January 2018, accompanying a larger Brazilian delegation heading this way.


Going Beyond Commerce

Relations go beyond commerce and diplomacy, as one considers the kaleidoscopic range of lifestyle options and choices. In November, the Embassy of Brazil to Singapore presented once more the annual PianoBotanica, a musical evening at the Botanic Gardens that featured bossa nova, the Brazilian version of jazz. At the piano, Singapore’s very own Jeremy Monteiro mesmerized the masses spread across the lawns which battled pouring rain, accompanied by Juliana da Silva, a virtuoso singer hailing from Brazil, as well as Melissa Tham, a talented voice from Singapore.

Closing the year, the Jurong Bird Park acquired a few blue macaws from conservation units in other countries, as these fine avian specimens were almost extinct in Brazil. Experts from Jurong Bird Park will help the birds acclimatize and learn to transition back to wildlife, in preparation for their return to their natural habitat, the caatinga – the dry shrub landscape of northeast Brazil. A ceremony was held at the Jurong Bird Park to celebrate the successful rescue of wildlife and the wider conservation of nature and biodiversity.

It is with pride that we nurture further the ecosystem of exchanges that unites both our homelands in a web of common interests, from nature to business, as well as into sports, culture, gastronomy and the very many facets of life that bring people together.

The Jurong Bird Park acquired a few blue macaws from conservation units in other countries, as these fine avian specimens were almost extinct in Brazil. … A ceremony was held to celebrate the successful rescue of wildlife and the wider conservation of nature and biodiversity. It is with pride that we nurture further the ecosystem of exchanges that unites both our homelands in a web of common interests, from nature to business…

(Text and photos by Embassy of Brazil in Singapore)