China-Singapore ties: The two Asian countries eye better connectivity

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Using a facial recognition system, customers can enter a 24/7 unmanned convenience store specializing in Singaporean goods located in the city of Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province. From seafood to snacks and toys, everything here is paid for through mobile platforms – Alipay, or WeChat Pay.

“There are lots of options here, including my favorite chocolate. And I can finish shopping without queuing. It's very convenient,” a female store-goer told CGTN.

A customer tries to enter the unmanned convenience store through a facial recognition system. /CGTN Photo

This mini-mart was jointly launched in September by veriTAG, a Singapore cloud-tagging solutions provider, and a Chongqing tech firm that operates the unmanned chain brand Flash-Go. It's an attempt for Singaporean small and medium-sized enterprises to enter the lucrative Chinese market.

“We'll team up to open two or three stores in Singapore before year's end, and another 50 next year. We also plan to expand the business to other Southeast Asian countries,” said Deng Jie, Deputy General Manager of the Chongqing Cloud-Mail Information Technology Company, adding that they are confident with the project's development in Singapore, where the labor cost is very high.

“Meanwhile, our company will apply the traceability technology of veriTAG to all of our stores to ensure product safety,” said Deng.

Actually, the smart store is one of the latest cooperative projects under the China-Singapore Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity, which was launched in Chongqing in 2015 as the third intergovernmental chapter between the two countries, following the Suzhou industrial park and Tianjin Eco-city.

Over the past three years, 137 projects worth some 22 billion US dollars have been signed, covering areas like finance, aviation, logistics and information communication, and the construction of the corridor connecting western China and Southeast Asia by land, rail and sea transportation has been a highlight.

A truck enters the Pinxiang Friendship Pass on the China-Vietnam border. The New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor has greatly promoted connectivity between western China and the Southeastern countries. /CGTN Photo

“With the logistics corridor, the project has greatly promoted the interaction and integration of different industries and is developing towards an economic corridor. It's also conducive to enhancing people-to-people connectivity among countries along the route,” said Sun Xiyong, Deputy Director General of the China-Singapore Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity Administration Bureau.

On November 13, the two countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop the project – New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor under the initiative, or CCI-ILSTC, through which Singapore and Chongqing will play the role of mutual hubs in Southeast Asia and western China respectively, providing companies from both sides access to each other's growing markets.

Sun says more efforts are called for from governments and enterprises on both sides to tap into greater partnership potential, such as the construction of smart cities and tourism, among others.

(Top image: The smart unmanned convenience store specializing in Singaporean goods in the city of Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province. /CGTN Photo)