Warm Friendships Underlie Strong Brunei-Singapore Partnership

Besides sharing a history of cooperation in the media industry, Singapore and Brunei media authorities and content providers also enjoy a warm camaraderie. Producers from both countries have even established an annual friendly soccer match, noted Mr Chan Yeng Kit, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, Singapore.

He was speaking at the 19th Joint Technical Committee (JTC) Meeting on cooperation in the field of broadcasting between Brunei and Singapore. His counterpart, Pengiran Abdul Haris bin Pengiran Haji Shahbudin, Permanent Secretary, Prime Minister’s Office, Brunei Darussalam, was pleased with the way the two countries have cooperated for nearly two decades. “Over the past 19 years since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam and the Government of the Republic of Singapore Concerning Co-operation in the Field of Broadcasting, we have seen active implementation of projects and programmes exchanged,” he said in his opening remarks.

Over the past year, television and radio programmes were exchanged and aired; the machinery for the exchange of television content is well-oiled, and each side has developed a feel for what the other wants. During the JTC Meeting, joint productions were explored and a co-production team from Brunei attended a two-day on-the-job training on high-definition (HD) production at the Singapore Media Academy.

During the meeting, it was revealed that plans for digital broadcasting in the region are proceeding apace, with ASEAN to develop guidelines for digital switchover, and common standards to leverage on economies of scale. Also on the cards are innovative projects that keep abreast of current trends in the sector and a collaborative HD training programme.

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