SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi who arrived in Singapore on Thursday will have a number of engagements in his tightly packed schedule on Friday.
The Prime Minister will receive a ceremonial welcome at the Istana (Presidential Palace), where he will meet with the Singaporean President Halimah Yacob.
Prime Minister Modi will next meet his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong, after which there will be signing and exchange of MoUs and joint press statements.
After the joint presser, Prime Minister Lee will host an official lunch in honour of Prime Minister Modi.
Prime Minister Modi will next visit the Nanyang Technical University, which is ranked the best technological university and is considered a leading centre for research in Artificial Intelligence (AI). He will interact with the president and the board members of the university.
Following this, Prime Minister Modi will deliver the keynote address of the Shangri-La Dialogue, which will be the first time an Indian Prime Minister will address the event.
The Shangri-La Dialogue will be a platform to articulate regional security issues. The Prime Minister is expected to speak on India's views on peace and security in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) region and India's role in the region.
Defence ministers, military chiefs and top officials from more than 40 countries will attend the event.
After the keynote address, a working dinner would be hosted by Prime Minister Lee for all dignitaries.
In a statement last week, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Secretary (East) Preeti Saran said that Singapore is the second largest source of investment in India, accounting for 16 percent of total Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India.
"Between 2000 and 2017, over 8000 Indian companies registered in Singapore and our bilateral trade with Singapore is USD 16 billion accounting for 20 percent of India's trade with the ASEAN region. Singapore companies have become major partners in areas like urban development and planning, Smart Cities and infrastructure development including sports, aviation, industrial parks and logistics," Saran added.
She further said that India's oldest uninterrupted bilateral naval exercise is held with Singapore.
About 10 percent of Singapore nationals are of Indian origin. The total Indian population in Singapore is estimated to be about 8 lakhs.
"Over 1.3 million Indians actually visit Singapore as tourists so they are really the third largest tourist component for Singapore. Singapore has the highest concentration IIT and IIM alumni so that just shows the number of professionals that it has attracted," Saran said.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Modi called India-Singapore's bilateral relations "warmest and closest".
While addressing the community-cum-business event named 'Anushasan' at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, Prime Minister Modi called the Indo-Singaporean relations as "a natural partnership with a shared vision".
While highlighting India's role in developing the ASEAN region, Prime Minister Modi further said, "Singapore became a partner and bridge between India and ASEAN".
Later, Prime Minister Modi attended a round-table conference with CEOs for dinner. Thirty top business leaders of Singapore participated in the conference.
Earlier, the Prime Minister visited the India-Singapore Enterprise and Innovation Exhibitions at the Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre, which showcased innovation in frontier technologies, including artificial intelligence, fin-tech and innovation for social impact.
Before Singapore, Prime Minister visited Indonesia and Malaysia in a bid to enhance India's relations and engagements with the three countries, who are members of the ASEAN.