Singapore PM Lawrence Wong on 1st India visit; to meet Modi, top ministers from 2-4 Sept
Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will visit India from September 2 to 4 at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This will be Wong’s first official visit to India as Singapore’s head of government. He will be accompanied by his spouse, Mrs. Lawrence Wong, and a senior delegation of Cabinet ministers and officials.
During the visit, Prime Ministers Modi and Wong are scheduled to hold bilateral talks. Wong will also call on President Droupadi Murmu, while External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and other dignitaries are expected to meet the Singaporean Prime Minister.
The visit coincides with the 60th anniversary of India-Singapore diplomatic relations and follows the elevation of bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during the PM’s September 2024 visit to Singapore. It is expected to further strengthen cooperation across multiple sectors and provide a platform for the two leaders to engage on regional and global issues of mutual interest.
India-Singapore relations
India-Singapore ties have deepened over the years, underpinned by a long tradition of friendship, trust, and cooperation. Since 2014, the Prime Minister has visited Singapore five times, including trips for bilateral talks, the ASEAN-India Summit, East Asia Summit, and RCEP Leaders’ Meeting.
PM Modi also became the first Indian Prime Minister to deliver keynote addresses at both the Shangri-La Dialogue (June 2018) and the Singapore Fintech Festival (November 2018).
During the PM’s September 2024 visit, the two countries signed MoUs in semiconductor ecosystem development, digital technologies, healthcare, and skill development, and issued a joint statement outlining the roadmap for future cooperation.
Trade and investment
Bilateral trade has grown from USD 6.7 billion in FY 2004-05 to USD 34.3 billion in FY 2024-25. Singapore is India’s sixth-largest trade partner, accounting for around 2.96% of overall trade.
Singapore is also a major source of FDI into India. In FY 2024-25, Singapore invested USD 14.94 billion, with cumulative inflows from 2000 to 2025 reaching USD 174.88 billion—approximately 24% of total FDI. Key sectors attracting investment include services, software and hardware, trading, telecommunications, and pharmaceuticals.
Currently, around 9,000 Indian companies are registered in Singapore, and over 440 Singaporean companies operate in India, including DBS and United Overseas Bank, along with government organizations such as Enterprise Singapore and the Singapore Tourism Board.
Indian community in Singapore
According to the Singapore Census of Population 2020, people of Indian origin make up 9% of Singapore’s 4.04 million residents. The country also hosts around 1.64 million foreign nationals, including Indian citizens in IT, financial services, construction, and maritime sectors. Singapore has the highest concentration of IIT and IIM alumni outside India. Tamil is one of four official languages, and Hindi, Gujarati, Urdu, Bengali, and Punjabi are also taught in schools.
Notably, Mr. Piyush Gupta, CEO of DBS Bank Singapore, was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman in 2023, and Mr. Atul Temurnikar, Chairman of Global Schools Foundation, Singapore, received the award in 2025. The award is the highest honour conferred by the Government of India on Non-Resident Indians or Persons of Indian Origin, recognizing their contributions in various fields and to the Indian diaspora globally.
Wong’s visit is expected to reinforce India-Singapore partnership and chart new directions for trade, investment, technology, and people-to-people ties.
