Singapore Industrial Promotion Board is formed

On 21 March 1957, the Singapore Industrial Promotion Board was instituted as a statutory board following the enactment of the Singapore Industrial Promotion Board Ordinance. The main task of the board was to promote and develop the various industries in the Colony of Singapore.^[1]

In 1954, a team of experts from the World Bank was invited by the local authorities to assess the economic positions of Malaya and Singapore.^[2] One of the proposals made by the panel of experts was the setting up of an industrial promotion board to encourage the development of industries and manufacturing in Singapore. Acting on this proposal, then Minister of Commerce and Industry, J. M. Jumabhoy, introduced the Singapore Industrial Promotion Board Bill in the Legislative Assembly on 9 January 1957.^[3]

The main objective of the board, which comprised five members, was to drive the industrial and economic development of Singapore. This was to be accomplished through the following measures: financing, managing or establishing new industrial ventures; developing programmes for improved organisation and efficiency, including modernisation of operations; and research on the industrial potential of the colony.^[4]

The board was furnished with a revolving fund of $1 million to provide local companies, especially small enterprises, with financial assistance for undertakings such as product improvements, modernisation of plants and purchase of equipment for the expansion of production.^[5]

However, the effectiveness of the board was hindered by its small capital fund and the inability to borrow from international markets. When its first chairman David Lee resigned in October 1958, he proposed that the board be replaced by a $10-million Industrial Development and Finance Corporation with the power to borrow money from international organisations.^[6]

To this end, the Economic Development Board (EDB) was established in 1961 and the functions of the Industrial Promotion Board were taken over by the new entity.^[7]

References
1. Singapore. Industrial Promotion Board. (1958). Report 1957/58 (p. 1). Singapore: Govt. Print. Off. Call no.: RCLOS 338.095951 SIN; Singapore. Supplement to the Laws of the Colony of Singapore. (1957). Singapore Industrial Promotion Board Ordinance 1957 (Ord. 4 of 1957) (pp. 1–6). Singapore: Govt. Printing Office. Call no.: RCLOS 348.5957 SIN-[HWE].
2. They will help us to plan for the future. (1954, January 13). The Straits Times, p. 2. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
3. Singapore. Legislative Assembly. Debates: Official Report. (1957, January 9). Second Reading of the Singapore Industrial Promotion Bill (Vol. 3, cols. 1233–1249). Retrieved August 6, 2013, from Parliament of Singapore website: http://sprs.parl.gov.sg/search/topic.jsp?currentTopicID=00048058-ZZ&currentPubID=00068900-ZZ&topicKey=00068900-ZZ.00048058-ZZ_1%2Bid034_19570109_S0003_T00131-bill%2B
4. Report 1957/58, 1958, p. 2.
5. Report 1957/58, 1958, p. 3.
6. Ex-chairman: End industry board. (1958, November 21). The Straits Times, p. 9. Retrieved August 13, 2013, from NewspaperSG; Call for $10 million development, finance corp. (1958, September 25). The Singapore Free Press, p. 7. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
7. Singapore. Legislative Assembly. Debates: Official Report. (1961, May 24). Second Reading of the Economic Development Board Bill (Vol. 14, cols. 1516–1545). Retrieved August 6, 2013, from Parliament of Singapore website: http://sprs.parl.gov.sg/search/report.jsp?currentPubID=00069019-ZZ