Speech by Mr Baey Yam Keng, Minister of State for Transport and Culture, Community and Youth, at the Youth@SMW Event at Singapore Maritime Week 2026

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

1.           Very good morning to all of you. It is great to be back here for the fourth edition of Youth@SMW.

2.           This year’s Youth@SMW theme “Future-proofing Careers: Mindsets & Skills for the Maritime Workforce” places the spotlight on how Maritime Singapore is building a workforce that is staying ahead of change.

3.           Shaped by digitalisation and decarbonisation, the sector is transforming quickly. In the possibly not-too-distant future, we may see autonomous ships, powered by cleaner fuels and guided by advanced systems, docking at ports where unmanned cranes and vehicles move in seamless coordination. What does this future hold for youths like yourselves?

Maritime: The Industry That Moves the World

4.           Let me start by explaining why maritime matters. Around 80% of global trade moves by sea – that includes the energy that powers our homes, the food on our tables, the clothes that we wear, and a lot of things that we use. The recent Middle East crisis is an acute reminder that when shipping routes are disrupted, the impact is global.

5.           Singapore plays a central role in keeping this system moving. We are the world’s busiest container transshipment hub and handled more than 44 million twenty-foot equivalent units last year. If you lined up these containers from end to end, they would circle around the Earth nearly 7 times. Despite not producing any oil, we are the world's largest bunkering hub, supplying over a sixth of the fuel used by global shipping last year.

6.           Beyond the port, the maritime sector contributes about 6% of our GDP and supports a wide range of jobs across shipping, port operations, finance, law, insurance, engineering and technology. Today, they open the doors to a whole world of opportunities.

Two Forces Reshaping the Maritime Sector

7.           Two major forces are reshaping the maritime sector, and in turn, they expand the opportunities available for youths like you.

8.           First, digitalisation. Digitalisation is not new. But the pace at which new technologies emerge and disrupt the way we live, work and play is accelerating. Across the sector, these new technologies are improving safety, efficiency and productivity.

9.           Tuas Port will be the world's largest fully automated container terminal when completed — a symbol of where Singapore is heading. We are also investing heavily in smart ships, intelligent port services and autonomous port operations, powered by real-time data and AI.

10.        Some of you are already exploring this space. Take twin brothers Tz Yuan and Tz Lung, our MaritimeONE Scholars studying mechanical engineering at NTU. Drawn to the intersection of maritime engineering and automation, they now serve as team leads in NTU's Autonomous Vehicles team and are helping to lead their team towards RobotX 2026 — a global competition focused on developing autonomous maritime systems to carry out complex tasks at sea.

11.        Second, decarbonisation. The recent geopolitical uncertainties remind us that decarbonisation is not a trade-off, but an imperative for energy security and resilience. For shipping, this means adopting cleaner fuels like methanol and ammonia, and developing more energy-efficient vessel designs. Singapore has made significant contributions in this area and young talent is stepping up here too. Maritime Singapore Youth Ambassador, Katiravan Suparmaniam, a junior engineer at Berge Bulk, is supporting his company’s sustainability goals by contributing to initiatives that enhance vessel efficiency and advance decarbonisation efforts. At just 28 years old, he is proof that you can make a meaningful contribution even at an early stage of your career.

Building Pathways for You

12.        The twin forces of decarbonisation and digitalisation have introduced dynamic and diverse career pathways that did not exist in the sector just a decade ago. This means that maritime careers today are not just for those with a maritime background. According to the Maritime Census conducted last year, nearly two-thirds of fresh graduates who joined the sea transport sector in 2024 held non-maritime related degrees.

13.        We are partnering industry and educational institutions to support all who are interested in exploring a maritime career at every stage.

14.        For students, there are many entry points. Through partners like the Singapore Maritime Foundation or SMF, you can access internships for early exposure to the sector. In 2025, SMF worked with more than 80 companies to offer close to 170 corporate, commercial, operations, and technical internship positions.

15.        Given the external-oriented nature of the sector, international experience is also important. MPA offers the Global Internship Award, giving students internship opportunities with leading maritime companies in Australia, China, Europe, and other countries. In 2025, 42 students benefited from this programme.

16.        Besides internships, there are opportunities for student exchanges and study visits with leading overseas maritime universities. I am pleased to announce that MPA has renewed its MOU with Shanghai Maritime University for a second term enabling students to benefit from cross-institutional learning between Singapore and Shanghai.

17.        We also provide support through scholarships. Sixty MaritimeONE Scholarships were awarded in 2025 to students from both maritime and non-maritime disciplines. Scholars last year came from diverse fields such as engineering, physics and mathematical sciences, data science, and supply chain management, reflecting the transformation of the industry. The scholarships are sponsored by companies across the industry, and we welcome the new sponsoring companies this year including Bureau Veritas, and PaxOcean and POSH from the Kuok Maritime Group.

18.        We are also investing at the postgraduate level to develop deep expertise to drive innovation and application. I am pleased to announce that the Singapore Institute of Technology is launching the Maritime Engineering Doctoral Training Centre. The Centre will support industrial doctorate and master's projects tackling real-world challenges in digitalisation and decarbonisation. SIT will serve as the degree-awarding institution, with industry partners co-developing solutions alongside researchers. I am encouraged that seven companies have already pledged their support and will be enrolling their staff for training at the Centre.

Make the Most of Today

19.        Some of these opportunities and roles may sound new to you. The Talent Zone in the EXPO Exhibition Hall, featuring our Institutes of Higher Learning such as NUS and NTU, and industry partners such as SMF and PSA Singapore, will showcase the many pathways to kickstart a maritime career. I encourage you to visit the booths and explore where your interests and skills may take you.

20.        Later, I will be joining the Networking Brunch and visiting the Talent Pavilion later, and I hope to talk to you, hear from you, and share with you on how we can work together to build the industry. For your learning journeys this afternoon, some of you may be visiting the PSA Innovation Centre to learn more about cutting-edge technologies or meet shipping companies to see how they manage their operations are managed.

21.        When you speak to industry leaders and representatives today, I encourage you to ask them questions: What problems are they trying to solve today? What skills do they wish they had developed earlier? And what new technologies are changing the way they work? I am sure their answers, and the conversations will intrigue you, and most importantly inspire you, to further your journey in the maritime.

Conclusion

22.        Let me end with this. Maritime is a sector that is often overlooked and may not come to mind immediately for youths. But it is one of the most global, dynamic, and meaningful sectors. Think of this: Maritime connects nations, sustains economies, and is now at the forefront of some of the most exciting technological and sustainability challenges of our time. If you have an interest in the sector, no matter how slight or initial your interest is, we are committed to supporting you at every stage – from your first step in, to building deep expertise over time. As you learn more about the industry today, I hope you will see that there is a place for you.

23.        Thank you and wishing you a fruitful day ahead.