Growing Singapore-Middle East ties open doors for Singaporeans abroad

Enhancements to the market readiness assistance grant, announced at Budget 2026, will raise support for SMEs from 50 per cent to up to 70 per cent of eligible costs from Apr 1, capped at S$100,000 per company per new market.

“With the market readiness assistant grant, we hope to get more companies to go overseas, and as they go overseas, they will likely generate jobs for Singaporeans in supply chain coordination, in business development and in regional operations,” said SBF CEO Kok Ping Soon.

While it is difficult to put a firm number on how many roles may be created, Mr Kok noted that SBF facilitated about 200 overseas projects last year.

“Each of these companies typically needs about two to three Singaporeans for a start to explore some of these opportunities,” he added.

But Mr Kok stressed that overseas expansion is not just about placing Singaporeans abroad – it is about helping companies grow their international operations in ways that ultimately create more roles back home.