Rising to challenges
The Covid-19 pandemic was the most trying period for Singapore and Johor relations.

However, it also served as an awakening for the two governments to recognise how interconnected and dependent they were, said a top Singaporean diplomat.

Singapore’s outgoing Consul-General in Johor Baru Jeevan Singh, who was posted to Johor just months before the borders were shut during the pandemic in March 2020, said both sides were badly affected at the economic and people level.

“When I first arrived in December 2019, I never imagined the dark days that were to come a few months later,” he said at his farewell event attended by about 300 people in Johor Baru.

Jeevan said authorities from both sides rose to the challenge during the pandemic, especially in helping to reunite families who were separated.

Both sides found ways to ensure the continuity of supply chains to enable the delivery of essential goods, shared vaccines and medical supplies as well as took care of workers who were stuck on both sides of the Causeway, he said.

“Together, we survived and pulled through,” he added.

Jeevan noted that in two years, the city’s skyline would see more changes with the launch of the Rapid Transit System (RTS) and many more residential and commercial developments being built around it.

Jeevan said Johor and Singapore were also in talks about a special economic zone, an agreement for which was slated to be signed during a leaders’ retreat later this year.

“I am proud that my team and I were able to play a small part in supporting these initiatives and laying the foundation for a stronger relationship between Singapore and Johor,” he said.

Jeevan said Ng Kuan Khai would be the next Consul-General in Johor Baru and expressed confidence that his successor was the right person for the role.

Jeevan, who served four-and-a-half years in Johor Baru, said he would not have been able to carry out his duties without the support of the Johor royal family, the Johor state government, the business community, non-governmental organisations and the people of Johor.

He also expressed appreciation to the people in Johor who showed care for him and his family when the border closed for two years.
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Pandemic a reminder how dependent, interconnected Johor and Singapore are, says outgoing consul-general.