Statistics on Local SMEs Contributing to Defence Sector and Share of Defence Budget Benefiting Them During Current Economic Slowdown

Mr Mark Chay asked the Minister for Defence (a) how many local SMEs currently contribute to the defence sector; (b) how many people do they employ; and (c) how much of this year's defence budget will benefit such local companies during the economic slowdown facing Singapore and the world as a whole.

Dr Ng Eng Hen: MINDEF and the SAF works with a wide range of local companies, including SMEs, to support our requirements. Each year, an average of about $6 billion of our expenditure is paid out to local companies that provide us a variety of products and services. These include about 2,000 local SMEs, each with up to 200 employees, directly contracted by us. If we include local SME sub-contractors, for which we do not have detailed figures, the total number would be higher.