Page 58 - NYAA Annual Report 2024

Visit to Milan, Italy
Before returning to Singapore, the NYAA team visited Milan at the invitation of The Honourable Francesco
Vassallo, Mayor of Bollate in the Lombardy Region and Deputy Mayor of the Metropolitan City of Milan. The
visit aimed to strengthen bilateral relations disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which had paused the
young leaders’ exchange programmes between NYAA and Italy, established in 2001.

The NYAA team held a productive meeting with The Honourable Alessandro Somaschini, a member of the
National Council for Development and Cooperation, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy. Mr Somaschini
expressed enthusiasm for reconnecting with NYAA Singapore to relaunch the young leaders’ exchange
programme in 2025.

During the discussions, the Italian policymakers shared their green city concept, a key policy initiative for Milan.
The ED highlighted the HSBC NYAA Sustainability Initiatives in Singapore, where ITE students collaborated
with SMEs to reduce carbon emissions through a triple-win partnership. The Italian leaders, overseeing over
160,000 SMEs in the Metropolitan City of Milan, were highly impressed and expressed interest in adopting
the initiative.

The ED presented detailed reports on the first and second phases of the HSBC NYAA Sustainability Initiatives
and shared links to two video documentaries for further insights. The visit reinforced mutual interests and laid
the groundwork for future collaborations, making it a fruitful and meaningful engagement.

HSBC Chairman’s Board Dinner
The ED was honoured to attend a private dinner hosted by Sir Mark Tucker, Group Chairman of HSBC,
alongside his Board Members from London. The event at the Pyramid Club was graced by prominent leaders,
including Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, Lim Boon Heng (Chairman of Temasek Holdings), and Peter
Seah (Chairman of DBS Bank and Singapore Airlines). It was an enjoyable evening marked by meaningful
conversations and camaraderie.

Press Conference in Lima, Peru, to Launch APEC Voices of the Future 2024
The Former Vice-President of Peru and APEC 2024 Ambassador hosted a highly successful press conference
in Lima yesterday to launch the APEC Voices of the Future 2024. As Chair of APEC Voices of the Future, the
NYAA ED addressed the meeting via video at the request of the Peruvian government, sharing insights and
the importance of the initiative.

The NYAA Deputy ED received numerous inquiries from the 21 APEC economies, with many requesting
additional participant slots. Addressing this demand will be a key task for the APEC Voices Secretariat in
September 2024.

Second Spanish-Speaking Nations Week
The Executive Director and Deputy Executive Director joined Mr Shawn Huang, Senior Parliamentary Secretary
for Education and Finance, and a group of ambassadors from Spanish-speaking nations to celebrate the
Second Spanish Week in Singapore. They were pleased to meet the new Ambassador of Chile, H.E. Tamara
Villanueva, and the new Ambassador of Panama, H.E. Enrique Villegas G.

Each participating nation showcased a performance by a young citizen, reflecting remarkable talent and
cultural pride. The Executive Director also reconnected with H.E. Victor Hugo Rojas Gonzalez, Ambassador of
Costa Rica to Singapore, a long-time friend. The Executive Director has known the former President of Costa
Rica and her daughter, Christiana Figueres, former Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Costa Rica continues to serve as a valuable training ground for
NYAA’s young environmentalists in the area of climate change mitigation. Such international connections
remain vital to NYAA’s global outreach and development.

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