Debated in Parliament on 3 Oct 2022.
Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui asked the Minister for Trade and Industry in the past three years (a) what is the number of Enterprise Development Grant (EDG) and Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) applications (i) received and (ii) subsequently approved and disbursed respectively; and (b) how do these compare to the annual budget set aside for EDG and PSG respectively.
The Enterprise Development Grant (EDG), helps Singapore businesses build capabilities, innovate and internationalise. From Financial Year (FY) 2019 to 2021, Enterprise Singapore received over 20,400 EDG applications. Approximately 85% of complete submissions were approved. Many enterprises that receive the EDG implement transformation projects over a few years. About 80% of the EDG projects were completed and received the grant within three years.
The Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG), supports businesses in their adoption of pre-scoped digital solutions, equipment and consultancy services. Between FY2019 and FY2021, over 116,100 PSG applications were received. Nearly 95% of complete submissions were approved. The time taken to implement PSG solutions tends to be shorter compared to EDG. Close to 80% of the approved projects were completed and received the funds within 13 months.
It is a key priority of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) and Enterprise Singapore to help companies upgrade their capabilities and become more competitive. No application has been turned away due to budgetary constraints. In fact, we have provided more support when needed. For example, to encourage businesses to continue to digitalise, restructure and transform during the pandemic, we raised the maximum support levels for EDG and PSG to 90% and 80% respectively, up from 70% before COVID-19. As a result, the demand for EDG and PSG rose and exceeded pre-pandemic levels. The Government topped up funding for these schemes during the 2020 Resilience Budget and October 2020 Ministerial Statement.
As Singapore emerges from the pandemic, we encourage more companies to tap the suite of enterprise development schemes available to strengthen their capabilities and seize new growth opportunities.
PAPERCUTS