On 12 October 2026, the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry (“METI“) announced that Singapore and Brunei Darussalam (“Brunei“) had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU“) on Supply Chain Resilience that same day.
The MOU strengthens cooperation between the two countries on safeguarding resilient supply chains. It also seeks to ensure that essential goods continue to flow between them during times of crisis.
The MOU also reaffirms both countries’ commitments under the Upgraded ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (“ATIGA“). It does this by giving greater clarity on the essential goods covered between them. These include food, crude oil, fuel products, medical supplies, and other mutually agreed goods.
For businesses in Brunei and Singapore, the MOU is a timely reminder that supply chain resilience is a contractual and regulatory issue as much as a commercial one.
In May 2025, as part of our “Borneo Conversations” seminar series, the Brunei Business Unit at Rajah & Tann Asia held a client seminar in Bandar Seri Begawan titled “Optimising Logistics & Supply Chains in Energy-Driven Economies: Challenges, Compliance & Competition“. The seminar canvassed the legal issues and risks around supply chains, as part of our wider effort to engage with the legal and business communities in Brunei on issues that matter to them. The sessions looked at mastering supply chain contracts, covering: (i) external risks, such as tariffs, sanctions, political instability, pandemics, and climate change; and (ii) contract tools that help parties to manage disruption, such as force majeure, hardship, material adverse change, and change management clauses. A further session looked at competition, trade sanctions and market access, discussing how free trade agreements such as ATIGA can support market access and supply chain planning. The MOU’s focus on essential goods under ATIGA bears directly on these themes.
Click on the following link for more information:
- METI Press Release titled “Singapore And Brunei Advance Resilient Supply Chains And New Growth Opportunities At The 2nd Singapore-Brunei Joint Committee Ministerial Meeting” (available on the METI website at www.meti.gov.sg)
If you have any queries on the above, please reach out to our team set out on this page.
For regional Trade and Customs matters, please see Rajah & Tann Asia’s Trade & Customs Practice for more information.
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