Teo Eng Dih, currently Deputy Secretary (Policy) of Singapore’s Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) will take over as Chief Executive of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) from 5 September 2022.
As Deputy Secretary (Policy) of MINDEF, Teo is responsible for MINDEF’s defence policy and diplomacy, strategic and public communications, and Total Defence. He oversaw the expansion of defence cooperation with international partners and strengthening of collaborations at the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting (ADMM) platform. He also enhanced MINDEF’s public engagement initiatives, including revamping the Singapore Discovery Centre. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Teo helped to coordinate MINDEF’s efforts to support the national fight against COVID-19.
Prior to MINDEF, Teo was Special Assistant to then-Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean and had served in various government agencies in the areas of Policy and Planning, Manpower, Strategy, Technology, Climate Change, Enterprise Services and International Trade. He obtained a Master in Chemical Engineering First Class Honours from Imperial College of Science and Technology and a Master in Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School.
He will take over from Quah Ley Hoon who assumed the position on 1 January 2019. Quah played a pivotal role in furthering MPA’s vision as a leading maritime agency driving Singapore’s global maritime aspirations. She led MPA to complete the Tuas Port Phase 1 reclamation in 2021, which was a significant milestone in the development of Singapore’s next-generation port and in sustaining the Port of Singapore’s competitiveness and connectivity to the world.
She was also instrumental in leading MPA to navigate the disruptions caused by COVID-19, while pressing on with the development and transformation of Singapore’s international maritime centre and global hub port.
She was a strong proponent for the transformation of the maritime industry, notably in pushing forward the decarbonisation and digitalisation agenda. To support and accelerate maritime decarbonisation, Quah worked with the Singapore Maritime Foundation to establish the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) with private sector partners in August 2021. In March 2022, the MPA launched the Maritime Singapore Decarbonisation Blueprint which charts ambitious and concrete long-term strategies to support the maritime industry’s decarbonisation.
