Fight global poverty through open trade and investments: PM Wong

Skills training also key to take on new job opportunities, he tells G-20 leaders

- Linette Lai

Countries can fight poverty by sustaining economic growth through open trade and investments, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Nov 18.

Growth and trade remain one of the best ways to create jobs, he told Group of 20 (G-20) leaders at a discussion on poverty and hunger at the G-20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

"Jobs, in turn, are the most direct way to reduce poverty," he said, adding that this is because they provide a path to dignity, stability and self-reliance.

This is why efforts to reform and strengthen the World Trade Organisation are so important, PM Wong said.