| Lim Hwee Hua | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC Marine Parade GRC (1996-2006) |
|
| In office 23 December 1996 – 7 May 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | New seat creation |
| Succeeded by | Sylvia Lim |
| Majority | 16,225 (12.2%) |
| Minister in Prime Minister's Office | |
| In office 12 August 2004 – 21 May 2011 |
|
| Succeeded by | S. Iswaran |
| Second Minister for Finance | |
| In office 12 August 2004 – 21 May 2011 |
|
| Succeeded by | Abolished |
| Second Minister for Transport | |
| In office 12 August 2004 – 21 May 2011 |
|
| Succeeded by | Abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 February 1959 |
| Nationality | Singaporean |
| Political party | People's Action Party |
| Spouse(s) | Andy Lim |
| Alma mater | Cambridge University, UCLA |
Lim Hwee Hua (Chinese: 林惠华; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Lîm Hūi-hôa, born 26 February 1959) is a former politician from Singapore. A member of the country's governing People's Action Party (PAP), she became the first woman to serve in Singapore's Cabinet when she was made a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office in 2009. She also concurrently served as the Second Minister for Finance and Second Minister for Transport.[1] However she lost her seat in Parliament at the 2011 general election when she was part of the PAP team which was defeated by the Workers' Party in the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC), following which she announced that she was retiring from politics.
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Lim began her career as an Administrative Officer in the Ministries of Finance, Education and Law. In 1989, she joined Swiss Bank Corporation as an investment analyst and moved on to Jardine Fleming in 1992, where she served as Head of Research and Director of Business Development. In 2000, she joined Temasek Holdings first Managing Director of Corporate Stewardship and later, Managing Director of Strategic Relations.
Lim was elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Marine Parade GRC at both 1997 general election and the 2001 general election. Between April 2002 and August 2004, she was the Deputy Speaker of Parliament and Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee. Lim was appointed the Minister of State for Finance and Transport on 12 August 2004.
At the 2006 general election, Lim contested in Aljunied GRC and was elected along with her fellow PAP members George Yeo, Cynthia Phua, Yeo Guat Kwang and Zainul Abidin Bin Mohamed Rasheed. She was promoted to Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport on 1 April 2008.
On 1 April 2009, Lim become the first woman to serve in Singapore's Cabinet when she was made a Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, Second Minister for Finance and Second Minister for Transport.[2]
Between 2002 and 2011, Lim was a member of the Central Executive Committee of the PAP, and the Chairman of the party's Women's Wing. She was inducted into the Singapore Council of Women's Organisation (SCWO) Hall of Fame on 31 March 2010, and she received the Her World Woman of the Year Award on 23 April 2010.[3]
Lim contested the 2011 general election in Aljunied GRC, but her team (led by Foreign Minister George Yeo) was defeated by the team fielded by the Workers' Party (led by the party's Secretary-General, Low Thia Khiang). Lim was therefore unable to continue serving in the Cabinet. She subsequently stepped down from the Central Executive Committee of the PAP,[4] and announced that she was retiring from politics and would not be contesting the next general election.
In July 2011, Lim was appointed as a non-executive director at Jardine Cycle & Carriage.[5] In October 2011, Lim was appointed a Senior Advisor at the global investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR). [6]
After graduating from Raffles Institution, Lim was awarded an Overseas Merit Scholarship to study in the United Kingdom at Cambridge University, where she completed a degree in Mathematics & Engineering in 1981. She then obtained a Master of Business Administration degree, majoring in Finance, from the Anderson School of Management, at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1989.[7]
Lim is married to Andy Lim, a partner and founder of Tembusu Partners, a private equity firm. The couple have one son and two daughters.[7]