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Singapore Smart Nation helps People with Disabilities

Singapore Smart Nation helps People with Disabilities

As part of the Smart Nation push, Singapore will aim to connect all of its citizens to smart technology. Through this vision, programs will seek inclusivity through specialized programs for those who are at a disadvantage. From this vision, many of its initiatives will provide benefits to the people with disabilities.

The government has already identified specific programs oriented to assist these groups of people. Programs are working to come up with technology solutions to improve daily lives, education, career options and socialization for persons with disabilities.

One of the first landmark Smart Nation programs to support persons with disabilities was carried out through the first pan-disability IT training centre. It was opened in 2008 and named the Infocomm Accessibility Centre (IAC). It was first conceptualized in the iN2015 Masterplan by Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) to provide IT training and bridge the gap for persons with disabilities. The IAC successfully completed its 5-year run under funding from the IDA, training 1,500 individuals.

Assistive Technology (AT) has been made available through the Assistive Technology Fund and the Special Assistance Fund. The Ministry for Social and Family Development reinstated this fund.

Students with special needs are provided aid through funding AT devices and support services through the Ministry of Education. Persons may also request for the purchase of devices from Special Education Needs Fund.

The Society for the Physically Disabled (SPD) set up a Specialised Assistive Technology Centre, helping them be integrated into the technology forward nation. SPD also provides AT consultation, assessment, training and loans to persons with disabilities.

In regards to how technology has helped elders and persons with disabilities, Mr. Abhimanyau Pal, executive director of SPD, recently said, “The advancement of technology has made a huge impact in enhancing the lives of people with disabilities. The availability of AT has provided solutions that help them overcome the limitations of their disabilities and participate more meaningfully in activities at home, in school, at work and the community in general. For instance, persons with visual impairment could stay updated on the happenings around the world by using a screen reader software to read out information from the Internet, and individuals with speech impairment could communicate with others using speaking applications installed in tablets.”

While speaking to the Singaporean parliament on July 14, Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan-Jin reemphasized that technology could be an important enabler for persons with disabilities. He said it is key to bring in the private sector who own and operate these technologies. Then the government may “bridge the digital divide” and improve the lives of all Singaporeans.

It was declared by Mr Tan that, in 2014, MSF devised a $30 million Tote Board-Enabling Lives Initiative grant scheme. This will help persons with disabilities in embracing technology that will help them live independently. For a months time, proposals will be accepted as to how to allocate this funding through various programs to support persons with disabilities.

Mr. Tan calls on the public and commercial sector to partner on ideas on initiatives to improve Smart Nation initiatives specific to these groups. Expanding on remarks made by a Parliament visitor with disabilities, Mr Tan agreed that there should be a roadmap created to implement the proposed ideas to further assure the public.

Moving forward, Singapore government must continue to add IT services that cater to these populations. This will bring the community together in its Smart Nation vision.

PARTNER

Qlik’s vision is a data-literate world, where everyone can use data and analytics to improve decision-making and solve their most challenging problems. A private company, Qlik offers real-time data integration and analytics solutions, powered by Qlik Cloud, to close the gaps between data, insights and action. By transforming data into Active Intelligence, businesses can drive better decisions, improve revenue and profitability, and optimize customer relationships. Qlik serves more than 38,000 active customers in over 100 countries.

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CTC Global Singapore, a premier end-to-end IT solutions provider, is a fully owned subsidiary of ITOCHU Techno-Solutions Corporation (CTC) and ITOCHU Corporation.

Since 1972, CTC has established itself as one of the country’s top IT solutions providers. With 50 years of experience, headed by an experienced management team and staffed by over 200 qualified IT professionals, we support organizations with integrated IT solutions expertise in Autonomous IT, Cyber Security, Digital Transformation, Enterprise Cloud Infrastructure, Workplace Modernization and Professional Services.

Well-known for our strengths in system integration and consultation, CTC Global proves to be the preferred IT outsourcing destination for organizations all over Singapore today.

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Planview has one mission: to build the future of connected work. Our solutions enable organizations to connect the business from ideas to impact, empowering companies to accelerate the achievement of what matters most. Planview’s full spectrum of Portfolio Management and Work Management solutions creates an organizational focus on the strategic outcomes that matter and empowers teams to deliver their best work, no matter how they work. The comprehensive Planview platform and enterprise success model enables customers to deliver innovative, competitive products, services, and customer experiences. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, with locations around the world, Planview has more than 1,300 employees supporting 4,500 customers and 2.6 million users worldwide. For more information, visit www.planview.com.

SUPPORTING ORGANISATION

SIRIM is a premier industrial research and technology organisation in Malaysia, wholly-owned by the Minister​ of Finance Incorporated. With over forty years of experience and expertise, SIRIM is mandated as the machinery for research and technology development, and the national champion of quality. SIRIM has always played a major role in the development of the country’s private sector. By tapping into our expertise and knowledge base, we focus on developing new technologies and improvements in the manufacturing, technology and services sectors. We nurture Small Medium Enterprises (SME) growth with solutions for technology penetration and upgrading, making it an ideal technology partner for SMEs.

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HashiCorp provides infrastructure automation software for multi-cloud environments, enabling enterprises to unlock a common cloud operating model to provision, secure, connect, and run any application on any infrastructure. HashiCorp tools allow organizations to deliver applications faster by helping enterprises transition from manual processes and ITIL practices to self-service automation and DevOps practices. 

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IBM is a leading global hybrid cloud and AI, and business services provider. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Nearly 3,000 government and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and business services deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s legendary commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service.

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