August 15, 2022

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An in-depth look at GovTech’s new common hosting platform for Singapore Government websites

An in-depth look at GovTech’s new common hosting platform for Singapore Government websites
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Above photo: Mr. Tan Eng Pheng, Senior Director, Clusters Group at GovTech speaking at the AWS Public Sector Summit

Websites are often the first point of contact between citizens and government. They deliver information and provide a convenient platform for transactions. The Singapore Government has over 500 of them.

Earlier this year, PM Lee Hsien Loong said, “There are big things which we need to do and many small things which we ought to do better. Every time I go on to a Government website, if for some reason I have to transact a service and I cannot find the link, I tell them, please put this link in.”

To support the government agencies in improving the digital shopfront and the user experience, the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech) introduced a common hosting platform for government websites, called the Content Websites Platform (CWP), in  October2016.

The CWP is a common secured environment based on a resilient, robust and controlled platform which provides a suite of standardised software for hosting content-based websites. It enables unclassified government websites to be centrally managed and operated on public cloud, bringing the benefits of convenience, greater security, optimisation of resources, faster deployment speed and cost savings through economies of scale.

The idea behind CWP is to improve the government’s digital shopfront experience and help organisations build websites within significantly reduced timeframes. CWP accomplishes that by leveraging public cloud technology and putting together a stack of services, around not just hosting, but also security and operations management.

On October 4, at the inaugural AWS Public Sector Summit, Mr. Tan Eng Pheng, Senior Director, Clusters Group at GovTech spoke about the CWP, outlining its development, adoption and benefits.

The project started at erstwhile Infocomm Development Authority or IDA and moved on to GovTech (IDA and the Media Development Authority were re-structured to form GovTech and the Infocomm Media Development Authority last year). The procurement and development process took around 15 months.

Traditionally, each agency built everything from the ground up. In the data centre approach, they were responsible for the everything, from storage through servers, virtualisation, operating system (O/S), middleware and runtime to services and the website itself.

In the private cloud approach, parts of the stack are managed for the agency but the agency is still responsible for at least half the stack.

With the CWP, the agencies only have to manage their own websites and they can focus on delivering the best possible user experience. Everything else is handled for them by GovTech.

Hosting environment

CWP is hosted in the Public Cloud, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and G-Cloud, IM8[1] Compliant Hosting Environment, for the ‘unclassified’ front-end website and ‘restricted’ form services respectively.

Above image: Public Cloud and IM8 Compliant Hosting Environment Hosting Illustration/ Credit: GovTech 

CWP offers two categories of services, Base Services and Catalogue Buy Services.  Base Services include virtual hosting environment services (AWS) and Form services (G-Cloud or Government Cloud) and bundled security infrastructure services; and security management services.

Agencies can choose from 3 website tiers for the virtual hosting environment services: Small (Website page views of 50,000 per day and website data transfer of 5GB), Medium (Website page views of 200,000 per day and website data transfer of 20GB), and Large (Website page views of 800,000 per day and website data transfer of 5GB).

There are similar categories for Form Services with small, medium and large for form traffic of 200, 400 and 800 per day respectively.

Integrated, centrally-managed security

Mr. Tan said, “In this heightened cyber risk landscape, security probably takes more effort than the website itself.” CWP centrally manages the security protection of all hosted websites, through a range of integrated security infrastructure and management services.

At the perimeter, measures comprise: 1) CyberWatch Centre, which captures and processes security alerts; 2) Content Delivery Network (CDN) for caching and distributing load; 3) Web application firewall to filter malicious web traffic; and 4) Defacement monitoring, which monitors webpages against unauthorised changes.

There is another layer of security which includes Virtual Private Cloud to protect cloud resources; End Point Protection against viruses and malware; Network Intrusion Protection System to examine network traffic flows and block exploits; Patch Management for monitoring and administering timely software patches, fixes and updates; and Cert Management for managing SSL/ TSL[2] certificates.

In addition, vulnerability assessment is conducted annually for application software/ customer website and on a quarterly basis for the Operating system, Database management system and the Network infrastructure. Both automatic and manual Penetration Testing is done once a year.

All of this is integrated as part of the basic services package.  The agencies don’t have to go around shopping to find security solutions. In addition, CWP leverages multiple availability zones[3] of AWS in Singapore, adding another layer of resiliency.

Content Publishing Services

This falls under the ‘Catalogue Buy Services’. (Catalogue Buy also includes a range of miscellaneous services, such as additional website traffic, form traffic, data storage; invoice options; urgent service requests; and performance test tools.)

CWP provides improved manageability and operational efficiency with five Content Management Systems (CMS) standardised software. Customer may bring their own CMS licenses over to CWP provided the licensing scheme is supported in CWP. Alternatively, customer may procure the CMS licenses in CWP. They can choose to deploy HTML websites where CMSes are not required.

The five supported CMSes are WordPress which is Open Source (with commercial support for plug-ins) and four proprietary CMSes, namely SharePoint, SiteCore, Swiit and Sitefinity.

Mr. Tan explained the selection process for the CMS software, saying, “Unfortunately, we are unable to service all CMSes. As the suite of offerings expands, the management complexity escalates. So, we decided to do the top 5 CMSes, which have the highest utilisation rate in government.”

Simple process for agencies

Agencies developing and deploying websites through CWP follow a simple 4-step process. GovTech has developed self-service portals for Service, Deployment, Security, Utilisation, User management, operations and service desk.

The requester goes on to the Service portal and signs up for an account. Once the account is approved, the requester can subscribe for the tier of service they want. After provisioning for the staging and production environment, the developer can start deploying their codes through the Deployment portal and then conduct user testing.

This is followed by booking and running security tests through the Security portal. Once vulnerability and penetration testing is completed, the security findings verified and any loopholes remediated, the agencies can deploy the website and go live.

The result of this process has been a drastic reduction in time taken for developing and deploying websites. It is down from months to weeks or even days. Mr. Tan said that a corporate website for Vital.Org, which provides human resources and finance services to government agencies, went from ‘signup’ on CWP to ‘go live’ in 7 working days.

Two examples of public cloud benefits- auto capacity scaling and security patching

In his presentation, Mr. Tan talked about how CWP leverages a range of useful utilities and services provided by AWS, such as Simple Queue Service, Lambda, CloudWatch and Elastic Load Balancing.

He gave two examples of how public cloud can provide distinct advantages in terms of operations, as well as security. Peak loads for websites can come at inconvenient or unpredictable times. Traditionally, the organisation would buy excess capacity, in case the need arose. But this ‘just in case’ came at a heavy cost. With the cloud infrastructure, the utilisation can be monitored (through CloudWatch) and a threshold set for it. Once the threshold is crossed, a new instance[4] is automatically created. Once connected to the Load Balancer, it goes live immediately. Surges in website traffic are handled with little to no downtime. And this flexibility enables rapid scale-up without having to go through hardware and set-up.

Another issue is security patching.  Each time a vulnerability is revealed, it has to be patched to make sure that it is not exploited. Here, public cloud provides the ability to do the patching offline. A similar instance can be patched, connected to the load balancer and once it is connected, the old unpatched can be discarded.

Previously, for patching, website administrators announced maintenance periods, taking the website offline for x hours and patching it before bringing it back online. There’s almost no downtime now. The patching can be done in minutes instead of hours.

In January 2017, WordPress had a vulnerability that was exploited worldwide. 1.5 million websites were affected. GovTech was able to complete the patching in a total elapsed time of 23 hours. The staging environment was patched in 4 hours, while the production environment was patched in 5 hours. There was no defacement and no downtime.

“The ability to patch very quickly is what separates the vulnerable and the ready. More than 90% of exploits will continue to be these known ones. Everyone knows about it. It’s a matter of who can get to the finishing line faster, the hacker or you,” Mr. Tan said.

Future plans

The CWP is already proving to be a transformative platform. It is allowing agencies to achieve cost and time savings and transparency. They no longer need to deal with multiple vendors. Moreover, Mr. Tan mentioned in post-presentation panel, that many government agencies are taking the opportunity of the migration to re-design the website and rewrite the content.

Around 70% of government websites, around 380, have migrated to the CWP. The number is expected to increase to 400 by the end of the year.

Going forward, GovTech wants to provide services to mobile platform through APIs. For instance, GovTech is working with the Ministry of Education (MoE) for native mobile apps which will consume content hosted on CWP through APIs (Application Programming Interfaces).

GovTech has also developed an Outlook and mobile calendar synchronisation solution for public servants using CWP.

The other part of the plan is exploring the possibility of pay-as-you-use Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions, in areas like learning management and mass communication (marketing emails) on subscription basis in the future.

[1]The Instruction Manual for ICT or IM8 aims to enhance the overall effectiveness of ICT in the public sector, and establish minimum standards leading to a networked government.

[2] Transport Layer Security (TLS) and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) are cryptographic protocols that provide encryption and authentication between applications where data travels over an insecure network such as the Internet.

[3]AWS locations are composed of regions and Availability Zones. Each region is a separate geographic area. Each region has multiple, isolated locations known as Availability Zones. Availability Zones in a region are connected through low-latency links. If instances are distributed across multiple Availability Zones and one instance fails, an instance in another Availability Zone can handle requests.

[4] An instance refers to a virtual server for running applications.

India Builds Cloud Computing Capacity

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The National e-Governance Division (NeGD), under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) recently organised the first batch of a capacity-building programme for cloud computing. The initiative targets government officials from central line ministries, state/union territory departments, mission mode project officers, e-governance project heads, and state e-mission teams.

According to a press release, the two-day programme was held at the Haryana Institute of Public Administration. The initiative was designed to enhance capabilities within the government at the central and state levels by ensuring the availability of adequate knowledge and appropriate competencies and skill sets to optimally utilise the benefits of cloud computing in e-governance practices.

Projects with cloud computing offer integration management with automated problem resolution. The technology manages security end-to-end and helps budget based on actual usage of data. At a national level, cloud architectures enable the government to simultaneously utilise resources optimally and accelerate the delivery of e-services. Project Meghraj, for instance, is a government initiative that fast-tracks the delivery of e-services in the country and optimises the information and communications technology (ICT) spending of the government.

The workshop brought together experts from the industry, academia, and government to discuss key domain issues such as cloud fundamentals, India’s cloud journey, cloud building blocks, the procurement of cloud services, and regulatory and policy framework for cloud. Participants talked about challenges associated with cloud implementation and the future of cloud in digital transformation while using engaging presentations on successful cloud use cases.

Session discussions also featured essential training on various components of cloud computing such as custom bidding for cloud services and the establishment of pay-per-use and billing frequency with cloud service providers. Participants explored negotiation instruments for dynamic services under cloud, best practices in cloud procurement, and computing requirements. They also covered guidelines on cloud computing from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and MeitY as well as ITU global standards on cloud computing.

At the event, a NeGD official stated that technology has been leapfrogging over the past two decades, including cloud-based systems, which now drive businesses and touch every aspect of life. Anything that is available via the Internet is being delivered out of a cloud-based application and IT Infrastructure. Within this decade, cloud computing could replace the traditional data centres and emerge as the prominent solution for data analytics and storage, an industry expert noted.

The event was attended by officers from central line ministries and the state governments of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Goa, Mizoram, and Uttarakhand. Capacity-building programmes with the theme of cloud computing will move forward with physical programmes, which will be conducted in the east, west, and south zones of India this year, the press release added.

The large-scale adoption of cloud has the potential to contribute US$ 380 billion to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), creating 14 million direct and indirect jobs by 2026, according to a report by the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM). It stated that a concerted all-around effort could result in the sustained growth of 25%-30% of cloud spending in the next five years to reach US$ 18.5 billion.

Vietnam Approves Smart Rural Development Programme

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The government has approved a national programme for smart rural development. The programme will focus on building new, modern rural areas through digital transformation. It is expected to boost the rural economy, improve rural living standards, and bridge the gap in service quality between rural and urban areas.

The initiative will be implemented in all rural areas across Vietnam by the end of 2025, including extremely disadvantaged communes in ethnic minorities and mountainous and coastal regions. By 2025, the government aims to have at least 90% of central, 80% of district-level, and 60% of communal public documents handled online. And at least 97% of communes should meet the new-style rural criteria on information and telecommunications.

Further, to boost the rural economy, the plan will promote the digital economy. Accordingly, at least 70% of communes will have cooperatives and 70% of districts will have agricultural business models, which will connect the production and distribution of key farming products using digital technology.

Additionally, at least 40% of communes and districts should be able to provide at least one essential public service in healthcare, education, community surveillance, security, environment, and culture. They must collect feedback on people’s satisfaction regarding rural development on a virtual platform. All centrally-run cities and provinces should have at least one trial smart rural commune model in the field, which holds advantages of, for example, economy, rural tourism, environment, and culture. The models will serve as a reference for the development of a new set of criteria for new-style rural building plans for the 2026-2030 period.

The government is also pushing for the digital transformation of urban parts of the country under its smart city initiatives. The overall goal is to accelerate digitisation in urban governance by building an electronic government including features such as digitised transport, energy, and society.

In January, Politburo issued a resolution on the planning, management, and sustainable development of Vietnam’s urban areas by 2030 with a vision until 2045. It is well established that smart cities can be effectively and successfully developed when digital transformation is comprehensively deployed across all areas of a city. Sustainable cities are built on a foundation of robust urban management that employs a host of digital and tech solutions. Simultaneously, both government employees and citizens need to be upskilled and trained.

As OpenGov Asia reported, Vietnam’s digital transformation is based on three pillars: digital governance, digital economy, and digital society, with an average point of 0.3 on a 1.0 grading scale. From a focus perspective, digital government is ranked higher point than both the digital economy and digital society primarily because of the e-government development process. As of June, a total of 59 out of the 63 localities in the country launched programmes on digital transformation, which will be rolled out over the next five years.

Vietnam is in the early stages of applying smart city services. There is still much more to be added in terms of smart urban planning and smart urban construction management. Smart city projects must have a comprehensive approach with the goal of not only solving urgent problems of cities but also striving for long-term socio-economic development.

How Seniors Cope with Technology in Singapore

Image credits: singaporetech.edu.sg
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Singapore is well-known for incorporating science and technology into its economic and social fabric. The nation is typically glad to accept the technological revolution that they are now synonymous with, from planned self-driving buses to Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS).

However, the country must cope with the issue of an ageing population, a cohort that may not be as digitally savvy as its younger counterparts. With this, the Smart Nation initiatives in Singapore include those that have used technology to address healthcare concerns.

As part of their Year 3-course work, a group of students tagged as SITizens from the SIT-University of Glasgow Nursing programme recently collaborated on an applied research project to discover how older Singaporeans are coping with the digital urge.

The group conducted a study to identify the factors that promote and inhibit older individuals’ digital health literacy. According to them, there is an urgent need to equip senior citizens with greater cyber capabilities.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, internet communication was crucial for disseminating updates on the fast-evolving situation, thus, it was time to take a fresh look at how to engage elderly Singaporeans in the digital sphere.

As part of the team’s three-year initiative, students participated in an initial study over the course of three months in the first half of 2022. Two groups of six students each designed and implemented a digital health education programme for seniors at local Senior Activity Centres (SACs).

By interacting with SAC clients who serve the elderly in the locations where they are located, students had the chance to gain a greater understanding of the requirements of this demographic. In addition, it provided a unique opportunity to participate in real-world applied research, as it is an integral element of the nursing curriculum.

Elders welcomed the student, but not the health apps they introduced. It turned out to be difficult to encourage the elderly to be enthusiastic about using the HealthHub app because the older generation believed they had no demand for creative approaches because they were nearing the end of their lives.

Others couldn’t utilise the programme because they couldn’t speak English well enough. The elders are taught how to use the HealthHub app to schedule, change, and cancel appointments by the researchers-students.

Certainly, a Health Promotion Board leaflet was utilised to explain each step at the elders’ pace since the example film was too quick for them, yet, some elderlies were unable to log in during the hands-on attempt because they could not recall their Singpass accounts.

Likewise, the language barrier was an additional obstacle. The materials were also in Chinese, and most of them spoke Mandarin. But the total experience ended up being enjoyable and meaningful due to gestures and kind interactions.

On the other hand, the teaching package will be fully developed through an iterative approach that incorporates the nurses’ experiences. Students benefited from first-hand exposure to the actual process of data collection, which is challenging to simulate in a classroom setting.

Furthermore, health literacy is the motivation and ability to seek and utilise health information. It empowers a person to make choices that will improve their quality of life; and expanded to encompass media and computer abilities.

Across the globe, including Singapore, the elder population has a low propensity for digital health literacy. With this, students from various universities set out to develop instructional materials that would encourage senior citizens to access health information via mobile phones and the internet -initiatives supported by the government.

APU Launches New Cyberpsychology Programme

Image Credits: APU, Press Release
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The Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU) recently launched a ground-breaking Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Psychology that incorporates technology modules with psychology, in an emerging field known as cyberpsychology.

According to the Programme Leader, “Cyberpsychology is the study of human behaviour and mental processes in the context of human-technology interaction. The focus of this module is on the psychology of online behaviour, to uncover how the internet and digital technologies affect attitudes, emotions, and the societal impacts of living in a digital age, such as the exploration of the motives and psychological makeup that contribute to Cybercrime, she said.

While psychology professionals work in human domains, students in this field must now develop a strong grasp of technological aspects, especially when the line between cyberspace and the real world is becoming increasingly blurred.

Globally, the adoption rate of emerging technologies – including cloud computing, connected devices, mobile, robotics and blockchain, have grown at an exponential rate over the past 10 years. As of April 2022, there were five billion internet users worldwide, which is 63% of the global population. Of this total, 4.65 billion were social media users.

Further, the arrival of the Metaverse will even reinforce the blurring of the lines between the physical world and the virtual one, the physical world will eventually merge with the digital – in fully immersive virtual reality.

As technology reshapes the way people live, think, and behave, the transformation of psychology studies has introduced new ways to provide treatment or therapy. This has affected the dissemination of knowledge and how research is conducted.

Within the programme’s modules, students will also be exposed to Psychotechnology, to understand user experience (UX), cognitive workload and use these results to solve practical problems. These updated, relevant modules allow students to develop vital skills and knowledge, enabling them to work in various sectors, such as e-sports, advertising, and more that require further study to determine their psychological impacts.

To create a conducive learning and studying environment mirroring the professional setting that supports both counselling and clinical psychology needs, APU has invested significantly to set up the Centre for Psychology and Well-Being at its campus.

The Head of the School who oversees the setting up of the Centre, explained that as a tech-centric and industry-driven university, APU has blended technology elements into conventional psychology teaching and learning. The University’s Centre for Psychology and Well-Being is an innovative facility that houses advanced equipment embedded with state-of-the-art technology that supports psychology learning and research – which itself has set us apart from our competitors.

The Centre aims to develop a professional-like high-tech centre which attracts students towards experiential learning coupled with a comfortable learning environment.

According to the Programme Leader, by placing psychological tools infused with modern technology to better predict and understand human behaviour such as Electroencephalogram (EEG), Eye Tracker, and Computerised Psychological Assessments, students can learn to make data-driven decisions.

Together with Eye-Tracking Laboratory, the design of the Centre includes Psychobiological Laboratory; Psychoanalysis Therapy Suites for both individual and group therapy; Psychological Testing and Measurement Room; Psychology Group Observation Suite that is complimented with a one-way mirror and AV capture equipment; Activity and Discussion Rooms; and teaching classrooms that are tied to instructional learning and research activities.

Some highlights of the training using the advanced setting and facilities mentioned include:

  • The DSI-24 Electroencephalogram (EEG) – a wireless dry electrode EEG headset in the Psychobiological Lab enables students to learn about cognitive processes like attention and memory by placing conductive electrodes on the scalp which measure the small electrical potentials that arise outside of the head due to neuronal action within the brain.
  • In the Psychological Testing and Measurement Room, the latest state-of-the-art Tobii Pro Fusion Eye Tracker which focuses on information processing such as scene perception, and visual searching, provides students with a first-hand experience in using the equipment.
  • The Psychoanalysis Therapy Suite features the famous Freud psychoanalytic couch. This help students learn role-play skills or to conduct any activity relating to counselling or psychotherapy.
  • The Psychology Group Observation Suite is equipped with a one-way mirror (semi-transparent mirror), brightly lit from one side, allowing students to inconspicuously observe people’s behaviour on the other side while maintaining privacy.
  • Individual (and Group) Therapy Rooms are designed to provide a quiet, comfortable, energizing, and soothing space ideal for conducting individual or group counselling. Registered counsellors and educators will use the rooms to provide their respective services like consultation, teaching, and intern-related training.

With proficiency in using advanced technology, especially digital assessments, APU’s psychology graduates become tech-savvy and well equipped for the competitive world of the psychology industry.

Vietnam Releases New Cybersecurity Strategy

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The government has issued a national cybersecurity strategy to respond to challenges and crimes in cyberspace. The strategy sets objectives for 2025 as well as has a vision for 2030. Under the strategy, one of the main targets is to maintain or increase Vietnam’s ranking on the global cybersecurity index (GCI).

In a press statement, the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) laid out the major tasks and solutions in the strategy, including strengthening the overall management of the State over cybersecurity, completing legal frameworks, and protecting national sovereignty in cyberspace.

The government will also safeguard digital infrastructure, platforms, data, and national cyberinfrastructure. It will protect the information systems of state agencies as well as crucial sectors that need to be prioritised to ensure information security.

Through the strategy, the country will foster digital trust and build an honest, civilized, and healthy network environment. It will prevent and combat law violations in cyberspace and enhance technological mastery and autonomy to actively cope with cyberspace challenges.

The government will train and develop human resources in cybersecurity, raise awareness about cybersecurity skills, and work to secure funding to implement cybersecurity initiatives. The strategy also aims to improve national prestige and foster international integration.

Meanwhile, incident response teams of 11 priority sectors for network information security will be formed. The key areas include transport, energy, natural resources and environment, information, health, finance, banking, defense, security, social order and safety, urban areas, and the government’s direction and administration.

According to a report released by the ITU in June 2021, Vietnam jumped 25 places after two years to rank 25th out of 194 countries and territories worldwide in the GCI in 2020. Vietnam ranked 7th in the Asia-Pacific region and 4th among ASEAN countries in the field.

According to Vietnam Information Security Association (VINSA), there were over 5,400 cyber-attacks on Vietnamese systems in the first five months of this year. Of these, approximately 68% were malicious attacks. However, May showed a decrease in the number of cyber incidents, due to socio-economic stability and the resumption of more economic activities initiated around the Party’s solutions and guidelines, according to the Information Security Department, MIC.

Further, after MIC issued a warning, incidents were down 9.37% in April as compared to March 2022. The government has been proactive in raising vigilance, strengthening cyber information security as well as security and social order. This has made it difficult for bad actors to attack networks, spread infecting malicious code, and run scams to steal and destroy information of users and organisations.

In June, MIC stated that to ensure information security for information systems and Vietnam’s cyberspace, it would continue to strengthen monitoring and proactive scanning; it would evaluate statistics and promote propaganda and issue warning in the mass media so that users know and avoid the risk of cyber-attacks.

MIC also said it would address the situation by strengthening mechanisms for monitoring and proactive scanning, raising public awareness, and providing advance warnings of expected cyberattacks. Simultaneously, the Ministry would continue to urge the review of vulnerabilities and communicate signs of cyberattacks.

Indonesia Shows Off Innovative Defence Technology

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Marsdya TNI Donny Ermawan Taufanto, Secretary-General of the Indonesian Ministry of Defense formally inaugurated the ongoing 2022 Defense Research and Development Week with the theme “Research, Development, and Innovation of Defense Technology in Realising the Independence of Defense Equipment Tools.”

The Secretary-General urged all citizens to love, appreciate, and be proud of the innovations created by the nation’s youth. He cited that the activities have an important role in publication and scientific information to understand and produce the best solutions in the form of constructive and innovative suggestions for R & D development in the defence sector.

The activity was organised by Indonesia’s Ministry of Defense – Research and Development Agency in the form of an exhibition that displays defence equipment resulting from research and development of universities, R & D agencies, and domestic industries.

On the other hand, the Secretary-General acknowledged the exhibits of the innovative defence types of equipment, and his attention was focused on the Moto EV, a two-wheeled vehicle with an electric engine. The Moto EV is perfect for silent operation because the noise level has been minimised.

Also, the activity exhibited innovative creations in the IT sector like the Pasupati, a Pindad Simulation Product of Virtual Reality, which is a technology for digitally simulating shooting activities using weapon products.

Using VR principles, users will be invited to interact with the virtual world environment using the console, as if they were using and shooting with real weapons. With a level of ease that has a sensation like playing video games, Pasupati offers easy and real use of weapons while minimising the level of danger.

The activities of the 2022 Defense R&D Week honour the 27th National Technology Awakening Day, which aims to accommodate brilliant ideas from academics and researchers to contribute to the development of defence technology and attain future defence equipment independence.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the Information and Communication Technology Training and Development Centre Research and Human Resources Development Agency of the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo) held a Regional Workshop On Digital Diplomacy with the theme “The Essence of Information and Communication Technology for Government Leaders.”

The activity is intended for Government Officials for the e-government implementation of countries and territories in the Pacific region such as the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, New Caledonia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, French Polynesia, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

Hence, the activity was a follow-up to the International Conference on Digital Diplomacy (ICDD) with the theme “Unmasking Digital Diplomacy in the New Normal” which was held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2021.

The ICDD 2021 activity was attended by 20 countries and produced the Bali Message on ICDD which has identified five focus areas, namely:

  • Government Policy Framework to Support Digital Diplomacy;
  • Crisis Management Through Digital Diplomacy;
  • Data Management to Support Digital Diplomacy;
  • Innovation to Support SMEs; and
  • Capacity Building and Digital Inclusion.

The ICDD follow-up series will continue to be carried out by the nation’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the cornerstone of Digital Diplomacy. In the next activity, the Ministry will hold a Regional Government social media (GSMS) Conference, a scientific discussion forum on the use of digital media among governments to share new perspectives and experiences, which provide solutions to challenges in digital diplomacy through government social media.

Indian Ministry of Heavy Industries Automates Data Collection

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The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) launched an Automated Online Data Transfer system to collect critical domestic value addition (DVA) data from a Production Linked Incentive scheme (PLI) applicant’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

The PLI scheme was launched to boost domestic manufacturing, investments, and the export of telecom and networking products. The PLI Scheme for Automobile and Auto Component Industry in India (PLI Auto) proposes financial incentives to boost the domestic manufacturing of Advanced Automotive (AAT) products and attract investments in the automotive manufacturing value chain.

Through the new automated online data transfer mechanism, MHI’s PLI Auto Portal will receive data from the applicant’s ERP system. All approved applicants under the PLI scheme have their own ERP system, which is software that enables organisations to manage business activities.

According to a press release, the application programming interface (API) will be embedded with the applicant’s ERP system, making processes in the scheme automatic and paperless. An API is a set of rules that lets different programmes communicate with each other, exposing data and functionality across the Internet in a consistent format. It is an architectural pattern that describes how distributed systems can expose a consistent interface in a secure cyber environment.

Through the previous system, PLI applicants were required to file voluminous claims. The new system eliminates a large amount of paperwork through automation. It reduces the compliance burden for applicants and speeds up claim processing. The release stated that it was created after exhaustive stakeholder consultations with leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and auto component manufacturing companies.

MHI Minister, Mahendra Nath Pandey, noted that the system is an important step in enhancing transparency, ease of doing business, faceless and self-certification-based assessment, and the paperless delivery of services.

The government approved PLI Auto to enhance the country’s manufacturing capabilities for AAT with a budgetary outlay of US$ 3.9 billion. The scheme has been successful in attracting a proposed investment of US$ 8.5 billion against the target estimate of US$ 5.3 billion over five years. FY 2022-23 is the first financial year for which an approved applicant can claim incentives on the determined sales. Sales of AAT products with a DVA of 50% minimum, with sales from 1 April onwards, for a period of five years, shall be eligible for incentives.

Applicants should maintain a detailed DVA calculation for all their eligible products in their own ERP system. It will record the DVA calculation for each batch, product, and model with details of component-wise values, component-wise DVA, and final DVA at the AAT product level. Applicants’ ERP will push the product-wise DVA to the PLI Auto portal on a quarterly basis through the API.

Over the past year, the government has launched several portals and applications to automate the delivery of public services across several sectors. For example, in May, it launched a single national portal for biotech researchers and start-ups that seek regulatory approval for biological research and development projects. The Biological Research Regulatory Approval Portal (BioRRAP) allows stakeholders to see the approvals accorded against a particular application through a unique BioRRAP ID, as OpenGov Asia reported.

In June, the Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare launched a mobile phone version of Bhavishya, an artificial intelligence-enabled common portal for pensioners and elder citizens. The portal aids the seamless processing, tracking, and disbursal of pensions.

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