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Students of the Faculty of Engineering Electrical Engineering (Year 4) of the Srinakharinwirot University’s Ong Rak Campus can now visit, study and research at the newly launched 5G EIC centre. At the launch, staff welcomed students and showed them various aspects of the new centre including the test trial process as well as the innovation and development of 5G technology.
The 5G EIC Center was designed to be a learning, development, and testing centre focusing on 5G technology innovation. It aims to enable the sharing of experiences in innovation and testing experiments and seeks to document use cases that were developed in these experimental tests within the centre. The new centre also aims to enable the exchange of knowledge and experience with regards to applying technology in daily life as 5G technology will play an ever-increasing role in the future.
OpenGov Asia reported earlier that to move with the flow and maximise Thailand’s economic development with digital technology, the government is prioritising 5G as it sees opportunities and potential. It has committed to leveraging 5G for economic development and to increase its competitiveness on the world stage for Thailand.
Currently, the Ministry of Digital has accelerated the push to pilot the use of 5G technology in a total of nine projects spread widely across all regions of the country in various sectors including agriculture, health, industry, education, transportation and Smart City.
Government spending in Thailand increased to THB 417 billion in the third quarter of 2021 from THB 407 billion in the second quarter of 2021 showing an upward trend. Thailand’s IT spending is expected to grow 6.4% year-on-year to THB 871 billion in 2022 with strong growth in enterprise software, driven by continued hybrid work and remote services, according to research by a global research firm.
The projected IT spending growth for 2022, however, is still higher than the global growth of 5.5% with US$ 4.47 trillion in IT spending expected in 2022. To put it in context, worldwide IT spending in 2021 is expected to reach US$ 4.24 trillion, up 9.5% year on year.
Enterprise software is projected to see the highest growth of 14.8% to THB 61.3 billion in 2022, followed by IT services with a growth of 9.8% to 85.4 billion and devices with a growth of 9% to 220 billion. Communication service is expected to see the lowest growth of 3.8% next year but would maintain the largest IT spending segment in the country at THB 483 billion – about half of the total market.
Another report notes that the global 5G services market size is estimated to reach US$ 1.67 trillion by 2030, registering a CAGR of 52.0% from 2022 to 2030. The rapidly growing demand for ultra-reliable and low-latency data networks capable of providing enhanced mobile connectivity is estimated to boost the market growth over the forecast period.
The potential adoption of 5G services for remote patient monitoring and remote surgery applications is also anticipated to propel market growth from 2022 to 2030. The 5G wireless technology is expected to completely transform the transportation and logistics industry by providing seamless Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) and Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) connectivity.
As such, the need to ensure strong, seamless, and uninterrupted connectivity with autonomous vehicles is estimated to drive the adoption of 5G services. Furthermore, robust deployment of 5G network infrastructure is estimated to improve the operational efficiencies in several IoT use cases, including smart homes, smart cities, and industry 4.0.


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At the third edition of ‘My Digital Bootcamp,’ 1,500 students from low-income families in the Central Singapore District will learn new digital skills. The districtwide programme will help to level the playing field for children from low-income families who may not have access to extracurricular activities.
This is part of the Central Singapore Community Development Council’s (CDC) SkillsFuture Junior programme, which seeks to support its young residents with digital and soft skills to prepare them for a better future.
Students will go through four modular skills-based workshops at each two-day Bootcamp held from March to December 2023 to learn advanced digital-making skills in a fun and engaging manner such as programming, robotics, mobile app development, and game design.
A time traveller visiting ancient civilisations or an Earth hero resolving a climate crisis are the two new immersive narratives that participants can select from. They will also be exposed to complementary soft skills such as logical reasoning, pattern recognition, algorithm design, relationship management, and communication skills, among others, during the Bootcamp.
‘My Digital Bootcamp’ will provide structured learning support to the young participants in order to encourage learning beyond the workshops. Each child will receive a special home-based learning (HBL) digital-making kit, which includes a micro: bit pocket-sized computer, a KittenBot expansion board, an ultrasonic sensor, and other resource materials, as well as a learning management system, to allow them to continue learning and practising what they have learned at the Bootcamp.
At the end of this season, a brand-new Hackathon component will be held in which young learners will be empowered to solve real-life scenario-based challenges in friendly competitions that will underpin holistic learning. There will be 300 people at the Hackathon. Some will be students from the Bootcamps, and some will be new students.
Participants in the two-day Hackathon challenge will participate in digital-making skill workshops or refreshers, preparatory workshops, competitions, and presentations. They will investigate skillsets and develop competencies in soft skills other than those taught in the Bootcamp, such as idea pitching, design thinking, and ideation, which will help them build a strong foundation for the future economy.
The long-standing partnership between Central Singapore CDC and a multinational banking corporation made ‘My Digital Bootcamp’ possible. Since its inception in September 2019, the programme has benefited over 2,000 children from 34 schools and community organisations in Central Singapore. Over 30 employee volunteers also befriended the students, distributed participation kits and meals, and assisted in guiding the students’ learning.
In addition, the Infocomm Media Development Authority’s (IMDA) Digital for Life (DfL) Movement has been named Champion Project at the prestigious World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) Prize Ceremony 2023, which is organised by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) under the auspices of the United Nations (UN).
The DfL movement was named a WSIS Prizes 2023 Champion in the category “the role of governments and all stakeholders in promoting ICTs for development.” This award came after WSIS received nominations for 900 projects from around the world in 18 categories, reviewed them with experts, and received over 1.5 million online votes.
The World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Prizes recognise projects that use information and communication technologies (ICT) to advance the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
To date, the DfL movement has more than 130 partners and 140 projects, benefiting over 270,000 Singaporeans from various segments such as youths, seniors, low-income families, women, and people with disabilities.
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Over the coming years, Singapore is poised to witness significant transformations in digital financial services, particularly in three key domains: the emergence of Web 3 and decentralised finance, the widespread integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and the implementation of machine learning (ML) technology.
Prioritising strong governance and compliance should be at the top of the Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) sector’s list of objectives. Adherence to regulations, following rules and taking responsibility can greatly enhance services, ensure safety, and enhance the client experience.
Employing a centralised data protection solution enables consumers to track and verify if and how their data is being protected data across various workloads. When clients have the ability to do so, they can be confident that their data is being adequately safeguarded. Moreover, this can ensure that recovery time objectives and IT audit compliances are met.
Combatting threats such as malware and ransomware, along with ensuring overall cybersecurity, requires a strategic approach across multiple levels. This includes actively monitoring for potential issues and regularly backing up data. Storing immutable copies of data in a secure location can prevent malware from encrypting them.
In addition, data intended for recovery should undergo scanning and cleaning by the organisation’s anti-virus solution to ensure that any potentially harmful data, also known as “dirty” data, is not inadvertently reintroduced into production systems.
Ensuring seamless operations while mitigating the risks of ransomware and other cyber-attacks can be challenging. However, modern data protection solutions have demonstrated their ability to reduce costs, enhance automation, enhance human capabilities and identify innovative ways to reuse data to generate new value.
The OpenGovBreakfast Insight on 22 March 2023 held at the Voco Orchard Singapore aimed to share insights and practical solutions to empower organisations to maximise data capability through cost-effective, secure and automated data-driven processes that adhere with current data regulations and comply with the standards of Singapore’s Banking, Financial Services and Insurance industry.
Opening Remarks


Kicking off the session, Mohit Sagar, CEO & Editor-in-Chief, explains that financial data management is a set of processes and policies, usually helped by specialised software. This approach enables an organisation to merge its financial data, adhere to accounting regulations and legal requirements, and generate comprehensive financial reports.
The regulatory body responsible for overseeing Singapore’s financial institutions and establishing guidelines for data management and protection is the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). According to its regulations, financial institutions are required to implement robust policies and procedures for managing data, including appropriate classification, handling and protection.
“ Financial institutions must ensure that adequate security measures are in place to mitigate the risks of data breaches and cyber threats. This could include implementing strong encryption protocols, regularly testing systems for vulnerabilities, maintaining up-to-date software and hardware and training on cybersecurity best practices,” Mohit emphasises.
The Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) serves as the data protection authority in Singapore, responsible for enforcing compliance with the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA). The Act sets a baseline level of data protection that must be followed by all sectors operating in Singapore.
Additionally, the PDPA also mandates that organisations obtain individuals’ consent before collecting, using, or disclosing their personal data.
Additionally, the PDPA also mandates that organisations obtain individuals’ consent before collecting, using, or sharing their personal information. The PDPC is empowered to investigate any breaches of the PDPA and impose penalties for non-compliance.
Data recovery refers to the process of getting lost, deleted, corrupted or inaccessible data back from storage media like hard disk drives, solid-state drives, USB drives, or other types of data storage devices. Several companies in Singapore offer data recovery services that specialise in getting data back from different types of storage media used by financial institutions.
“It’s important to remember that data recovery services can be expensive, and it’s always best to have a full data backup and disaster recovery plan in place to minimise the risk of losing data,” is Mohit’s caveat. “Establishing a robust backup and recovery system can help avoid the need for expensive data recovery services and ensure business continuity in the event of a data loss incident.”
The protection of sensitive financial data from unauthorised access, theft and cyberattacks is a top priority for Singapore’s financial institutions. To achieve this, they employ a range of security measures, including encryption, access controls, firewalls, regular updates and patches, employee training and awareness programs, penetration testing, and incident response planning.
These safeguards work together to create a comprehensive data security framework that helps to prevent data breaches and protect the integrity and confidentiality of financial data.
“Under the PDPA, financial institutions must obtain the consent of individuals before collecting, using, or disclosing their personal information,” Mohit reiterates. “But while this is the norm, there are exceptions to this rule.”
Concessions are allowed under certain circumstances, such as legal obligations or the prevention of criminal activity. As an example, financial institutions may disclose personal information to law enforcement agencies to comply with legal requirements or to prevent potential criminal activity.
Mohit understands that risk mitigation is a crucial component of risk management in Singapore’s financial sector, and financial institutions employ a range of strategies and tools to identify, evaluate and reduce the risks they face.
Diversification, risk transfer, risk avoidance, risk monitoring and reporting, contingency planning, and strong governance and compliance frameworks are examples of risk mitigation strategies utilised by financial institutions in Singapore.
Financial institutions consider the development of a data exit strategy and recovery plan as an essential part of their risk management. The process involves identifying crucial data, anticipating exit scenarios, creating a recovery plan, establishing data backup procedures, testing the recovery plan, and maintaining the plan by updating, reviewing, and monitoring it regularly.
Financial institutions consider the development of a data exit strategy and recovery plan a crucial aspect of risk management. This involves identifying critical data, establishing data backup procedures, determining exit scenarios, creating a recovery plan, testing the recovery plan, updating the recovery plan, reviewing and monitoring, and so on.
“By adhering to these steps, financial institutions can establish a robust data exit strategy and recovery plan that ensures the protection and recovery of vital data in the event of a data breach or system failure,” Mohit ends.
Welcome Address


According to Raymond Goh, Veeam’s Vice President of Sales Engineering for APJ, the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) industry has experienced significant changes over time and has had to contend with various challenges such as regulatory compliance, cybersecurity threats, and the need to innovate to stay competitive.
The pandemic has accelerated the industry’s digital transformation, resulting in a greater demand for digital banking services. However, it has also introduced new challenges, such as physical branch disruptions and an increased risk of cyberattacks.
“Despite the challenges, the industry can provide value to its customers by leveraging new technologies and innovative strategies.” Raymond is convinced “To effectively manage risks, BFSI institutions must continue to invest in digital infrastructure, cybersecurity measures, and advanced analytics.”
The FSI journey from 1866 to the present has been remarkable; from brick-and-mortar establishments to the current digitised systems, payment apps, digital wallets, contactless payments, crowdfunding platforms, and many others.
Financial systems can be affected by various disruptions, including funding and liquidity issues, asset price declines, contagion effects and heightened credit risk. The impact of a crisis on the financial sector is largely determined by the sector’s ability to mitigate four risks: market risks, liquidity risks, credit risks, and earnings risks.
“The rise of FinTech and non-bank startups are altering the competitive landscape in financial services, forcing traditional institutions to reconsider their business practices,” Raymond reiterates. “Old school processes and legacy systems are no longer relevant in the digital world, and indeed, can be a hindrance.”
Financial institutions must foster an innovative culture that promotes innovation and utilises technology to streamline existing processes and procedures for optimal efficiency. This cultural shift towards a technology-centric mindset mirrors the broader industry acceptance of digital transformation.
Raymond recognises that today’s consumers are more knowledgeable, sophisticated and informed than ever, and they demand a high degree of customization, personalisation and convenience from their banking services.
It is predicted that future generations, starting with Generation Z, will have an even greater preference for omnichannel banking and be more technologically savvy than Millennials.
Organisations using obsolete business management software or siloed systems will be unable to compete in this increasingly digital-first environment. Without a solid, futuristic technological foundation, businesses will miss out on crucial business evolution.
“In other words, digital transformation is no longer merely a good idea, but a necessity for survival,” Raymond states.
Financial service organisations that use cutting-edge business technology, particularly cloud applications, have a significant advantage in the digital transformation race as they can innovate more quickly. The agility and scalability of cloud technology are its strengths. Without the constraints of system hardware, cloud technology allows systems to evolve in tandem with the business.
Raymond agrees that banking is being reshaped as regulations tighten and consumers adopt new technologies and demand 24/7 access to their most sensitive data, regardless of device.
As a result of a string of high-profile breaches in recent years, security is one of the leading challenges facing the banking industry and a major concern for bank and credit union customers. Financial institutions must invest in the most advanced technologically driven security measures, such as Authentication, End-to-End Encryption (E2EE) and Address Verification Services (AVS), to protect customers.
Financial services are increasingly confronted with issues related to auditing as the frequency of data breaches and privacy concerns continue to increase. This has led to more stringent regulatory and compliance requirements.
Compliance with financial data protection standards is subject to strict regulations and audits entail some of the most rigorous requirements in modern business, often involving the need to manage highly complex IT infrastructures.
Adhering to and conducting annual disaster recovery (DR) testing regularly can be both expensive and resource-intensive.
From a financial standpoint, any amount of downtime is unacceptable, and banks may face significant penalties for revealing confidential information. The centralisation of remote or branch offices (ROBO) can exhaust an organisation’s resources and bandwidth.
Businesses around the world were heavily impacted by the pandemic, causing considerable disruption and presenting numerous challenges. These challenges demand innovation, the necessity for enhanced employee engagement, rapid market changes and quality improvement.
In this scenario, FinTech and its underpinning technology will be major disruptors. Blockchain will shake things up; digital will become mainstream; customer intelligence will be the most significant predictor of revenue growth and profitability; the public cloud will become the dominant infrastructure model; and regulators will also turn to technology.
The common theme among these is resilience, trust and data agility.
Over the last two years, the Financial Services Industry has placed significant importance on specific issues. Some key initiatives are modernising the IT operating model to adapt to the new normal, simplifying legacy systems to decrease costs, enhancing the technological capabilities to better understand customer requirements, preparing the architecture to facilitate connections with any device or location and prioritising cybersecurity measures.
FSI organisations face distinct challenges due to their strong customer relationships, financial accountability and regulatory oversight. These challenges include effectively managing regulatory and capital costs, improving operations and customer experiences to meet modern standards, safeguarding against cyber threats and ransomware attacks and ensuring data and privacy security.
According to Raymond, Veeam plays a major role in addressing all these areas and can offer unique solutions to the various opportunities and challenges that FSI organisations may encounter. Veeam’s solutions encompass streamlining and automating operations, facilitating cloud migration and modern application development, ensuring data immutability, and effectively managing privacy, risk, and compliance.
“By embracing digital transformation, utilising big data analytics, forming strategic partnerships, having strong compliance and cybersecurity frameworks and investing in talent development programmes, FSI organisations can take advantage of opportunities and address challenges,” Raymond believes.
End-user Insight


Luis C Cruz, Executive Director, Head of Automation, Infrastructure for DBS Big Data, AI and Analytics, DBS Bank Ltd is convinced that by aligning IT initiatives with the company’s overall business objectives, a comprehensive IT strategy can help businesses deliver long-term shareholder value.
“This strategy entails identifying the company’s current and future technology requirements, evaluating potential technology solutions, and developing a plan for implementing those solutions,” Luis explains.
By doing so, the company can ensure that its IT investments support business growth and profitability while reducing costs and boosting efficiency. In addition, a comprehensive IT strategy can help the business gain a competitive advantage by leveraging emerging technologies and optimising the IT infrastructure.
A comprehensive IT strategy can generate long-term shareholder value by enabling organisations to make informed decisions about technology investments and leverage technology to achieve business goals.
A robust IT strategy:
- Aligns with organisation goals and governance
- Adapts to the marketplace and changes how our employees work
- Is focused and consistent
- Honestly identify challenges
- Would be authentic, clear and understood
- Is memorable with a compelling tagline and value proposition
- Has to be actionable towards a goal
- Shows where to play and how to win
Providing foundational infrastructure capabilities that support business objectives and delivering applications and solutions to aid employees in achieving their desired business outcomes are examples of company strategies that are enabled by IT.
“The concept of SMAC or Social, Mobile, Analytics and Cloud stack, is an example of a technology strategy that is widely used throughout the industry and by IT leaders,” Luis reveals. “It all comes down to the customer experience.”
Determining the optimal approach, timing and speed (the how, when and pace) of SMAC implementation is crucial as it forms the basis for leveraging big data in corporations. As IT leaders, Luis anticipates the need to stay up-to-date on SMAC trends and implications relevant to their roles. A perfect example of a company that effectively leverages SMAC-stack infrastructure is an online streaming service provider website.
To generate sustainable shareholder value, businesses must cultivate strategic and functional IT competencies, enhance tools that improve the IT function and promote a customer-centric culture. These efforts will fortify the organisation’s internal processes and enable the development of an efficient decision support system, as well as the delivery of transformational applications.
In addition to benefiting the company, these efforts will also benefit customers by enabling enterprises to provide consistent, high-quality IT services and innovative IT solutions to business units. This will allow organisations to optimise IT efficiency and enhance its impact on enterprise outcomes, ultimately driving long-term investor value.
“IT strategy is influenced by several internal and external factors,” ends Luis. “And understanding these is critical for developing a successful IT strategy that aligns with the organisation’s overall goals and objectives.”
Closing Remarks
Raymond acknowledges the significance of data backup as a critical aspect of maintaining data resilience and availability but emphasises that it is only one aspect of a comprehensive strategy.
Data backup is a single component of ensuring data availability and resilience in hybrid cloud environments. In addition to backup solutions, it’s essential to consider other factors that can affect data resiliency and availability, such as infrastructure and data proximity, Raymond opines.
“Data proximity, the physical location of data in relation to its applications, is a crucial factor to consider when designing hybrid cloud environments. These factors must be taken into account to ensure that hybrid cloud environments are designed optimally to meet the needs of applications and data requirements.”
By adopting solutions such as edge computing or hybrid cloud architectures, organisations can ensure data proximity. These solutions enable data to be stored and processed closer to where it is required, which can improve application performance and ensure data resiliency and availability.
This involves ensuring that there are adequate computing, storage, and networking resources available to support the workload, as well as having a highly available and resilient infrastructure to mitigate the risk of outages.
“Veeam provides data resiliency through secure backup and fast, dependable recovery solutions for the hybrid cloud of the organisation,” Raymond explains. “Our solutions are intended to safeguard critical data and applications, prevent data loss and enable rapid and dependable recovery in the event of a disaster or outage.”
Veeam offers solutions designed to help organisations achieve their business continuity and disaster recovery goals by ensuring data resiliency and availability in their hybrid cloud environments.
Mohit concurs that with the increasing volume of data being produced and stored every day, data protection has become increasingly crucial. Businesses are adopting techniques that allow for data restoration in the event of loss or corruption.
“As organisations continue to produce and store more data, it is becoming increasingly difficult to ensure the security and protection of that data,” Mohit observes.
In this VUCA landscape, technology can provide significant benefits to organisations in protecting their data. Implementing technological solutions helps businesses to secure their data from loss, theft and unauthorised access. It also ensures quick data restoration in emergency or outage situations.
“In essence, the purpose of technology partnerships is to assist businesses in implementing and improving their technical systems,” Mohit believes. “There is no doubt: collaboration in technology promotes growth, eases processes and reduces timelines.”
Two heads are better than one when it comes to implementing established technology systems. But while a technology partnership can effectively deliver technical expertise, it is important not to underestimate the value business acumen offers in return.
“Ultimately, collaborating and pooling resources can prove to be a highly effective approach in propelling both parties towards progress and innovative solutions,” Mohit concludes.
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The Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat is where Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong recently met Indonesian President Joko Widodo. This was Prime Minister Lee and President Joko Widodo’s sixth Leaders’ Retreat, and it was the first one to be held in Singapore since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Both Leaders said again that Singapore and Indonesia are getting along very well. They both agreed that the relationship between the two countries had grown a lot during President Joko Widodo’s two terms in office. This gave them a solid foundation to work together in new ways that are deep, multifaceted, forward-looking, and good for both countries.
The Leaders were happy that all three agreements under the Expanded Framework had been ratified. These were the Agreement on the Realignment of the Boundary between the Jakarta Flight Information Region (FIR) and the Singapore FIR, the Treaty for the Extradition of Fugitives, and the Defense Cooperation Agreement.
The Leaders anticipated the next step of obtaining approval from the International Civil Aviation Organisation for the new arrangements under the FIR Agreement so that both countries could implement all three agreements at a mutually agreed upon date. The resolution of these long-standing issues demonstrates the maturity and strength of bilateral relations.
In addition, several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) have been signed by the two leaders to strengthen cooperation in various sectors. Renewable energy cooperation, sustainable urban and housing development, health cooperation, knowledge-sharing and capacity-building, and security and finance collaboration are among the MoUs.
These agreements are intended to improve knowledge-sharing and training, supplement existing expertise, and strengthen interpersonal ties between the two countries. The Leaders recognised the importance of continuing collaboration in traditional sectors like security and finance to build trust in their security and economic partnerships.
President Joko Widodo and Prime Minister Lee reaffirmed that bilateral relations are on a solid footing and agreed to expand cooperation in areas of mutual interest that are sustainable and forward-looking. To this end, the Leaders’ Summit witnessed the signing of six MOUs in emerging sectors such as the digital economy, sustainability, and human capital development, as well as in traditional areas such as security.
The Leaders noted the growth of the digital economy in Singapore and Indonesia because of cooperative projects such as Nongsa Digital Park in Batam. The Leaders applauded the MOU between the Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Indonesian Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs on the Tech:X Programme, which allows young tech professionals from both countries to pursue employment opportunities in the other country’s market. This will strengthen connections between the tech ecosystems of Singapore and Indonesia, allowing tech talent to pursue opportunities in the rapidly expanding digital economy.
Leaders concurred that bilateral cooperation should remain multifaceted and comprehensive. Recently, Singaporean and Indonesian businesses signed nine MOUs in the digital economy sector, including health technology and education technology. These are believed to strengthen commercial ties and augment bilateral cooperation in emerging sectors.
Prime Minister Lee and President Joko Widodo also discussed Indonesia’s ASEAN Chairmanship priorities. The two leaders discussed the situation in Myanmar and the path to membership for Timor-Leste.
The Prime Minister has reaffirmed Singapore’s total backing for Indonesia’s ASEAN Presidency. He thanked President Joko Widodo for his contributions to the bilateral relationship, and both Leaders reaffirmed their commitment to advance the bilateral partnership.
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A prominent company in the medical imaging industry launched its new production facility in Hong Kong, situated at the MARS Centre within Tai Po INNOPARK. This marks the first time a significant medical equipment production facility has been established in Hong Kong, and it is now the largest MRI production base in Southeast Asia and the Greater Bay Area. The facility’s primary focus is on research and development, as well as the production of highly valuable neonatal and breast screening superconductor MRI systems.
The new facility occupies an area of 30,000 square feet at the MARS Centre, boasting advanced technologies, seamless logistics support, and a highly integrated manufacturing environment. In 2021, the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) repositioned the three industrial estates located in Tai Po, Yuen Long, and Tseung Kwan O as INNOPARKS, aiming to drive innovation, technology opportunities, and long-term economic development in Hong Kong through Innofacturing.
This new production facility is expected to significantly enhance the productivity of the company’s cutting-edge neonatal and breast screening MRI systems and aligns with Hong Kong’s Innovation & Technology Development Blueprint’s mission for New Industrialisation and high-value manufacturing.
During the opening ceremony of the new production facility, the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry said that Hong Kong possesses distinct life sciences advantages and robust scientific research capabilities. The recent budget release by the Financial Secretary highlights the city’s strength in research and development while fully supporting the establishment of the second Advanced Manufacturing Centre (AMC) operated by HKSTP.
The government is actively promoting the interactive development of upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors to establish a robust foundation for New Industrialisation in Hong Kong. Time Medical’s one-stop shop, which includes R&D, design, production, and sales of high-value medical equipment in Hong Kong, provides significant support to the city’s industrial development.
The company’s Founder and CEO expressed gratitude towards the Innovation, Technology, and Industry Bureau, as well as the HKSTP for their unwavering support. He stated that the opening ceremony marks the company’s significant growth in Hong Kong. The first batch of pediatric MRI systems manufactured in Hong Kong will be used in leading hospitals across the globe. These innovative pediatric products will soon emerge as a premium ‘Hong Kong Brands’ and will be exported to various regions, including Asia, Europe, and the US, he predicted.
The Chairman of HKSTP expressed that the organisation has been actively promoting the “R&D to Innofacturing” concept to cultivate a new generation of high-end manufacturing in Hong Kong. This approach is expected to boost the Hong Kong brand and create more employment opportunities for young people.
He added that he anticipates more innovative I&T companies will make significant contributions in Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area, and beyond, showcasing their R&D achievements and unleashing numerous possibilities for Hong Kong Innofacturing.
The new production facility in Hong Kong will be used to manufacture the dedicated superconductor MRI system, Neona, designed to serve neonates optimally. The neonatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system is a patented product of the company, using original revolutionary technology. It has officially obtained approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and has also been honoured with the Geneva International Invention Award. Neona is lightweight, compact in size, safe, and reliable, making it suitable for adoption by around 8,000 different neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) worldwide. It offers dedicated and radiation-free diagnoses for infants.
Developed by the company’s engineering team based at Hong Kong Science Park, Neona is the first high-end medical device “Innovated, Designed, and Made in Hong Kong.” It is slated to be exported to the US, Europe, and mainland China, bolstering the Hong Kong brand in the global medical market.
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Stuart Nash, New Zealand’s Minister for Economic Development, has unveiled an initiative to expand and modernise the country’s high-tech manufacturing industry rapidly. One of eight Industry Transformation Plans (ITPs) designed to boost productivity and performance in vital economic sectors is the Advanced Manufacturing ITP.
The plans lay out the steps that may be taken to increase innovation and productivity across the country, which in turn will lead to higher incomes and living standards without causing inflation. Every one of New Zealand benefits from the Plan, not only the areas that have been hit particularly hard by recent natural disasters.
About 10% of New Zealand GDP, 10% of the country’s employment, and 73.5% of its exports are all tied to the advanced manufacturing sector. Around half of these positions are outside of New Zealand’s major cities.
There is a lot of unrealised potential in the advanced manufacturing industry that might boost productivity, create high-paying employment, and aid in the shift towards a more environmentally friendly and competitive economy. “This plan lays out the steps necessary to get there,” Stuart Nash explained at the Plan’s launch in Auckland.
There is also widespread agreement that immediate action is needed to boost capital investment in innovative manufacturing and to train and recruit a diversified pool of workers capable of producing high-quality goods for high wages.
To get started on some of the Plan’s urgent recommendations, the government has allocated $30 million (about US$18.61 million). Included in this is $2.9 million (US$1,8 million) for company-specific support to achieve circular low-emissions manufacturing, $4 million (US$2.48 million) to upskill manufacturing workers in digital skills, and $3.65 million (US$2,26 million) for advice on adopting advanced technologies and processes.
Co-Chair of the Advanced Manufacturing ITP Steering Committee and CEO of the Employers and Manufacturers Association, Brett O’Riley, emphasised the need for a solid collaboration approach to the strategy.
He claims that with continued cooperation, New Zealand companies can develop innovative manufacturing capabilities on par with international leaders, increasing output and boosting earnings. Rachel Mackintosh, Vice President of the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, Assistant National Secretary of E T, and Co-Chair of the Advanced Manufacturing ITP Steering Committee, agreed.
According to her, the ITP will pave the way for more individuals to pursue careers in advanced manufacturing. New Zealand has the potential to tap into the innovative potential of its varied manufacturing workforce to create a prosperous and long-lasting manufacturing sector.
The manufacturing industry has recently seen a rise in the prevalence of “advance manufacture” initiatives. For example, at Batu Kawan, Penang, Malaysia, an EMS provider has declared intentions to build a Smart “Lights-Out” Factory 4.0. The plant will manufacture new 5G Advanced High-Speed Optical Signal Transmitter and Receiver Optical Modules. The plant will use photonics and semiconductor technologies via a technology transfer with its US-based client.
As part of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), scientists at Argonne National Laboratory have developed a unique approach to employing machine learning to detect defects in metal components produced by additive manufacturing. Due to its potential for early flaw identification and defect prediction in 3D printed materials, the innovative technology has the potential to impact the additive manufacturing sector significantly.
Users can save time during inspection since the new technology can inform where pore flaws might be within the part, even if the building process isn’t halted. The team hopes to look at more sensors that can detect additive manufacturing mistakes in the future. Therefore, they need to build a system that can immediately identify and address production issues, educate end users on the nature of the problem and provide guidance on how to repair it.
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The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) is launching numerous new collaborations to address urban challenges by leveraging geospatial technology to facilitate data-driven decision-making and solutions. Geospatial technology is location-based technology that is widely used in areas such as mapping and road navigation and is a key enabler in supporting Singapore’s Smart Nation and sustainability initiatives.
Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment, and Ministry of Transport, announced the new collaborations at the recently concluded Geo Connect Asia 2023. The Senior Minister was also present at the signing ceremonies for two SLA collaborations: the Container Depot and Logistics Association (Singapore) and the General Authority for Survey and Geospatial Information of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
SLA has also begun its first bilateral collaboration with the General Authority for Survey and Geospatial Information (GEOSA), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as part of its efforts to foster international knowledge exchange and contribute their experiences in the use of geospatial data and technology.
The collaboration stems from both countries’ rapid urbanisation, which has resulted in an increased need to use geospatial data and technology in decision-making, as global cities face similar challenges that could benefit from shared solutions. The collaboration with GEOSA, which will last three years, will involve the exchange of knowledge and experiences on:
- The development and management of national geospatial databases;
- The use of technologies such as artificial intelligence, and machine learning in the development of digital twins;
- Digital transformation in the geospatial industry; and
- Development of geospatial products and services that will benefit citizens.
Also, the SLA will work with the Container Depot and Logistics Association (Singapore) to make it easier for heavy vehicles to get where they need to go. Companies that use these kinds of vehicles and their drivers will be able to plan their trips better and save time if they have more information. This means that the companies will save money because they will use less fuel and put out less carbon.
SLA has also been working with SG Enable and Gardens by the Bay to map routes that are easy for people in wheelchairs to use. This collaboration is part of SLA’s support for the Enabling Masterplan 2030, which describes Singapore’s goal of becoming a society that welcomes everyone by 2030.
In this project, information about barrier-free routes is collected and mapped in Bukit Merah and Gardens by the Bay. These routes have things like covered linkways for wheelchairs, ramps, footpaths, pedestrian crossings, and overhead bridges with lifts.
SLA has made a pilot testing app with barrier-free access routes for these two areas so that wheelchair users can give feedback and give ideas for making things better. In the next six months, improvements will be made to more testing areas in terms of data accuracy and ease of use. In the future, the barrier-free access routing function will be added to OneMap as an extra way to find your way, along with the public transportation, cycling, and driving modes that are already there.
SLA has been working with partners to get students excited about geospatial technologies and make them aware of how they can be used to solve everyday problems in the community.
Other projects like this include the annual Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) Innovation Challenge, which is put on with the help of the Space Faculty, the annual Regional Geospatial Youth Forum, and the Young Geospatial Scientist workshop, which is put on with the help of the Singapore Science Centre.
Later this year, the government will announce new ways to help students learn. Through these projects, SLA wants geospatial data and capabilities to be used by everyone.
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The HKSAR Government is dedicated to accomplishing carbon neutrality by 2050 through its proposed progressive and tailored decarbonisation tactics outlined in the “Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2050”. To achieve this objective, the government is working to encourage active community involvement, with a pivotal emphasis on corporate engagement.
The Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC), in conjunction with the City University of Hong Kong’s School of Energy and Environment, conducted a survey to assess corporate awareness of carbon neutrality, current carbon reduction efforts, and challenges faced by the commercial and building-related sectors. The survey included both large corporations/organisations and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The findings indicate that while the majority of the corporations/organisations support the government’s decarbonisation policies, they lack professional knowledge of carbon neutrality, with less than 20% having established specific decarbonisation objectives. Furthermore, the high financial costs of low-carbon transformation and a lack of demand have made decarbonisation efforts challenging.
Conducted from October to December 2022, the survey received 122 responses, with 49% originating from large corporations/organisations and 51% from SMEs. Findings reveal that 72% of respondents lacked awareness of carbon neutrality and the “Hong Kong Climate Action Plan 2050” and Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
Additionally, 66% had not conducted carbon audits or regularly evaluated greenhouse gas emissions. Moreover, 81% had yet to establish carbon neutrality targets, and among the remaining 19%, less than half referenced international standards (43%) or addressed greenhouse gas emissions within their supply chains (48%). The data highlights an urgent need for corporations/organisations to enhance their professional knowledge and establish effective carbon reduction targets and plans.
The survey also examined factors affecting corporations/organisations in establishing carbon neutrality targets and implementing carbon reduction initiatives. The findings indicate that 90% of respondents consider enhancing brand image, reputation, and competitiveness as the main reasons for setting targets, followed by regulatory requirements (48%) and meeting customer demands (44%).
The remaining corporations/organisations that have yet to set targets cited a lack of external support (76%), relevance to business operations (73%), and insufficient awareness or knowledge (71%) as impediments. While 88% would implement carbon neutrality-related measures due to encouragement from business partners, roughly 45% consider a lack of resources or governance structures a hindrance.
The survey identified the top three challenges hindering carbon reduction efforts, with over 60% indicating “higher financial capital requirements,” “lack of price incentives to change current operating models,” and “lack of consumer and customer demand” as major obstacles towards achieving carbon neutrality.
Moreover, the survey provided insights into the requirements of corporations/organisations in attaining carbon neutrality, which can be classified into two categories: “financial/funding support” (78%) and “technical support.” The latter includes carbon neutrality assessment tools (62%), training (54%), consultancy services (52%), and green technologies (49%).
HKPC is aware of the requirements of industries and is dedicated to providing essential support to aid corporations/organisations in devising pragmatic emission reduction plans and initiatives and collaborating to prepare for attaining carbon neutrality.
The GM of HKPC’s Green Living and Innovation Division expressed that HKPC is actively creating comprehensive carbon evaluation tools to assist various industries in comprehending their greenhouse gas emissions and setting suitable carbon reduction targets.
Additionally, the organisation will provide additional capacity building and related advisory services while putting effort into R&D, incentivizing the application of low-carbon technologies across diverse sectors to expedite low-carbon transformation. Moreover, HKPC will maintain its close partnership with industries and support them in R&D, technology, and identifying appropriate funding programs to help all sectors stay abreast of the carbon neutrality trend.
According to the Associate Provost (Academic Affairs) & Professor of The School of Energy and Environment of the City University of Hong Kong, the collaboration with HKPC on the survey has yielded valuable reference data that reflects the actual needs of industries in the current trend towards carbon neutrality. This data will be beneficial to the government, universities, and related institutions in providing appropriate support to help industries prepare for new challenges and achieve carbon neutrality.