Smart Nation Brings Tangible Benefits To Citizens And Businesses

Smart Nation Brings Tangible Benefits To Citizens And Businesses

28 Feb 2019

• Smart Nation has made significant progress and is bringing tangible benefits to citizens and businesses, with more benefits to come

• Singapore will develop AI as a strategic capability

• The Government will harness the ideas and capabilities of citizens and businesses to co-create and participate in building a Smart Nation

Smart Nation has made significant strides to increase citizens’ quality of life and the ease of doing business. As part of Smart Nation efforts, the Government will make a national push towards AI to develop it into a strategic capability for a quantum leap in digital services across both the Government and the private sector. Co-creation underscores the Government’s effort to serve with heart, by ensuring that digital services meet citizens’ needs based on their feedback.

Serving citizens and businesses better through technology

Citizens are experiencing more convenience in their daily lives. With 200,000[^1] users since its launch in October last year, the SingPass Mobile application allows citizens to log in to Government services using biometric authentication instead of passwords. It will be enhanced for secure logins to selected private sector apps. 2.3 million mobile and NRIC registrations have been made on PayNow. Citizens who have linked their NRIC to PayNow have received their SG Bonus, and are able to receive their Edusave awards and CPF lump sum automatically.

[^1]: Updated figure from the COS 2019 Infographic – Serving Citizens and Businesses Better Through Technology

The Moments of Life (MOL) app helps parents manage their child’s early years. Since its launch in July 2018, over 2,000 births have been electronically registered through a single auto-filled form. Electronic registration of births is being expanded to private hospitals, starting with Thomson Medial Centre in January 2019.

The slew of services under MOL will be expanded to include more significant moments, including empowering seniors to lead active and engaged lives, and helping citizens plan for end-of-life matters. This supports citizens’ needs at key junctures by integrating and bundling services across Government agencies, allowing them to save time and enjoy a more seamless and convenient experience of transacting with the Government.

In the e-payments space, greater choice and interoperability are being offered. In 2018, SNDGG, MAS and IMDA launched the Singapore Quick Response Code (SGQR) to simplify QR e-payments to merchants. To increase interoperability, 50,000 Unified Point-of-Sales terminals have been rolled out across the country since the start of 2019. These initiatives have helped merchants offer greater convenience for consumers and reduced cash usage. E-payment values have increased to more than three times of ATM cash withdrawals.

Businesses are also experiencing greater ease and increased connectivity. With MyInfo Business, up to 220,000 SMEs can now open bank accounts and apply for loans easily. More than 80,000 businesses have registered for PayNow Corporate since its launch last August. These initiatives reduce the burden of administrative processes, and enable entrepreneurs to focus on growing their business. Digital tools such as IMDA’s new national e-invoicing standard, and streamlined government transactions, will be introduced to increase connectivity for businesses.

Smart Nation is also facilitating a safer living environment. A new Personal Alert Button is being trialled for the elderly to call for help. The myResponder app has led to the lives of 13 heart attack victims being saved. The Government will also continue to enhance liveability for citizens. This year, GovTech, URA and MSO will be trialing smart sensors to provide real-time availability of kerbside parking lots.

National push towards AI

AI, and in particular deep machine learning, has already begun to make an impact in Singapore. The Government has been using AI for drowning detection, for SkillsFuture’s fraud detection, and for local speech recognition.

Building on Singapore’s good foundation for AI, Singapore will develop AI as a strategic capability. The Government will set up an inter-agency taskforce this year to study how Singapore will develop AI as a strategic capability, and become a trusted global hub for test-bedding, deploying, and scaling AI solutions.

There are opportunities for AI to improve our lives and our economy, with applications in finance, logistics and cybersecurity. The Government hopes to co-create with companies to develop AI solutions, and support SMEs to adopt AI and work on Government use cases. To enable the workforce to use AI tools and participate in the future economy, the Government will support building up local know-how in AI, which includes teaching computational thinking and data literacy in schools, and training adults in data science and AI skills.

Co-creating with citizens from all walks of life in a Smart Nation

To create opportunities for everyone to contribute meaningfully to Smart Nation, the Government is harnessing the ideas and capabilities of citizens and businesses.

The Government is actively co-creating Smart Nation initiatives with citizens through the Smart Nation Co-creating with our People Everywhere (SCOPE) initiative. SCOPE is the Smart Nation and Digital Government Group (SNDGG)’s flagship citizen engagement platform which brings prototypes of the Government’s digital products and ideas to citizens. Feedback is collected to guide the product development process to address real pain-points and needs. This allows citizens to play a key role in digital product and service development, regardless of their level of technical expertise. Over a series of 8 engagements carried out over 4 months, at various Senior Activity Centres, Grassroots and NTUC Events, over 3,500 people have been engaged. SNDGG aims to engage 10,000 citizens annually through SCOPE.

To enable more Singaporeans to contribute to Smart Nation, SNDGG will be signing a Memorandum of Understanding with NTUC to further engage workers and their families, to help them make the most of new jobs and opportunities

Smart Nation is a Whole-of-Nation effort

As Singapore moves ahead in its national effort to build a Smart Nation, the Government will continue to work together with citizens and businesses to create jobs, opportunities, and a sense of transformation and optimism for next generation of Singaporeans.

Enclosed:

Media Factsheet - Moments of Life (pdf - 450kb)

Media Factsheet - MyInfo Business (pdf - 420kb)

Media Factsheet - Smart Nation Co-creating with our People Everywhere (SCOPE) (pdf - 450kb)

Infographic - Serving Citizens and Businesses Better Through Technology (pdf - 8.2mb)

Infographic - Key Milestones for Strategic National Projects (pdf - 190kb)

For media enquiries, please contact:

Tiffany Sandrasageran
Manager
Smart Nation and Digital Government Office, Prime Minister’s Office, Singapore
Mobile: 8363 1762
Email: Tiffany_Sandrasageran@pmo.gov.sg

Melvin Tai
Assistant Director
Smart Nation and Digital Government Office, Prime Minister’s Office, Singapore
Mobile: 9789 1824
Email: Melvin_Tai@pmo.gov.sg