• Home
• Analysis
• Policy
• Central Government
• Local Government
• Healthcare
• Education
• Digital Inclusion
• Green Government
• Technology
• Security

Central Government, Policy

Singapore Announces Government IT Priorities For 2009

By Kelly Ng | 12 May 2009

The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) announced today that the infocomm industry can look forward to more than 392 tenders worth a total of S$1.73 billion (US$1.18 billion) in financial year 2009.

“Some of the high value projects include Ministry of Education’s Standard ICT Operating Environment for Schools, Defence Science and Technology Agency’s Next Generation Land and Building Management and Maintenance Systems and Ministry of Home Affair’s Immigration and Checkpoint Clearance and Screening Systems,” shares RADM(NS) Ronnie Tay, Chief Executive Officer of IDA, at the annual Industry Briefing on Business Opportunities for Infocomm in the Public Sector this morning.

The biggest project this year is the Standard ICT Operating Environment (SOE) for Schools which has an estimated tender value of S$620 million (US$424 million). SOE for Schools aims to consolidate the provision and management of desktops, messaging and network environment, as well as ICT support for schools. Ministry of Education is expected to call the final tender next month.

“In financial year 2008, close to 65 per cent of 721 infocomm contracts were won by Singapore companies,” says James Kang, Assistant Chief Executive, Government Chief Information Office, IDA, “with NCS and SCS topping the chart in terms of value of contracts awarded.” Of the S$1.73 billion (US$1.18 billion) budget this year, we can expect 65 per cent or more to be awarded to local companies while multi-national companies account for the rest. There has been an increasing proportion of contracts awarded to local companies since financial year 2004.

Some of the 392 new infocomm projects are Calls-for-Collaboration issued by IDA, and these include an invitation to companies to form consortia and integrate their key IT systems, business processes and data through TradeXchange so as to achieve greater business efficiency; the deployment of contactless point-of-sale terminals to promote e-payment adoption via Near Field Communication technology; and the development and deployment of mobile commerce applications, location-based services and innovative mobile services for the Digital Concierge programme.

Besides the SOE for Schools project, other key projects by other government agencies include the Content and Documentation Management System by Defence Science and Technology Agency, and the BorderWatch System by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The Ministry of Defence presented a few key projects which will enhance its operational efficiency and defence management capabilities. Besides the Singapore Armed Forces’ Automated Fuel Dispensing System, which aims to enhance its vehicle fuel dispensing needs through Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) technology, its Knowledge Management System (KMS) seeks to deliver and build a more user-centric knowledge-sharing environment within MINDEF. Supporting the KMS are initiatives such as the content digitisation project, which digitises content for easy archival and accessibility, and the Enterprise Digital Rights Management project, which allows for better control over the security of digitised content.

One key infocomm investment that Defence Science and Technology Agency presented at the event was the next-generation Content and Documentation Management System. The project will review viable technical options and involve acquisition of hardware and software and engagement of professional services. Other projects include the implementation of an alternate disaster recovery site for several infocomm systems; a Resource and Competency Management System for human capital; a system for streamlining approval workflows; a study to examine the migration implications of existing and future applications from Microsoft Windows XP to Windows 7; and wireless infrastructure enhancement. The two key projects which Ministry of Home Affairs plans to implement are BorderWatch System for Immigration and Checkpoints Authority and Fire Safety Online Processing System II (FISOPS II) for the Singapore Civil Defence Force. The BorderWatch System is an intelligence management system that enhances Immigration & Checkpoints Authority’s data mining, data analysis and targeting capabilities, and provides real time information support to checkpoints. FISOPS II is a key SCDF system for the processing of all Fire Safety and Shelter related matters, with new capabilities to process on-line 3D building plan submissions from the Building Control Authority (BCA) on-line portal.

Ministry of Manpower (MOM) plans to call a tender for IT Infrastructure and Application Systems Outsourcing later in 2009, to provide comprehensive maintenance and support services for MOM’s IT infrastructure and application systems. The project also includes plans to migrate and redesign the MOM website, which includes the provision of hosting, maintenance and support services.

---