Singapore govt to form ministerial-level group for digital tech strategies

THE Singapore government is forming a new ministerial-level planning group to coordinate its digital technology strategies and responses.

Starting May 1, the Smart Nation and Digital Government Group (SNDGG) will be set up in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the PMO said in a statement on Monday.

The group's ambit will be to coordinate government efforts to improve citizens' lives through deploying digital and smart technologies; grow economic value and catalyse innovation through developing digital enablers and platforms; and drive digital transformation for the public service.

It will be overseen by a ministerial committee chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean. Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim will be deputy chairman.

Dr Yaacob will also be the minister-in-charge of cybersecurity and the Info-communications Media Development Authority of Singapore (IMDA).

Ng Chee Khern will lead the group as the permanent secretary for smart nation and digital government. He will be concurrently holding his current appointment as permanent secretary for defence development at the Defence Ministry.

The new group is collectively formed by the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO), and the Government Technology Agency (GovTech).

The SNDGO is formed by the Digital Government Directorate of the Finance Ministry, the Government Technology Policy Department in the Ministry of Communications and Information, and the Smart Nation Programme Office in the PMO.

GovTech, currently a statutory board under MCI, will be placed under the PMO as the implementing agency of SNDGO. Mr Ng will remain as chairman of the GovTech board.