Emergency broadcast system to send disaster alerts via mobile phones: Edwin Tong
Law Minister Edwin Tong said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) is currently working with local telco companies to set up the Cell Broadcast System.
The system will enable the authorities to quickly alert the public in the affected area of an incident and broadcast emergency messages directly to their mobile phones, he said on Aug 20 at the Asean Strategic Policy Dialogue on Disaster Management.
"The messages will provide the public with very clear guidance on the protective measures which they can take."
Mr Tong, who is also Second Minister for Home Affairs, was addressing around 230 guests at the dialogue held at Grand Hyatt Singapore, including government officials, representatives from non-governmental organisations and professionals in disaster relief and management.
The Cell Broadcast System is in addition to the current Public Warning System, which comprises a network of sirens, and SCDF's myResponder App, which alerts the public to respond to nearby minor fires and cardiac arrest cases.
Singapore also has SGSecure, which focuses on acts of terrorism.
In his speech, Mr Tong stressed the importance of communications technology in disaster management, adding: "In emergencies, prompt and timely communication with the public is critical."
Mr Tong said Asean should embrace innovation to improve disaster management capabilities.
"On the technology front, I think we all agree it is fast moving and advancing.
"What was cutting-edge yesterday might not be tomorrow," said Mr Tong, who stressed the importance of using advancements such as artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance disaster management efforts, "for example, to improve the accuracy and speed of early warning systems at detecting and predicting hazards".
He cited the use of an AI-powered weather forecasting system in the Philippines to more accurately predict weather patterns at the neighbourhood level, saying it would provide residents more time to prepare for incidents like flooding.
The minister said that technological innovations have the potential to support relief operations, giving the example of how Singapore deployed cyborg cockroaches following an earthquake in Myanmar earlier in 2025.
Mr Tong said: "These cyborg cockroaches helped in search-and-rescue efforts in very hard-to-reach, inaccessible and even dangerous places under the rubble."
It was the first time in the world such cyborgs were used in a humanitarian operation.
The Straits Times had previously reported that Singapore sent 10 cyborg cockroaches to Myanmar after a 7.7-magnitude quake hit the country and killed thousands.
Mr Tong said Asean has made tremendous progress in disaster management over the years, and added that knowledge exchange would be an area to focus on for the next decade.
The inaugural Singapore-International Disaster and Emergency Management Expo, which will be held in November, would provide a platform for knowledge exchange, he said.
It will be the largest showcase on disaster management and emergency response in the Asia-Pacific.
The conference will cover topics ranging from societal resilience to psychological resilience of the community, said the minister.
Mr Tong said Asean has steadily expanded its capabilities to manage disasters with the Emergency Response and Assessment Team (Asean-ERAT).
The team is equipped with specialised skills to facilitate humanitarian assistance to support countries affected by disasters.
"We recognise, however, that a one-size-fits-all approach cannot meet the needs of a region as diverse as Asean," said Mr Tong, adding that the Asean-ERAT programme has been customised to each country's needs and context.
"The tailored training curriculum takes into consideration the logistics capability of each country as well as the use of local languages.
"This ensures that local responders can react to an emergency not just quickly, but in a way which is most effective, by being able to harness local resources and communicate the local language," he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
7 hours ago
- Straits Times
S'pore firms eager to tap stablecoins and AI for overseas expansion
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Ms Sarita Singh, Stripe's managing director for Southeast Asia, India and Greater China, said stablecoins offer the speed and the reach to stay competitive in a global economy. SINGAPORE – Artificial intelligence and digital currency could help local firms keen on expanding abroad, but they face hurdles such as differing regulations in new markets , noted a study. It found that 85 per cent of businesses polled were confident about reaching customers in new markets within the next year while 62 per cent plan to adopt stablecoins for payments. Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency whose value is pegged to a currency, commodity or financial instrument to reduce price volatility. They are seen as a more stable medium of exchange – particularly for international trade – than volatile tokens like bitcoin. Yet around 25 per cent of those surveyed said they were not familiar with stablecoins, with only 19 per cent already using them. The poll also noted that 93 per cent of respondents are already using or intend to adopt agentic AI within the next 12 months, while 50 per cent or so expect at least 11 per cent of their sales to come from AI-driven channels by 2030. The study of 400 business owners and senior decision makers in Singapore was conducted in July by payments giant Stripe. Ms Sarita Singh, Stripe's managing director for Southeast Asia, India and Greater China, said that cross-border payments in Singapore surged over 30 per cent year on year in 2024. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 18 persons nabbed and 82 vapes seized in HSA ops in Raffles Place and Haji Lane Singapore Woman trapped between train doors: Judge rules SBS Transit '100% responsible' Singapore COE premiums up in all categories except motorcycles; Cat A price climbs 2.5% to $104,524 Singapore Grab users in Singapore shocked by fares of over $1,000 due to display glitch Singapore Nearly 2 years' jail, caning for man caught with at least 100 sexually explicit videos of children Singapore MyRepublic's policy of not imposing download speed limits to stay after takeover: Starhub Singapore Staff member found with active TB after screening at 2 pre-schools; no children diagnosed so far: CDA Singapore Emergency broadcast system to alert S'pore public to disasters via their mobile phones: Edwin Tong 'We expect new technologies like stablecoins and AI to accelerate businesses' growth,' she added. Around 60 per cent of businesses here expect cross-border sales to grow over the next 12 months, but they face hurdles expanding to new markets, with differing regulations as well as shipping and logistics challenges the main concerns. Ms Singh, who was speaking at Stripe Tour 2025 on Aug 20, said stablecoins offer the speed and the reach to stay competitive in a global economy. She also pointed to Singapore's announcement of a stablecoin regulatory framework in 2023 that in turn sparked similar moves from Hong Kong, South Korea and other economies. Stripe unveiled new products and updates focused on stablecoins and AI at its annual event, held this year at Marina Bay Sands. The company, which provides financial services tools to businesses, introduced over 50 upgrades across payments, revenue and embedded finance tools. It also processes stablecoin payments from around 120 countries and recently announced stablecoin financial accounts for customers from more than 100 countries. Stripe introduced an AI foundation model earlier this year that can detect complex payment patterns and signals that were previously out of reach. This allowed the firm to lift its detection rate for attacks on large businesses by 64 per cent.
New Paper
7 hours ago
- New Paper
Emergency broadcast system to send disaster alerts via mobile phones: Edwin Tong
People in Singapore will be alerted to emergencies on their mobile phones via a disaster alert system that will be progressively implemented by early 2026. Law Minister Edwin Tong said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) is currently working with local telco companies to set up the Cell Broadcast System. The system will enable the authorities to quickly alert the public in the affected area of an incident and broadcast emergency messages directly to their mobile phones, he said on Aug 20 at the Asean Strategic Policy Dialogue on Disaster Management. "The messages will provide the public with very clear guidance on the protective measures which they can take." Mr Tong, who is also Second Minister for Home Affairs, was addressing around 230 guests at the dialogue held at Grand Hyatt Singapore, including government officials, representatives from non-governmental organisations and professionals in disaster relief and management. The Cell Broadcast System is in addition to the current Public Warning System, which comprises a network of sirens, and SCDF's myResponder App, which alerts the public to respond to nearby minor fires and cardiac arrest cases. Singapore also has SGSecure, which focuses on acts of terrorism. In his speech, Mr Tong stressed the importance of communications technology in disaster management, adding: "In emergencies, prompt and timely communication with the public is critical." Mr Tong said Asean should embrace innovation to improve disaster management capabilities. "On the technology front, I think we all agree it is fast moving and advancing. "What was cutting-edge yesterday might not be tomorrow," said Mr Tong, who stressed the importance of using advancements such as artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance disaster management efforts, "for example, to improve the accuracy and speed of early warning systems at detecting and predicting hazards". He cited the use of an AI-powered weather forecasting system in the Philippines to more accurately predict weather patterns at the neighbourhood level, saying it would provide residents more time to prepare for incidents like flooding. The minister said that technological innovations have the potential to support relief operations, giving the example of how Singapore deployed cyborg cockroaches following an earthquake in Myanmar earlier in 2025. Mr Tong said: "These cyborg cockroaches helped in search-and-rescue efforts in very hard-to-reach, inaccessible and even dangerous places under the rubble." It was the first time in the world such cyborgs were used in a humanitarian operation. The Straits Times had previously reported that Singapore sent 10 cyborg cockroaches to Myanmar after a 7.7-magnitude quake hit the country and killed thousands. Mr Tong said Asean has made tremendous progress in disaster management over the years, and added that knowledge exchange would be an area to focus on for the next decade. The inaugural Singapore-International Disaster and Emergency Management Expo, which will be held in November, would provide a platform for knowledge exchange, he said. It will be the largest showcase on disaster management and emergency response in the Asia-Pacific. The conference will cover topics ranging from societal resilience to psychological resilience of the community, said the minister. Mr Tong said Asean has steadily expanded its capabilities to manage disasters with the Emergency Response and Assessment Team (Asean-ERAT). The team is equipped with specialised skills to facilitate humanitarian assistance to support countries affected by disasters. "We recognise, however, that a one-size-fits-all approach cannot meet the needs of a region as diverse as Asean," said Mr Tong, adding that the Asean-ERAT programme has been customised to each country's needs and context. "The tailored training curriculum takes into consideration the logistics capability of each country as well as the use of local languages. "This ensures that local responders can react to an emergency not just quickly, but in a way which is most effective, by being able to harness local resources and communicate the local language," he added.
CNA
10 hours ago
- CNA
Deep Dive Podcast - Can tech outsmart scammers?
Singaporeans lost a record S$1.1 billion to scams in 2024 - with a majority of victims under the age of 50. As scammers get smarter and more sophisticated, can technology keep up or will it always be one step behind? In this week's Deep Dive, Li Hongyi and Hygin Prasad Fernandez from Open Government Products talk to Steven Chia and Otelli Edwards about whether it's possible at all to outsmart scammers.
