Singapore To Host International Forum On E-Government

Exciting line-up of prominent speakers and discussion topics

1.  Following the success of the iGov Global Exchange in 2009, Singapore will once again play host to 300 high-level Government and infocomm industry delegates from around the world on 14-15 June 2010 at the iGov Global Forum.  This international forum will bring together experts and practitioners from around the world to discuss experiences, challenges and opportunities in developing successful e-Government strategies and solutions. The Guest-of-Honour and keynote speaker for the forum is Mr Peter Ho, Head of Civil Service and Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Singapore.

2.  Themed "e-Government: The Next Quantum Leap", the iGov Global Forum is jointly organised by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), in partnership with the Singapore Exhibition Services (SES).  It will be held concurrently with the annual Infocomm Media Business Exchange (imbX), Asia's largest business platform for the infocomm and media industries, bringing together government officials, business leaders and industry professionals to showcase their latest innovations, network, exchange ideas and tap new markets.

Sharing Singapore's Ideas for the Next Level of e-Government

3.  Over the years, Singapore has achieved consistently high rankings in global ICT and e-Government surveys. Singapore retained its top position in the 2010 Waseda University World e-Government Ranking and emerged second in World Economic Forum's Global Information Technology Report. The Singapore Government is building on this strong foundation to move to the next level of e-Government.

4.  On Singapore's adoption of e-Government, Ms Chan Lai Fung, Permanent Secretary (Finance Performance), Ministry of Finance and Chairman of the iGov Council said "Singapore's e-Government efforts have evolved over the years. We have moved from simply harnessing the power of infocomm technology for task automation to providing integrated e-services to the public. In the next phase, we hope to see greater collaboration with the industry and the wider community to create even more compelling e-services for our citizens and businesses."

5.  In addition to future e-Government plans, Singapore will also be sharing with foreign delegates and visitors at the iGov Global Forum Singapore's infocomm journey so as to provide insights on how governments can tackle e-Government issues to better serve the needs of their citizens and other customers.

6.  "Exchanges and interactions can bring about new perspectives. At international platforms such as the iGov Forum, experiences and case studies from experts and practitioners provide useful discussion points for all participants. Such mutual learning will help us draw new insights and discover new possibilities in e-Government," said RADM(NS) Ronnie Tay, Chief Executive Officer, IDA.

7.  "The iGov Global Forum presents an ideal backdrop for intelligent interactions between leaders from the government and industry sectors," said Stephen Tan, Chief Executive, Singapore Exhibition Services. "International delegates and visitors tackling a new era of e-Government will also experience the latest solutions that have brought real benefits at imbX, the largest global platform in Asia to network, exchange ideas and explore relevant collaborations and business partnerships."

Event Highlights

8.  The iGov Global Forum is made up of two key components – a full day forum comprising a morning plenary session and four parallel workshops in the afternoon; and one day of site visits for hands-on experience on some of the infocomm projects developed for the Singapore Government.

Full-Day Forum

9.  The forum on 14 June will facilitate mutual learning and sharing among 300 participants from 17 countries, including government chief information officers, business leaders, international bodies that benchmark e-Government performances and senior public officers.  A total of 10 international experts and leaders in e-Government will be speaking at the iGov Global Forum, and the speakers include:

• Mr Anders Henneberg, Vice-President, KMD A/S, Denmark

• Dr Bruno Lanvin, Executive Director, eLab@INSEAD

• Dr David McClure, Associate Administrator, Office of Citizen Services and Communications, General Services Administration, USA

• Mr Grant Powell, Executive Director, Accenture Management Consulting Innovation Centre

• Mr James Kang, Assistant Chief Executive, Government Chief Information Office, IDA

• Mr Lim Swee Cheang, Director/Chief Executive Officer, Institute of Systems Science, National University of Singapore

• Mr Seah Chin Siong, Chief Executive Officer, IDA International

• Dr Soumitra Dutta, The Roland Berger Chaired Professor of Business and Technology, Academic Director of eLab, INSEAD

• Dr Toshio Obi, Director, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) e-Government Research Centre, and Professor, Waseda University, Japan

• Dr Wong Poh Kam, Professor, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore

Site Visits

10.  Delegates can go on site visits in the afternoon of 15 June to explore Singapore's development in e-Government innovation, education and healthcare. Participants can choose from one of three site visits, namely the SOEasy Showcase, Nanyang Polytechnic and KK Women's and Children's Hospital. Through a hands-on experience, delegates can gain a better understanding of how some of these infocomm projects are developed for the Singapore Government. Please refer to Annex A for information on the site visits.

11.  The iGov Global Forum is an open platform for governments and industry players to present their success stories and innovations in e-Government, as well as to encourage sharing on best practices, and consider e-Government collaboration with an international audience. For more information on the event, visit www.igovglobalforum.com.

JOINTLY ISSUED BY MINISTRY OF FINANCE, INFOCOMM DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF SINGAPORE AND SINGAPORE EXHIBITION SERVICES PTE LTD