The Singapore Cooperation Programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Commonwealth Secretariat are co-organising the second run of the "International Disaster Management Course" from 3 to 14 May 2010. Conducted by the Civil Defence Academy, the two-week course is attended by 23 government officials from 17 Commonwealth member countries.

Through lectures, case studies, group exercises, country presentations and site visits, participants will be equipped with a better understanding of Singapore's unique policies and actions on disaster risk reduction and management. In addition, the course will address emergency response and incident management at both the tactical and operational levels, and has a new segment on business continuity planning for a more holistic coverage of the subject. The Commonwealth Secretariat also provides additional expertise through the active contributions of Mr Julius Kaberere on how the Secretariat delivers practical assistance to countries struck by disasters.

Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director for Technical Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, co-officiated the opening ceremony of the course with Mr Julius Kaberere, Adviser (Technical Cooperation and Strategic Response Group) from the Commonwealth Secretariat. Mr Koh underscored the Singapore-Commonwealth Secretariat Third Country Training Programme as one of the longest standing and most successful collaborations the Singapore Cooperation Programme has with development partners. He added that following the successful inaugural run of the course for Commonwealth participants in May 2009, Singapore was pleased to re-run it this year with the Commonwealth Secretariat, to further strengthen disaster management capacity in fellow Commonwealth member countries.

Mr Kaberere affirmed the productive partnership and thanked Singapore for the opportunity to train and enhance the capabilities of Commonwealth member states in managing disasters. He remarked that the course, which arose from a mandate from the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) on disaster management, will help the participating Commonwealth member countries to develop their policy and governance frameworks necessary for organising and managing all actions in disaster risk reduction and management.

During the closing ceremony for the course, Ms Desiree Joseph, Mitigation Manager, Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management, Trinidad and Tobago, who was also class representative, delivered a thank you speech on behalf of the class. The full speech can be accessed by clicking on the link below.

Click here to read full speech by Ms Desiree Joseph.

Singapore is at the fore-front globally in the practical use of leading technology to manage its land transport system efficiently. Singapore has also been able to apply new technology on a large-scale in an urban city with strong support from its people as part of its goal in achieving a people-centred land transport system.

The objective of the course was to enable participants to tap Singapore’s experience on harnessing technology to better-utilise the road system for smooth traffic flow and to reduce traffic congestion; utilising an online system for convenient transactions on vehicle matters, including payment of road tax; enhancing electronic payment systems for both public and private transport systems as part of the plan to extend the usage of the contactless smartcards beyond transport to non-transit applications.

This 9-day course conducted by LTA Academy attracted 26 participants and covered the following topics: • Traffic modelling • Traffic signal control system, including camera at traffic junction • Electronic Road Pricing • Traffic information and advisory system for expressways • "traffic.smart" – compilation and dissemination of traffic information to public • ITS Control Centre, including traffic control of underground expressways • Integrated Intelligent transport system- “iTransport” • Online system on vehicle-related transactions, including payment of vehicle taxes • Online system on vehicle inspections • Fare Ticketing System/Electronic payment for high volume and fast road traffic • Case study/Group Exercise • Site Visits.

Singapore recently welcomed 24 participants from 9 ASEAN countries for the second run of the "International Trade Capacity Building Seminar", which was held from 22 to 26 February 2010. The 5 -day seminar was co-organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and ADETEF, the French agency for international cooperation in economic and financial assistance (Assistance au Développement des Échanges en Technologies Économiques et Financiers), under the auspices of the Singapore-France Third Country Training Programme.

The seminar presented participants with the opportunity to gain a better understanding of trade policy matters and multilateral trading systems. It also sought to develop knowledge of the principles, process and techniques of economic negotiations. Participants were able to benefit from the knowledge of four experienced trainers from France and Singapore, namely Mr Paul-Henri Ravier, the former Deputy Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Mr Jean Marc Mignon, Deputy Permanent Representative of France to WTO, Mr Yannick Richet, senior advisor in ADETEF and Ms Margaret Liang, Consultant on WTO and Trade Issues to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore.

In her opening speech, Mrs Belinda Tay, Deputy Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, noted that "Our partnership with France is one of our most successful collaborations with development partners". The French Ambassador to Singapore His Excellency Olivier Caron reiterated the good cooperation between Singapore and France. He also highlighted some interesting parts of the programme, namely the learning journey to Jurong Island and the practical training on negotiating trade issues.

The Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) recently organised the "Use of Information Technology (IT) in the Public Sector" course which was held in Singapore from 25 August to 7 September 2009. The 2-week course was sponsored by MFA under the Singapore Cooperation Programme Training Award (SCPTA) and the Small Island Developing States Technical Cooperation Programme (SIDSTEC).

Conducted by the Singapore e-Government Leadership Centre (eGL), the course equipped participants with useful practices for the management of IT in the public administration of their countries by sharing Singapore's experience in the computerisation of the her public service. Participants would be able to leverage on IT innovatively to enhance economic competitiveness and quality of services.

The course attracted 22 participants from 20 countries. One participant, Mr Anil Kumar Choudhary, a Director from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation of India lauded, " The training capsule for ‘IT in Public Administration’ was excellent and very enriching for all the participants at large. I personally gained a lot and hope that other participants also must have been benefitted from the professional team of Speakers and the country’s developmental approach towards socio-economic growth. I am sure that I will be able to share the Singapore’s experience and replicate the rich IT umbrella in the area of e-governance."

The “Human Resource Management in the Public Sector” course was recently organised by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the auspices of the Singapore Cooperation Training Award (SCPTA) and Small Island Developing States Technical Cooperation Programme (SIDSTEC). The 10-day course attracted 27 participants from 26 countries.

Conducted by Civil Service College, Singapore, the course aimed to impart Singapore's experience in the management of talent within public sector organizations.

Participants learnt about the trends and developments in the field of human resource management and the application of various strategies and measures. Important topics like Recruitment and Selection, Performance Management and Training and Development were covered by the experienced lecturers.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has collaborated with the Commonwealth Secretariat to jointly organise and sponsor the "Disaster Management" course in Singapore from 18 to 29 May 2009. This is the first time that Singapore and the Commonwealth Secretariat have collaborated on a programme in disaster management, arising from a need identified by some Commonwealth member countries following the 2004 Asian Tsunami and other natural disasters. 24 participants from 19 Commonwealth member countries attended the course.

Conducted by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) at the Civil Defence Academy, the course will deepen participants' understanding of the principles and approaches relating to crisis and disaster management, and the range of tactical and operational roles undertaken by government agencies in disaster management. Participants will also acquire a strategic overview of Singapore’s approach towards disaster management.

Through lectures, case studies, conceptual discussions, group work, presentations and field visits to relevant institutions, the course will cover key topics like "policy and legislative frameworks", " risk reduction and mitigation measures", "contingency and continuity planning", and "information and media management". During the opening ceremony at the Civil Defence Academy, Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director, Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore told participants that the course will facilitate a wide-ranging discourse among our international participants on the issues and challenges facing emergency authorities at a national/state level.

The Singapore Cooperation Programme, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD) have initiated their first trilateral partnership to provide technical assistance to African countries, From 20 to 30 April 2009, the three partners have co-organised the "Urban and Regional Development Planning and Management" course in Singapore for 20 participants from the 9 African countries of Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Namibia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The course, facilitated by the Singapore's Civil Service College, aims to provide the African participants with the requisite knowledge and analytical skills to design effective, socially acceptable, and environmentally-sound sustainable urban and regional development policies and programmes. It provides opportunities for the African planners to learn from the effective urban management experiences of Singapore and will facilitate the exchange of experience and ideas while establishing institutional linkages between African and Asian planners.

Mr Kazunobu Onogawa, Director UNCRD, Mr Masaru Todoroki, Resident Representative JICA, and Mr Koh Tin Fook, Director Technical Cooperation Directorate, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, officiated at the opening ceremony of the course. In his opening address, Mr Koh said: "Our aim, through these successive courses, is to train a group of core personnel in the key urban planning agencies who can effectively lead and initiate change in their countries."

The Management of Infectious Disease Outbreak Course was conducted by Communicable Disease Centre, Tan Tock Seng Hospital (Singapore) and Avicenne Hospital (France) from 30 June to 4 July 2008.

The five-day course familiarised 17 participants from 8 ASEAN countries with general concepts of disease outbreak management and the development of appropriate response plans that could suitably address and control the situation. To combat infectious diseases that do not respect borders, the SCP participants learnt about new, emerging & re-emerging contagious diseases, epidemiological principles and its applications, the building-up of the hospitals' infrastructural capabilities and applying effective infection control practices and measures.

An Outbreak Simulation Exercise was conducted on the last day of the course to allow our SCP participants to apply what they had learnt and shared during the course. The simulation also prepared them to work as a team to handle critical situations during an event of outbreak of disease. "What you take back to your respective countries will be the know-how on strengthing your home defences against the spread of infectious diseases. But above all, you can take comfort in the fact that you are not alone in this fight against infectious diseases, you have the support of your friends from ASEAN" said Mr. Antoine Mynard from the French Embassy, Ministry of Foreign & European Affairs at the closing ceremony of the course.

One of the SCP participants, Dr Emylina HJ Abo Rahman commented at the close of the course, "It has been exciting listening to the experience shared by Singapore and other countries in terms of disease outbreak management. The knowledge that I gained from this course could be adopted at home when needs arise."

The Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) recently welcomed our first participant from Croatia, Ms Mirela Pasic, who was here to attend the Advanced Nursing Specialty (Pain Management) course. The course was conducted in Singapore by SingHealth Alice Lee Institute of Advanced Nursing, Singapore General Hospital from 28 May - 10 June 2008.

We managed to ask Ms Mirela Pasic a few questions during her stay here:

Q1. Can you summarize what Advanced Nursing Specialty (Pain Management) means to you?
First, I must say thanks to the Government of Singapore for giving me a chance to participate in this course. Personally, it means a lot as I can apply the knowledge learnt to the hospital where I worked.

Q2. Where and how did you hear about this course?
The Croatian Ministry of Health sent an invitation to my Hospital - Children's Hospital Zagreb.

Q3. Have you ever been to Singapore prior to this course?
No, this is my first time in Singapore. I was impressed with the people's hospitality.

Q4. How do you feel about being the first participant from Croatia to attend a course under the SCP?
I am very excited to be the first to represent Croatia and I am trying to represent my country in the best possible way.

Q5. Has this programme helped you?
Yes, it did. I have learnt a lot of new things about pain management.

Q6. What have you learnt from the programme and how will you apply it to your organization back home?
With the help of my Head Nurse, I hope that we can put pain management on a next level in my hospital, to improve our work plan.

Q7. How can we improve the programme?
I work in a children's hospital so my first concern are children. Maybe there should be a class on how to manage a small child.

Q8. Did you find the social programme to the Singapore Zoological Gardens interesting?
The trip to the zoo was perfect and the whole group had a good time.

Q9. What other interesting places have you visited?
I was all around - Little China (Chinatown), Little India, Sentosa, Museums...

Q10. Will you be spreading the word about Singapore to your fellow countrymen?
Yes, I will and I have over 200 pictures taken in the day and night to show all the magic of Singapore.

18 participants attended the Management Workshop in Integrated Water Resources Management: The Singapore Experience from 15 - 21 January 2008. The workshop was conducted by the Public Utilities Board (PUB) under the auspices of the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP).

The workshop provided the SCP participants an insight and understanding of integrated water resources management. Besides classroom lectures, the participants were also brought on site visits to PUB installations.

Mr Lobind Mitradev from Mauritius commented that the technical assistance provided under the SCP was "no doubt helpful to the developing countries in managing the water resources in an efficient way and implement all the technology in water supply, taking Singapore as a model." Ms Monique Jubithana from Suriname enjoyed learning about the Singapore experience so much so that she wished that the course could be extended to a few more days!

25 participants attended the Dispute Resolution Systems: Policies, Structures and Strategies course from 14 - 25 January 2008. The course was conducted by the Singapore Mediation Centre (SMC) under the auspices of Singapore Cooperation Programme.

SMC is a non-profit organization whose mission is to create an environment where people can work together to find effective solutions to conflicts by broadening awareness of, and providing access to, constructive means of dispute resolution.

Through this programme, participants were given an overview of dispute resolution mechanisms and institutions in Singapore and an understanding of the policies of and strategies undertaken by government and private service providers of mediation and other Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) services to establish themselves.

Mr Thulikki Mwafufya from Namibia expressed his gratitude to the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs for arranging such a course, "I have learnt quite a lot from this course and it was also wonderful to share experiences with other nationals of different countries. Namibia currently has only a formal mediation in labour disputes, and I think it will be a good idea to do mediation in any other conflicts."

Mr Huzaifa Mohamed from Maldives added, "It has been a useful training programme and the co-ordination between the participants and the organization have been excellent. The interest of the participants have been given due consideration."

28 Singapore Cooperation Programme participants from 28 countries attended the Public Sector Housing in Singapore course conducted by Civil Service College (CSC) from 8 – 21 Jan 2008 under the framework of Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP).

Over the years, Singapore has found the number of kampongs – the Malay word for village - dwindling. More than 80 percent of Singaporean households now live in Housing Development Board (HDB) apartments.

The course imparted knowledge on how the kampongs went out of style by sharing with the participants on Singapore’s Public Housing Policies, understanding the roles of various agencies in carrying out these policies and identifying issues and challenges in public housing.

Mr Prakash Bahadur Raghubanshi from Nepal was thankful to SCP for providing him with the opportunity to participate in the course. "The training executed by CSC is streamlined and qualitative to cover the actual context of public sector housing. The training programme is helpful and satisfactory to the best of my knowledge and I belief and hope that SCP in collaboration with CSC, will provide similar courses in the international arena in future."

The Visual and Electronic Navigation in the Malacca-Singapore Straits course was conducted by Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, Ministry of Transport from 8 - 21 January 2008. The ten-day course was jointly sponsored by the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Japan International Cooperation Agency under the Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21).

The Malacca-Singapore Straits carries half the world’s oil and more than a third of its commerce. Given the number of piracy attacks over the years, it has forced countries and companies that use the Malacca-Singapore Straits to look into enhancing the safety on the increasingly busy waterways.

19 Government officials, whose work was to either plan, operate or maintain marine visual aids for navigational purposes were trained on the navigational system used in the Straits of Malacca.

A Namibian delegation headed by the Permanent Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office, Ms Nangula Mbako, visited Singapore from 7 to 9 January 2008 to learn from Civil Service College (CSC), the running and setting up of a training centre for civil servants. This is so that they could institutionalise the Namibian Institute for Public Administration and Management (NIPAM).

CSC provided a comprehensive briefing, comprising an overview of how CSC was conceived and set up as well as explaining the "Balanced Scorecard" management system that the Singapore Government employs for assessing the performance of the various ministries.

Mr Peter Ho, Permanent Secretary of Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) hosted the Namibian delegation to lunch at MFA Tanglin Room where he candidly shared Singapore's experience in the selection and provision of training to civil servants. Ms Mbako remarked that the Singaporean model was worth learning and adapting for Namibia and was appreciative of the programme arranged by CSC and MFA.