SINGAPORE: River Safari has added a female red panda to its all-male brood, under an international breeding programme for the endangered animal.

Originally from Melbourne Zoo, Keta (pronounced “key-ta”) arrived in Singapore in January, said Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), which manages River Safari, in a press release on Thursday (Aug 30).

However, Keta – who turns three years old in December – did not take to her new environment immediately. It took keepers eight months to earn her trust and familiarise her with the exhibit, WRS said.

River Safari currently has two other red pandas – both male – named Karma and Puskar. Karma – who turns six years old in December – has been identified to be Keta’s mate.

Introducing Keta to the two male red pandas was another “interesting challenge”, WRS said.

“As with introducing any new animals, it is not uncommon to see small fights at the beginning,” said River Safari’s assistant curator Halim Ali. 

“We need to have plenty of patience to let the couple get used to each other’s scent and presence over time. Keta is more receptive of her future mate now.”

Keta will be rotated with the other two red pandas for display until she is comfortable with her playmates, WRS said.

Red pandas are native to Asia, and are classified as endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List due to threats such as habitat loss and poaching. There are an estimated 10,000 red pandas left in the wild.

SINGAPORE: About 70 per cent of people in Singapore do not fully understand what plastics to recycle, resulting in the majority of plastic products being disposed of as general waste, according to a report released by the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) on Thursday (Aug 30).

The report, which includes a survey of more than 1,000 people in Singapore on their plastic usage habits and attitudes towards recycling, is the culmination of an eight-month study, SEC said in a media release. 

It was commissioned jointly with Deloitte & Touche Enterprise Risk Services.

According to the report, 45 per cent of respondents said they needed more information on the different types of plastics, and what can and cannot be recycled. 

As for why they do not recycle, 42 per cent of respondents cited inconvenience as a reason.

READ: What will it take for Singapore to give up plastic?

SEC executive director Jen Teo noted that one way to help people improve their recycling habits is to have companies print recyclability information on their packaging products. 

This, she said, will “facilitate upstream sorting and recycling”, making the collection of recyclable plastic items more efficient.

“This initiative would go together with a new education campaign to teach the public what and how to recycle their plastic waste,” she said.

“NEW CIRCULAR ECONOMY” FOR PLASTICS NEEDED: SEC

The report also suggests that the creation of a “new circular economy” for plastics could lead to an improvement in Singapore’s plastic recycling rates, said SEC.

SEC chairman Isabella Loh explained that currently, Singapore’s plastic ecosystem is “mostly linear”. This means that plastic goes from producers to consumers and then to the waste bin.

READ: “Cannot sell … so they burn” – what’s next in the uncertain future for plastic waste in Singapore?

“We need to connect producers, consumers and downstream users to form a circular economy for plastics so they are collected, recycled and reused to generate other products,” she said. “This will reduce the pressure on Singapore’s waste stream as well as conserve natural resources.

“Singapore has the knowledge and the talent to develop innovative methods to reintroduce recycled plastic into the economy to aid growth and build a circular plastics economy,” she added.

Several recommendations to help improve Singapore’s plastics ecosystem were also made in the report.

One of them is to build a market for recycled plastic through innovation.

SEC suggested that governments and public sector organisations could step in to support existing markets in Singapore that are using specific types of plastics for manufacturing recycled plastic pellets.

It explained that recycled plastic can be used to support major manufacturing segments in Singapore, particularly biomedical manufacturing, electronics and general manufacturing industries.

READ: Singapore shoppers take 820 million plastic bags from supermarkets each year

READ: The monstrous scale of plastic bag wastage in Singapore

“For example, several start-up companies around the world are devising machines to produce plastic filaments to be used for 3D printing machines,” said SEC. “Singapore’s plastic waste stream could be directed towards recycling for biomedicine companies for 3D printing.

“Similarly, recycled plastics can be used for flat-panel displays and ink and toner cartridges for the electronics manufacturing sector, as well as the use of artificial intelligence for waste management.”

The report was launched at SEC’s conference on Thursday, which was also held in conjunction with the annual Singapore Environmental Achievement Awards. 

A total of 14 companies and organisations were honoured at the ceremony for their sustainable business practices.

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans ranging from secondary students to working adults will get to pick up artificial intelligence (AI) basics for free as part of a programme called AI for Everyone (AI4E) unveiled on Thursday (Aug 30).

The programme which targets 10,000 participants aims to familiarise them with AI and help them understand how it can be used in their daily lives, said Minister for Communications and Information S Iswaran at an event to commemorate the first-year milestone for AI Singapore (AISG).

It will also help dispel fears that AI will replace jobs, according to a separate joint fact sheet by AISG, Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA) and the National University of Singapore (NUS).

READ: The Big Read: The rise of artificial intelligence and how lives will forever be changed

Materials for the three-hour workshop will be provided by tech giants Intel and Microsoft. 

These free workshops will start from the end of this month and will run for three years. 

AISG is a national programme set up to enhance Singapore’s AI capabilities and to power the country’s digital economy, its website said.

EQUIPPING THE PROFESSIONALS

A more industry-centric programme called AI for Industry (AI4I), was also announced on Thursday, targeting about 2,000 engineers, software developers, as well as managers and executives who are technically inclined and are keen to learn or deepen their Python programming skills to build applications, the fact sheet added.

The Python programming language is one of the primary coding language for work in AI.

On completing the Data Scientist in Python course comprising 20 modules that would take three months to complete, participants will receive a Foundations in AI certification.

The course will cost S$500, but IMDA will provide financial support to those who qualify under the TechSkills Accelerator (TeSA) Critical Infocomm Technology Resource Programme+ (CITREP+). 

A full-time National Serviceman or student will receive up to 100 per cent fee support while trainees sponsored by small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and Singaporeans 40 and above will get up to 90 per cent of support. 

Microsoft and Intel are also content partners for AI4I, and will be joined by DataCamp, on online data science learning platform. Courses will start from end August, the fact sheet said. 

“Singapore needs a deeper bench strength of talent to further grow our AI ecosystem,” Mr Iswaran said.

“AI Singapore can and will play a key role in this regard by working closely with its research and industry partners to nurture a strong pipeline of AI talent for Singapore.”

These initiatives come on the heels of AI being identified as one of four technologies to transform the local infocommunications media (ICM) sector. 

Then-Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim said last November that AI is not high-brow or obscure a technology, but one that is already present in our daily lives. 

Companies, big and small, can use existing AI solutions to improve their business offerings, he added. 

Within the public sector, the drive towards AI has already kicked up a gear. 

In the Digital Government Blueprint launched this June, one of the key performance indicators for the next five years include all ministries and related agencies having to use AI for service delivery or policy making. 

SINGAPORE: A 43-year-old man has been fined S$5,000 for importing a bird without a licence, said the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) and Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) in a joint news release on Wednesday (Aug 29).

Hairolhisham Sa’don was caught on Feb 9 at Woodlands Checkpoint. 

ICA officers who stopped him for checks found a live Red-whiskered Bulbul cramped in a paper packet, which was placed in a drawstring pouch and hidden in a handbag.

“The manner of transportation caused unnecessary suffering to the bird,” said the authorities, adding that the bird has since been placed under the care of Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

In sentencing Hairolhisham, a second charge of failing to ensure that the animal was not subjected to unnecessary suffering was taken into consideration.

“Animals that are smuggled into Singapore are of unknown health status and may introduce exotic diseases such as bird flu into the country,” cautioned the authorities.

Anyone found guilty of the offence may be fined up to S$10,000, jailed up to 12 months or both.

SINGAPORE: Economic ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Wednesday (Aug 29) inked two agreements aimed at deepening the integration of the services sector and improving trade facilitation within the region. 

This included the 10th package of commitments under the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS) – the final package to be concluded as part of a regional accord to progressively reduce restrictions on services trade. The AFAS was first signed in 1995. 

Under the newly signed package, member states have increased the depth of their commitments and allowed market access into new services sectors, said Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing. 

This means that ASEAN services providers will now enjoy a “legally-binding guarantee of the widest preferential services market access” into ASEAN markets in the region’s history, while facing fewer discriminatory barriers, he added in his opening remarks for the signing ceremony.

Services providers, including those based in Singapore, will also find it easier to participate in sectors that were previously closed in the region.

These include logistics, air transport, maritime transport, computer, telecommunications, tourism, construction service sectors, and professional services.

A protocol to amend the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) was also signed on Wednesday, paving the way for the implementation of the ASEAN-wide self-certification (AWSC) regime. 

The new regime, first mooted by the grouping’s economic ministers in 2009, will allow certified exporters to self-certify the origin of their exports and enjoy preferential treatment, said Mr Chan. 

This benefits both importers and exporters as it does away with the administrative hassle and additional costs to do with the application of a Certificate of Origin. It also helps improve efficiency for issuing authorities. 

Singapore-based exporters, for instance, can potentially enjoy annual savings of about half a million dollars, the minister said. 

With the two agreements being longstanding initiatives that have been much anticipated by the private sector, Mr Chan said they will contribute to a more open and facilitative business environment in ASEAN. 

“Goods and services trade continue to be integral to our regional economic integration journey, and are the foundations of our regional trade architecture,” he said. “They will help us to navigate the issues of today and the future, and continue to help us seize opportunities.”

Meanwhile, two agreements that would support regional e-commerce flows and power the digital economy were also endorsed.

They are the ASEAN Digital Integration Framework – which will assist member states in improving the digital ecosystem and monitor progress in the region’s digital integration – and the ASEAN agreement on e-commerce. 

The latter is the grouping’s first agreement in this area, and will be signed on the sidelines of the 17th ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Council Meeting in November. 

Separately, a memorandum of understanding aimed at providing more support for start-ups and businesses in Japan and Singapore was signed by both countries on the sidelines of the annual meeting held at Shangri-La Hotel.

Economic ministers and diplomats from the 10 ASEAN member states are gathered in Singapore this week for the annual ASEAN Economic Ministers’ (AEM) Meeting and related meetings with key counterparts across the region.

Singapore is the ASEAN chair this year.

SINGAPORE: Despite the wild boar attack on a woman outside Punggol Secondary School on Tuesday (Aug 28), residents in the area that Channel NewsAsia spoke with said the animals are usually not aggressive and will not attack unless provoked. 

One man said that he has seen wild boars around the Punggol Serangoon reservoir, about 2 kilometres from the secondary school, more than 20 times in the last two years. 

“They are usually in the jungle but sometimes they come out to eat around the slopes of the hill. There are a lot of them, probably 20-25 wild boars from babies to middle-sized to adults,” Mr Amalraj said. 

They usually run away when they see people, he added. 

A retired resident Mr Koh said that he once saw more than 10 wild boars grazing near the Lorong Halus bridge that spans the reservoir. 

READ: Punggol Secondary students told to be vigilant after boar injures school employee: Principal

“I’ve seen them many times and they are usually finding food. They were not fierce or aggressive and I could even go up close to take photos,” Mr Koh said. 

He cycles along Sungei Punggol daily, which runs along many of the new residential projects in the neighbourhood, and has seen people feed the boars, usually in the evening. 

Wild boars have also been spotted at the forested areas around Punggol Safra near Sam Kee LRT station, about 1 kilometre away from the secondary school. 

Homemaker Mrs Lee told Channel NewsAsia that she has heard from other residents as well as her children’s classmates that they have spotted wild boars near Punggol Safra but they were “friendly”. 

READ: Government working with stakeholders to ‘manage wild boar issues’: MND

Retiree Susie Woo said her group of elderly friends who play Pokemon Go together have warned each other to watch out for wild boars in the area when they are out and about. 

“We saw them at My Waterway @ Punggol where there is a Pokemon gym. I saw two big boars. One was digging the ground and it’s fine. Nothing happened. I saw boars three times there,” Mdm Woo said. 

“It’s not so serious. If you don’t provoke them they will not attack you,” she added.

Resident Low Woon Teck said that there used to be a field with an area of big trees that made it look “like a forest”. He came across two boars under a flyover while waiting for the rain to pass when he was out running.

“Why would I be scared? They were grazing like goats and just running up and down. Everybody was watching under the flyover,” Mr Low said. 

“There are also wild dogs here but it’s nothing much. It’s not a real concern to me,” he added. 

SINGAPORE: Singapore and Japan on Wednesday (Aug 29) signed a partnership aimed at bolstering support for start-ups and businesses from both countries. 

The memorandum of understanding (MOU) was inked by Singapore’s Economic Development Board (EDB) and Enterprise Singapore, as well as the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO). 

Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing and Japan’s Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry Hiroshige Seko witnessed the signing, which took place on the sidelines of the 50th ASEAN Economic Ministers’ Meeting at the Shangri-La Hotel.

The MOU, which aims to strengthen links between Japan and Singapore’s innovation ecosystems, will see the three agencies facilitate access and opportunities through creating initiatives, events and information exchanges for start-ups and businesses. 

The MOU also marks Japan’s inclusion in Singapore’s Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) initiative. 

READ: ASEAN economic ministers ink 2 agreements to remove barriers in goods and services trade

A key recommendation in the Committee on the Future Economy report, the GIA was launched in 2017 to strengthen Singapore’s connection with leading innovation hubs and key markets around the world.  

Enterprise Singapore’s deputy chief executive officer Ted Tan described Japan as a global leader in innovation, especially in the areas of manufacturing and engineering. 

“Through this partnership, we will work with JETRO and their partners to enable Singapore start-ups to tap on Japan’s strong innovation ecosystem, and work together with high potential Japanese start-ups to jointly enter the ASEAN market through Singapore,” he said. 

Echoing that, EDB’s assistant managing director and chief digital officer Beh Kian Teik said the partnership will provide valuable access and opportunities for Singapore and Japanese enterprises to connect, partner and co-create solutions.

This will in turn bolster the start-up and innovation ecosystems in both countries, he added.

SINGAPORE: Eight educators from various institutions received the President’s Award for Teachers from President Halimah Yacob at the Istana on Wednesday evening (Aug 29).

The award recognises the recipients’ dedication to the holistic development of their students.

The recipients were chosen from over 2,500 nominations by school leaders, teachers, former and current students, and parents.

Seven other finalists were also recognised for their contributions. The finalists will receive their certifications at separate ceremonies.

They will also receive a professional development grant to attend any overseas or local conferences.

Since 2017, the award has been extended to include educators from the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and polytechnics.

This year, six finalists and recipients are educators from polytechnics and ITE, while nine teach in the primary school to junior college levels.

GOING THE EXTRA MILE

One of the finalists is Mr Khalid Kassim, who teaches Mechanical Engineering in ITE College East.

To the veteran lecturer, building a student’s confidence takes more than just words of encouragement; it means showing his students how to apply their skills in real-life situations.

Thus, he rallies his students to volunteer in a special Student Home Outreach programme.

In this voluntary after-school activity, the students would help the family of a needy course-mate by fixing broken electrical appliances in their homes, helping with plumbing problems or even mending furniture – all these under Mr Khalid’s guidance.

This has helped build his students’ confidence, something that Mr Khalid has observed was lacking.

“Most of my students didn’t do very well in school, and some have personal problems at home to deal with. So when they see that they can apply their skills outside the classroom, it builds their self-esteem,” he said.

MAKING MUSIC INCLUSIVE

For Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary School music teacher Ng Sheh Feng – one of the recipients of the President’s Award – she faced a conundrum when two visually-impaired students wanted to enrol in her music programme.

The reason: No visually-impaired student had ever taken the O-Level music examination at that point in time.

The examination authorities initially turned down their request as exam components included score-reading and notation writing.

But Ms Ng persevered. She and her colleagues worked with the Education Ministry to experiment different ways of assessing the students. This included using music braille and dictation.

After one-and-a-half years, the authorities approved the recommendations and allowed the students to take the exams.

Ms Ng said she tries to make music inclusive to quash the perception that it is exclusive, to the extent that she even pushed for lunch time concerts and a music corner.

“We set up a music corner and we put up some instruments just for the students to be able to jam and relax,” she said.

Ms Ng said many of her students come from “less resourced backgrounds” and thus had less exposure to alternative pathways like music. 

“They would be thinking of careers in traditional professions like doctors or lawyers,” she said. “But we want to show them that there are alternative pathways in the arts too. Trying to change the mindset is slow, but it’s happening.”

While the award marks a milestone, Ms Ng says that in her 12 years as an educator, she has seen former students follow their aspirations to become composers, performers and music teachers.

That, she said with a bright smile, is rewarding enough.

SINGAPORE: A 62-year-old man was fined S$10,000 on Wednesday (Aug 29) after he bribed a cleaner to let him illegally dump the waste he had collected from industrial estates at a bin centre.

The man, who was self-employed, was fined for illegally dumping waste at a bin centre at Block 744 Bedok Reservoir Road, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said in a media advisory.

Between June and October last year, the man collected waste from businesses operating at Tampines Industrial Park for a fee. 

He then bribed a cleaner manning the bin centre at Bedok Reservoir Road to let him dump the waste there, so as to avoid paying for waste disposal at an authorised site.

General waste collected from industrial estates must be disposed of at incineration plants, licensed recycling facilities, or, if the waste is non-incinerable, the landfill, according to NEA.

“The dumping of such waste at bin centres serving residential estates is illegal,” said the agency. “NEA will not hesitate to take strict enforcement action against those who illegally dump waste.”

The man could have been fined a maximum of S$50,000 or jailed up to 12 months, or both. 

Repeat offenders may be fined up to S$100,000 and jailed between one month and 12 months.

Members of the public can call NEA’s hotline at 1800-2255-632 if they witness any illegal dumping activity.

“When reporting, it would be helpful to furnish the date, time and location of the incident, registration number of the vehicle used to carry the waste, as well as supporting photos and video clips,” said NEA.

SINGAPORE: Staff and students of Punggol Secondary have been reminded to be vigilant and watchful of their surroundings after a woman was injured by a boar outside the school, said its principal Benedict Keh on Wednesday (Aug 29). 

He confirmed that the woman injured on Tuesday was an administrative employee at the school, adding that she remains in hospital. 

“We will render her continued assistance, including giving her the time to recover from her wounds,” said Mr Keh in response to Channel NewsAsia’s queries. 

“We have reminded our staff and students to be vigilant and watchful of their surroundings,” he added.

“As an added precaution, we are working with the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of our staff and students.”

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it responded to a call for medical assistance at about 5.15pm on Tuesday, along 51 Edgefield Plains.

After the incident, the boar ran into a nearby executive condominium’s rubbish collection point, according to a report by Channel 8 News. 

The animal was stranded there and was eventually sedated and moved from the area, said The Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES).

Authorities said last year that they were working on managing wild boar issues in Singapore after reports of more sightings near residential areas.

READ: Government working with stakeholders to ‘manage wild boar issues’, says MND

Last November, police fired tasers at a boar at Punggol West Flyover after it charged towards officers and members of the public.

In October 2017, a man was injured after he was attacked by a wild boar near a bus stop at Hillview Road.

Channel NewsAsia has contacted the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority for comment on the latest incident in Punggol.

ACRES said on Tuesday that the wild boar likely come from Lorong Halus.

“Development works in that area could have caused this individual to venture out and subsequently finding itself lost in the urban area,” said ACRES deputy chief executive Kalai Vanan.

“Feeding by people may have had a part to play as well to cause the animal to venture out as well.”