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Singapore's Ministry of Health (MoH) will commit S$2.5 billion over the next five years as part of the Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2030 Plan to strengthen translational and clinical research, with a focus on National Precision Medicine Programme.
Last November, the country announced the launch of Phase III of the Programme. In Phase III, Precision Health Research, Singapore (PRECISE) and all three public healthcare clusters will work together to sequence the genomes of 400,000 to 450,000 participants. It works out to about 10% of Singapore's resident population. This will generate robust, localised evidence on how genomics can be integrated into the delivery of healthcare responsibly and effectively, both in clinical and economic terms.
Second area is leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Healthier SG. The country will build tools and AI models that are trained on its own clinical practice guidelines and local clinical data – health records, medical images, and more. This will help ensure that the models are contextualised to local clinical practice and Singapore's population.
The initial focus will be on cardiometabolic and ophthalmic diseases, before application to a broader range of conditions. These AI models will be able to flag out patients at risk, and suggest care pathways for clinicians to consider, in a way that is integrated into regular clinical workflows.
Third, Singapore will further invest in research that focuses on the ageing population. The country also rolled out Age Well SG, a significant national programme to help seniors age actively and stay socially connected in the community.
In recent years, a growing number of technology companies have come forward with ideas and proposals in preventive care, ageing and longevity, underscoring the ability and readiness of the private sector to contribute to public health. Recognising this opportunity, the National Research Foundation (NRF), in partnership with MoH, will be launching the RIE Grand Challenge on Maximising Healthy and Successful Longevity. To support these efforts, the government has committed $350 million under RIE2030 for this Grand Challenge.. In the coming calls for proposals, Brain Health is a key priority
