PUB seeks proposals on use of emerging technologies to boost data capabilities for development of coastal protection strategies

PUB, Singapore’s National Water Agency, has launched a request proposal (RFP) to seek innovative
proposals on the use of emerging technologies, such as machine learning, radar satellite and
imagery, as well as crowdsourced data, for the collection and analysis of coastal and inland datasets
that will support PUB in the formulation of coastal protection measures.

Funding for the RFP will come from the S$51 million allocated to PUB by the National Research
Foundation in September 2021, under the Competitive Funding for Water Research (CWR)
programme. It is part of the Research Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 Plan.

PUB has been making steady progress in charting strategies to safeguard its coastal areas against
rising sea levels and extreme rainfall due to the effects of climate change since assuming the role of
the nation’s coastal protection agency in April 2020

Following the commencement of site-specific studies for Singapore’s City-East Coast in May 2021 as
well as a portion of the north-west coast earlier this month, studies at Jurong Island and the
remaining stretch of the north-west coast will start later this year.

The National Water Agency is also developing the Coastal-Inland Flood Model – an advanced
computational hydrodynamics model that can assess the twin effects of coastal and inland flood
risks. The RFP is part of PUB’s longer-term research plans to better understand the effects of waves,
currents and ship wakes, to strengthen the development of coastal protection solutions and ensure
they are effective, multi-functional, adaptive and sustainable.

Said Ms Hazel Khoo, Director of PUB’s Coastal Protection Department: “Coastal Protection planning
is a long-term process, and our measures will need to be developed based on robust data and
science-based research, taking into account considerations unique to Singapore. Coastal Protection
research is also a growing field in Singapore, with many opportunities for collaboration with local
and international experts across different domains. We look forward to receiving innovative
proposals from public and private entities, research institutes and institutes of higher learning to
expand the breadth and depth of our knowledge base for this important endeavour.”

The deadline for submission of proposals is 15 July 2022, 4pm (Singapore time, GMT +08:00).
Interested parties may register for a roadshow on 12 May 2022 via the following link:
https://go.gov.sg/rfp2201-informationsession. Registration for the roadshow closes on 29 April
2022.

Various funding schemes and information on how to apply for the RFP is available at
https://www.pub.gov.sg/globalhydrohub/Pages/RFP2201.asp