Speech by Second Minister S Iswaran at the President’s Science and Technology Awards 2014 at the Istana Banquet Hall

President Tony Tan Keng Yam,

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

A very good evening.

Introduction

A very warm welcome to the President’s Science and Technology Awards (PSTA) 2014. At the outset, let me extend our special thanks and appreciation to President Tony Tan, for his abiding support for the development of Science and Technology in Singapore, and for gracing this evening’s ceremony.

Singapore is committed to developing research capabilities to support our transformation into a leading innovation-driven economy

Over the past 20 years, Singapore has developed into a vibrant hub for innovation. Our achievements, realised with the Government’s support and commitment to R & D, have been well recognised. The Global Innovation Index, which ranks the innovation performance of 144 economies, ranked Singapore as the most innovative city in Asia in 2014, above Japan and South Korea.¹

R&D and innovation are key enablers of sustainable economic growth. Under the Research, Innovation and Enterprise Plan 2015 (RIE2015), we prioritised the strengthening of linkages between public and private sector research, and the translation of research into market relevant outcomes. As a consequence, average R&D spending by firms undertaking R&D has grown by 50 per cent, from $4 million in 2002 to $6 million in 2012.²

Over the same period, sales revenue from the commercialisation of products and services attributed to R&D performed in Singapore grew by almost 90 per cent.

A*STAR has achieved notable successes in developing strong public-private partnerships and collaboration with industry and global research leaders such as Applied Materials, Rolls-Royce, Nestle and Procter and Gamble. In addition, SMEs have benefitted from efforts aimed at raising their innovative capacity and productivity, through programmes such as A*STAR’s GET-Up scheme and Technology Adoption Programme. Under RIE2015, A*STAR has engaged in more than 5,000 industry projects, and has attached close to 200 researchers to SMEs to work on R&D projects.

The Medical Technology (MedTech) sector is one example where public and private sector R&D investments have spurred growth. Over the last 10 years, private sector R&D expenditure within the sector grew at nearly 35 per cent per annum.³

The number of MedTech researchers has grown by 18 per cent per annum, to about 300 in 2012. Sector value-add has grown at 6 per cent per annum. This growth has been supported by A*STAR’s collaborations with MedTech industry partners, which has grown from 1 per cent of its industry portfolio to 24 per cent over the last five years. This effort has been given further impetus by the Singapore Stanford Biodesign Programme⁴, which trains medical device innovators, and the Bioengineering Programme⁵, which funds collaborations between clinicians and researchers. The MedTech sector has also created exciting jobs for Singaporeans. 80 per cent of the 300 researchers in the sector are locals.

Developing world-class talent is critical for R&D to flourish and to anchor global companies

A world-class talent base is critical for R&D to flourish. Singapore’s commitment to R&D is underpinned by the development of a strong research talent pool. Over the past decade, our overall number of researchers, scientists and engineers (RSE) numbers have doubled. The number of RSEs across both the public and private sectors now stands at about 30,000, of whom 70 per cent are Singaporeans and PRs.

The depth of Singapore’s research talent base has been key to our ability to tap science, technology and innovation in growing our economy. We will continue to focus on developing a strong core of Singaporean research talent through comprehensive talent development programmes. These include the National Science Scholarship by A*STAR to groom local research talent, and the Returning Singaporean Scientists scheme by NRF to attract top overseas Singaporean researchers back to Singapore.

Equally, the diversity of our talent ecosystem is a critical success factor for the generation of novel approaches and insights, through the creative and vigorous exchange of ideas. Hence, even as we grow the Singaporean core of our research talent base, we must continue to ensure that the community of scientists and researchers remains diverse and vibrant to facilitate the cross-fertilisation of ideas.

Highest honours for top scientific talent in Singapore

Tonight we will witness the presentation of the President’s Science and Technology Awards, our nation’s highest scientific honours, which recognises the contributions made by outstanding scientists and engineers in Singapore. Through the PSTA, we celebrate the winners’ unwavering dedication to the pursuit of knowledge through research and innovation, and the benefits they have brought to society.

President’s Science and Technology Medal – Professor John Wong

The most prestigious award - the President’s Science and Technology Medal - recognises individuals who have made distinguished, sustained and exceptional contributions to Singapore’s development in R&D. The recipient of this year’s award is Professor John Wong, Chief Executive of the National University Health System (NUHS).

As one of the pioneers in Singapore’s Biomedical Sciences (BMS) industry, John helped to establish the BMS as one of the key pillars of Singapore’s economy. He played an instrumental role in shaping policies, recruiting scientists and working with EDB to anchor major pharmaceutical companies here. His contributions to the BMS sector were recognised and celebrated last year at the 10th anniversary of Biopolis.

John played a key role in establishing the NUHS and currently serves as its Chief Executive. The NUHS, which is our first Academic Health system, has brought Singapore international recognition in the global health arena. Under his leadership, Singapore had the privilege of hosting the first regional meeting of the World Health Summit in 2013. John represents Singapore in the M8 Alliance of Academic Health Centres, an alliance committed to improving global health and developing science-based solutions to health challenges.

John has also championed translational clinical research and established the Cancer Therapeutics Research Group to bring together academic cancer centres from Singapore, Australia and across Asia, to develop better treatments for cancers which predominantly affect Asian populations. He demonstrated that there are major differences in the expression of common cancers and their treatment options between Asian and Caucasian populations. His research has strengthened Singapore’s standing as a good base to study and develop products that address the needs of the Asian population.

Global companies have chosen to site their Asian R&D centres in Singapore to benefit from our strengths in Asian phenotype translational research, including Kyowa Hakko Kirin, a leading Japan-based biopharmaceutical company, and Bayer Healthcare, a US-based pharmaceutical company. Singaporean companies are also studying Asian-specific problem statements here. Local MedTech company, Veredus Laboratories has developed Asian and tropical disease diagnostic kits which improved testing turnaround time by more than fourfold. From a start-up with five employees, Veredus is expecting to grow to 29 headcount by the end of this year and has set a revenue growth target of 25 per cent CAGR.

President’s Science Award – Professor Loh Kian Ping

Prof Loh Kian Ping, who receives the President’s Science Award tonight, is being recognised for advancing our knowledge in the area of graphene chemistry, which has widespread applications in areas such as biomedical engineering and optical electronics.

His work has put Singapore on the world map for graphene research, with the National University of Singapore (NUS) being named as the top university in the area. Kian Ping led discoveries in graphene optoelectronics and made fundamental breakthroughs in graphene research to help address engineering challenges. By developing a novel and high yield method for electrochemical synthesis of graphene from natural graphite ore, Kian Ping has helped to solve a critical barrier in the large-scale production of graphene.

President’s Technology Award (PTA)

The two teams receiving the President’s Technology Awards have developed technologies that will enrich the lives of many.

The first PTA is presented to Prof Wong Tien Yin from the SNEC, Prof Wynne Hsu and Prof Lee Mong Li from NUS, in collaboration with the Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI), and A*STAR’s Institute for Infocomm Research (I2R), for the development of a suite of novel eye image analysis technologies. The platform uses advanced algorithms for the doctor to detect and track the progression of three major eye diseases that cause blindness, and to study the onset of systemic vascular diseases such as stroke, heart disease and diabetes. The platform has been clinically validated, adopted at six polyclinics, and is faster than traditional screening methods. The waiting time for screening has been reduced from three weeks to one hour. The technology has been licensed to and is being used by several academic and medical centres and research institutes. These include the University College London, Moorfields Eyes Hospital and Topcon Incorporated, the top supplier of optical equipment to hospitals.

The other winner of the PTA is Prof Venkatraman Subramanian and his team, comprising Prof Freddy Boey of NTU and Associate

Prof Tina Wong from the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC). They have developed an innovative nano-carrier platform for sustained release of glaucoma medication. This platform utilises a single injection for delivery of medication for up to six months, effectively preventing blindness caused by patients’ non-compliance to the daily eye-drop treatment regimen. The use of their innovative technology has been successfully tested through first phase human clinical trials. The team has also attracted interest from major pharmaceutical companies and has established a start-up to commercialise the technology.

Developing the next generation of scientific leaders

The winners of the Young Scientist Awards (YSA) are similarly recognised for their ingenuity and their potential to attain greater heights in the future. This year, the YSA are presented to Assistant Professor Wang Qijie of NTU, Assistant Professor Zhang Baile of NTU and Assistant Professor Melissa Jane Fullwood, Assistant Professor at Yale-NUS, Junior Principal Investigator at the Cancer Science Institute and a joint principal investigator at A*STAR’s Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB). I look forward to them leading their fields and mentoring others in the years to come.

Conclusion

To all the winners, I extend my warmest congratulations on your outstanding achievements and invaluable contributions. You are truly the pride of the scientific community and an inspiration for everyone in the research community.

I encourage all the research scientists and engineers here tonight to continue in your quest for scientific excellence and to pioneer new solutions. Through your dedication and commitment to outstanding science and bringing research to application, you will benefit humanity, our society and the economy. Thank you. 

¹ The Global Innovation Index 2014 Report was co-published by Cornell University, INSEAD, and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO, a specialised agency of the United Nations).

² A*STAR’s National Survey of R&D, 2002 and 2012.

³ A*STAR’s National Survey of R&D, 2002 and 2012.

⁴ EDB and A*STAR launched the Singapore Stanford Biodesign Programme in 2010. The programme has supported 12 innovation fellows, trained 111 participants and filed 12 provisional patents.

⁵ The Bioengineering programme is driven by EDB and A*STAR, and it has funded 30 projects.