MFA Press Release: Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan's Written Reply to the Parliamentary Question, 2 October 2017

QUESTION:

Mr Seah Kian Peng: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs in view of the increasing threats to global safety, what are the Ministry’s plans to get more Singaporeans to e-register with the Ministry when they travel.

REPLY:

1        MFA encourages Singaporeans to eRegister their overseas travels through the MFA website or MFA@SG mobile application in our public outreach and messaging. To get more Singaporeans to do so, we will continue to make it easier and more convenient for them. For example, we have reduced the number of fields required to make the process more user-friendly. The MFA App is now linked to the Ministry of Home Affairs SGSecure application. We have also collaborated with SATS Ltd to allow Singaporeans to eRegister via SATS’ new travel application, and we are open to work with other partners to improve our consular services. We will continue to leverage technology to offer more convenient online platforms. One of our current priorities is to finalise the MFA Chatbot -- in collaboration with Govtech -- which can interact with users through conversational channels on social media platforms such as Facebook Messenger, and allow users to eRegister. While we continue to explore different platforms for eRegistration, we are mindful that it is essentially a voluntary exercise. As our resources are often stretched and focused on providing assistance to those in genuine need during crises and emergencies, we also urge Singaporeans to do their part by taking precautions and practicing personal responsibility by staying vigilant, observing local laws, purchasing travel insurance, and staying in touch with family and friends when overseas.

.    .    .    .    .

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE

2 OCTOBER 2017