Singapore spends over 10 mln USD on developing digital contact tracing tools

Singapore (VNA) – Singapore has spent 13.8 million SGD (10.2 million USD) in total on developing and acquiring the SafeEntry digital check-in system and TraceTogether app and tokens.

Included in the cost of these digital contact tracing tools is 2.4 million SGD to develop the TraceTogether app, 5.2 million SGD for developing SafeEntry, and 6.2 million SGD for the development and procurement of TraceTogether tokens.

The TraceTogether token is a wearable device. Similar to the TraceTogether mobile app, the token works by exchanging Bluetooth signals with other nearby tokens or phones running the TraceTogether app.

So far, TraceTogether has helped to identify about 25,000 close contacts of COVID-19 cases, of which 160 later tested positive for COVID-19, said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong in a written reply to parliamentary questions on November 2.

Gan added that the actual amount spent on contact tracing tools will depend on several factors, including the actual number of Singapore residents who need a token.

He said the effectiveness of TraceTogether increases as more users come onboard. The government therefore encourages more Singaporeans to join the TraceTogether programme, either by downloading the app or collecting and wearing the token."./.