- Close to half (49%) of respondents in Singapore surveyed in VMware’s Digital Frontiers 3.0 study find that the government now delivers better digital experiences, with 60% of them happy to keep interacting with the government digitally
- 56% of those surveyed in Singapore find that the government has given them the assurance that their personal information is secure, and almost half of those surveyed trust and expect the government to raise their personal digital literacy levels
- Southeast Asian societies emerge as most digitally progressive amongst nine nations surveyed, strengthening the economic competitiveness of the region
SINGAPORE, March 11, 2021 – According to VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW), the new VMware Digital Frontiers 3.0 Study reveals that Singapore leads Southeast Asia and other developed economies in delivering superior digital experiences and trust when it comes to government-enabled digital services. Nearly half of Singaporeans surveyed (49%) agreed that the Government now delivers better digital experiences and 56% of respondents shared that the Government has given them the assurance that their personal information is secure. 60% of Singaporeans also stated that they would be happy to continue interacting with the public sector digitally, positioning Singapore ahead of many of its counterparts and nations surveyed in this study, including US, UK, France, Germany, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.
With 67% of Singaporeans defining themselves as being “digitally curious” or “digital explorers”, a significant proportion of Singapore’s residents are embracing digital services and expect the Government to deliver cutting-edge digital experiences, seamlessly and securely. Government agencies in Singapore have responded accordingly with 48% of those surveyed sharing that Government organizations have delivered an overall improved digital experience to them over the last year. On the important topic of trust, Singapore also leads other surveyed nations with 56% of respondents stating that the Government has given them the assurance that their data and information is secure.
“Singapore has made digitalization a core agenda in its pursuit of a Smart Nation. From transforming Singapore’s innovation ecosystem, to building up a digitally-enabled citizenry, it is encouraging to see that our efforts are now paying off and is gaining traction with Singaporeans,” said Adrian Hia, Country Manager, VMware Singapore. “To unlock greater growth and accelerating our Smart Nation push, we need to bridge the digital divide through continuous innovations and delivery of superior digital citizen experiences that delight Singaporeans. By harnessing next-generation technologies to deliver services seamlessly across platforms, devices and locations to its digital citizens, the public sector can strengthen its connections with Singaporeans and together we can emerge stronger as a nation.”
“The pandemic has provided an impetus for the acceleration of digital tools and technologies in many sectors, including healthcare. The foundational digital infrastructure that we have built in the past years has enabled Singapore
public healthcare to respond effectively to COVID-19 with technology. To manage the heavy demand on public healthcare in the past year, new care models were developed that leveraged technology as a workforce multiplier, empowered patients to be actively involved in their healthcare, provided new methods of doctor-patient engagement through digital channels,” said Steve Lee, Deputy CEO, Integrated Health Information Systems (IHiS). “With more Singaporeans embracing digital services, as the VMware Digital Frontiers study makes clear, higher adoption of digital healthcare services will pave the way for greater innovation and use of data insights to improve population health and the patient journey. As Singapore’s HealthTech Agency, we will continue working closely with healthcare providers to deliver more smart health solutions to Singaporeans.”
Despite being more digital savvy and open to embracing digital services as compared to their global counterparts, 48% of Singaporeans trust the Government in raising the personal levels of their digital literacy. Half of respondents (50%) believe that it is the Singapore Government’s responsibility to increase their personal digital literacy levels, putting the country ahead of the six other nations and on par with Indonesia and Thailand. This highlights the need for greater public efforts to continue educating and strengthening digital literacy of Singaporeans, and the local government agencies have responded with new initiatives that will support the Digital for Life movement to help build a digital inclusive society in Singapore. Some of these include the Digital #SmartNationTogether online channel and a collaborative portal to enhance digital access for needy beneficiaries.
Technology strengthens Asia’s COVID readiness with greater digital transformation outcomes to accelerate economic growth and recovery
In a fast-changing business environment, governments in the region have showcased the value technology brings to enable a connected and innovative ecosystem. While organizations were focused on responding and adapting to the pandemic to ensure business continuity in 2020, 2021 marks a turning point with innovation becoming a priority for future-ready organizations looking to accelerate their growth.
A wholistic approach that enables organizations to deliver superior digital experiences across any cloud, any application and any device, in a seamless and secure manner, will become a critical success factor in Asia’s rapidly digitalizing business environment. Progressing into 2021, VMware outlines key priorities that will further strengthen Asia’s transformation into a resilient, inclusive and innovation-led economy:
- Empowering governments to build a multi-cloud and app future: Unlocking multi-cloud future with app-driven innovations for greater agility in a consistent and more secure environment that enables continuous innovation.
- Enabling innovation and productivity for a distributed workforce: Future ready workforce solutions will enable a seamless and more secure digital employee experience, driving greater outcomes in the new world of work.
- Intrinsic security for uninterrupted innovation: An intrinsic approach to enterprise security will provide an additional layer of robust protection for mission-critical operations and infrastructures to fast-track business innovation and resilience.
“As Singapore gears up for recovery and growth in the coming year, the Government plays a critical role in moving the needle in digital literacy for Singaporeans as well as laying the digital foundation for businesses,” added Hia. “VMware is committed to enabling public and private organizations with digital innovations so they can better respond, adapt and accelerate their businesses as they navigate through uncertainties in today’s digital-first environment. We will continue to collaborate closely with Singapore’s innovation ecosystem to bolster digital capabilities and help move the economy faster to the future.”
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VMware software powers the world’s complex digital infrastructure. The company’s cloud, app modernization, networking, security, and digital workspace offerings help customers deliver any application on any cloud across any device. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, VMware is committed to being a force for good, from its breakthrough technology innovations to its global impact. For more information, please visit https://www.vmware.com/company.html.
About the VMware Digital Frontiers 3.0 Study
VMware Digital Frontiers 3.0 Study is a global multi-country study conducted from November – December 2020, surveying the behaviors, preferences and attitudes towards digital services and experiences in 2020 of 1,000 consumers per market from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and France.
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