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Hi there,
How many people does it take to set up a farm in Singapore?
Just one, but they have to be prepared to chase eight government agencies.
This leads us to a first-generation farmer’s story – we’ll call him Pan. Pumped up about Singapore’s ambitious “30 by 30” plan, which was announced in 2019 and aims to meet 30% of Singapore’s nutritional needs locally by 2030, Pan wanted to set up a roof-top farm.
What followed was months of jumping over bureaucratic hurdles to secure regulatory approval. And what’s worse, Pan’s story isn’t a one-off, as my colleague, Tian Wen, details in today’s Big Story.
Red tape is just one of many challenges for Singapore’s agritech sector and it seems like the city-state’s farms may need more of a helping hand than they currently have if they are to meet the country’s food security goals. This is undoubtedly a time-consuming process and an early intervention could work wonders.
Early intervention is also applicable to another topic we are covering today: cybersecurity. Seriously, take a minute to consider if you’ve ever received as many potential phishing emails as you do today. Thankfully, Southeast Asia’s cybersecurity companies have stepped up to the challenge.
— Nikita
THE BIG STORY
Singapore’s agritech vision hits speed bumps
Image credit: Timmy Loen
Progress toward the city-state’s 30 by 30 plan is slowed by red tape and rising cost factors that threaten to push farms out of business.
MAKING WAVES
Mapping out SEA’s digital defenders
FYI
NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW
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