Intervention by Minister for Health Mr Ong Ye Kung at the High-Level Meeting on One Health in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 30 October 2024

1.            Thank you, Chair. Much has been said on this topic. So I thought it would be useful for Singapore to share our perspective as a city-state.

2.            It dawned on me some time ago that my job title in Chinese does not actually mean the Minister for Health. Literally, it means Minister for Hygiene.

3.            It is not surprising, because when Singapore first established ourselves as a city-state, sanitation and living conditions were poor. Water was not clean. So disease control depended crucially and heavily on maintaining hygiene standards.

4.            This can be considered a form of One Health, and it is really the reality for Singapore, and it is in our DNA.

5.            We are 100% urbanised, six million people in 740 square kilometres of land – just one small corner of the Malay Archipelago. We have to live in harmony with our environment.

6.            Despite our small size, our land use agency ensures that about one third of our island is covered by trees and greenery. Singapore and Rio de Janeiro, in fact, are two places where nature reserves are incorporated into the urban city.

7.            We keep our water clean. We complete the water cycle by channelling and collecting all wastewater centrally, and then we recycle it for industrial use and also for consumption.  

8.            Our environment agency fights vector-borne diseases, especially those transmitted by mosquitoes. We breed Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes and release only the males to suppress the mosquito population. We have not given up hope on containing dengue fever. 

9.            Our Ministry of Health has instituted strong discipline and standards in prescribing antibiotics.

10.         Singapore lives and breathes One Health. We will continue to learn from others. At the same time, we are happy to share with others our experience as a city-state. Thank you.