Southeast Asia (SEA) has been hit hardest in the tourism sector as many countries rely on the tourism dollar to boost their economies, with Singapore and Australia heading for a quarantine-free travel bubble between the two countries. I have agreed to work on it.
Last week, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong welcomed Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in Singapore prior to the 47th G7 Summit in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister of Singapore has hinted at the possibility of a travel bubble with Australia, but discussions to further this will only be finalized after a majority of the country’s population has been vaccinated.
“We talked about how a two-way trip between Singapore and Australia can ultimately be resumed in a safe and coordinated way when both sides are ready,” said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Said Joint press conference with his Australian correspondent. Both countries have relatively few cases of COVID-19, slightly over 62,000 and 30,000, respectively, and aim to utilize sophisticated digital systems to ensure the safety of travelers and communities.
Singapore first unveiled the possibility of a travel bubble with Australia in March. This increased the likelihood of traveling between the two allies without the need for a period of self-quarantine. The following month, Australia signed a travel bubble agreement similar to New Zealand. This has led to a surge in cross-border tourism between the two neighboring countries, providing the coveted relief for their economies.
But this freedom was short-lived as sNew Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was reportedly attacked by a Melbourne cluster and ordered to close the bubble in late May. AFP.. Such concerns will move Australia and Singapore cautiously, said Lee of Singapore. “Once both sides are ready in a safe and coordinated way. To be ready to do this, we need to prepare the infrastructure and processes.”
How does the Singapore and Australia travel bubble work?
Starting this week, Australian citizens who have been vaccinated twice with the COVID-19 vaccine and have an Australian Medicare number will have access to the digital certificate of the vaccine.
And from July, all national vaccination programs below will vaccinate individuals (within 24 hours and within 10 days) to the Australian Immunology Register (AIR) maintained by Service Australia on behalf of the Ministry of Health. ) I will report.
Vaccination providers can upload status information directly to AIR’s online portal and link and verify it via their personal Medicare number. The travel bubble with New Zealand allows users to view vaccination confirmations on their smartphones, making travel easier and easier. No need to carry additional ID – “Another key component” for the Australian and Singapore travel bubbles to function effectively and with minimal risk of infection, according to Australian Prime Minister Morrison.
“The sophistication of the system in both Singapore and Australia will ensure that both countries have a system that works incredibly well,” Morrison said. OK.. “Once we have that ability, as prime minister [Lee] Then there is the second consideration. Consider all the different medical issues and risks that you must manage as a leader to succeed in the next step. “
In addition to the travel bubble, the two prime ministers also announced that the “fintech bridge” between Australia and Singapore was first decided. Digital Economic Partnership Agreement between the two countries Last year it was set to move on.
Alongside fintech branches such as digital payments and e-commerce, Digital Economic Partnerships include: Interoperable collaboration Cross-border data flow, Digital identity,and artificial intelligence.. “Fintech Bridge is FinTech policies and regulations We look for opportunities to collaborate on joint innovation projects and drive investment in digital trade and financial services and new business opportunities, “says the leader.
Travel bubble: scale up
Travel bubble business is heavily dependent How well member states can track each otherIdentify, record, and approve health and vaccination records. As the world is gradually advancing towards the use of biometrics in passports, there is a great opportunity to skip the hassle of manual checks and go directly to a fully digitized system.
In addition, protected digital records on online databases need to use mobile devices to view digital certificates and make status checks much easier and more reliable. This is a “green certificate” (also known as a green certificate) Vaccine passport) European Union (EU) block system Will be rolled out to all 27 member countries By the end of June 2020Brings relief to member countries that depend on tourism.
Southeast Asian countries should do the same Work closely with technology and security vendors Each public health service to establish a “supply chain” of information transfer regarding vaccine information within a safe and efficient system with the aim of building a digital database of vaccination records. We also plan cross-border trips when our vaccination coverage exceeds about two-thirds of each population.
Jam is a science and technology lover-sized humanist and feminist cat. Jam also recognizes the intersection of the above with ethics, morality, and the economic / social impact on people, especially marginalized / developing communities.
