The opening session of the ASEAN Seminar on CBRNE consequence management was held earlier today at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel. Hosted by SCDF, this Inaugural Seminar is organised under the auspices of the ASEAN - Japan Counter-Terrorism Dialogue. The Guest-Of-Honour for the event was Assoc. Prof Ho Peng Kee, Senior Minister of State (Law & Home Affairs).

In the midst of today"s new threat environment and rapidly changing world, SCDF recognizes the need for security agencies to not only keep abreast of the latest developments, but they must also be flexible and adaptable to changing situations and circumstances around us, regionally and globally. The seminar"s theme - Developing a Holistic Approach to Manage CBRNE Threat - is meant to tie in a multi-prong approach in enhancing our country"s security. 42 Senior Government Officials from 9 ASEAN member countries and a representative of the Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs are attending the seminar which will be held from 21 to 23 October 2009. The participants are from Brunei, Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Laos, Indonesia and Vietnam.

The two and a half day seminar will provide an excellent platform for the participants from the ASEAN member countries to exchange valuable information and knowledge in CBRNE consequence management and thereby enhancing the overall security environment. Such networking opportunities will go a long way in strengthening our collective efforts, capacity and resilience building to meet the new security challenges ahead.

The SCDF has also invited domain experts from related agencies to provide the international participants an in depth appreciation on how they handle a CBRNE attack, from counter terrorism, mitigation and recovery efforts. In conjunction with the seminar, there will be a visit to the Civil Defence Academy. This will allow the participants to acquire a better appreciation of the equipment, training and appliances used by SCDF to respond to CBRNE incidents.

Please find the speech delivered by Assoc. Prof Ho Peng Kee appended here.