Central Narcotics Bureau’s Workplan Seminar - Speech by Ms Sim Ann, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Ministry of Home Affairs

1. A very good afternoon to Mr Sebastian Tan, Director CNBOfficers of CNB; MHA colleagues; and valued partners from across the Home Team, government agencies and civil society.

2. Today we celebrate your service, resilience, and unwavering commitment to keeping Singapore safe and drug-free, despite a worsening global and regional drug landscape.


Global and Regional Drug Problem continues to worsen

3. Let me begin with the facts on the global drug problem: In 2024, 331 million people aged 15 to 64 had used drugs in the past 12 months - a 34% increase over the past decade. The death toll from drugs has more than doubled worldwide from 1990 to 2021, especially in high-income countries.

4. The world drug problem is not a distant one. Our strategic position as an international air and maritime hub exposes us to the full force of this global threat.

5. In June this year, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime reported that 349 tonnes of methamphetamine were seized in East and Southeast Asia, a 48% increase over the 236 tonnes seized in 2024 and more than five times what was seized a decade ago. For context, 349 tonnes can feed about 200 million addicts for a week.

6. The same report cited a record seizure of 52.5 tonnes of ketamine in 2025, a 185% increase over the previous year.

7. Despite the record volume of seizures, prices of methamphetamine and ketamine have continued to drop drastically, demonstrating resilient supply.

8. Here at home, we are seeing more brazen smuggling attempts. In April 2025, more than 10kg of methamphetamine was detected in freight parcels and seized as part of a transnational operation involving the United States, Brunei, New Zealand and Australian authorities.

9. In April 2026, a 23-year-old man was arrested for attempting to smuggle 5kg of cannabis and 2kg of methamphetamine into Singapore through the checkpoint at Woodlands.

10. These are important reminders that drug traffickers will constantly attempt to smuggle large quantities of drugs into Singapore through our borders and we need to be habitually vigilant to the illicit market forces at work.

CNB’s Response - Effective Enforcement, Holistic Engagement, Adaptive Rehabilitation

Enforcement

11. Despite these global headwinds, you, as CNB officers and valued partners, have not just held the line against drugs - you have effectively pushed back against it.

12. CNB dismantled 25 drug syndicates in 2025. Seizures were substantial, valued at over S$23 million. CNB also took decisive actions to prosecute 32 offenders for drug and money laundering offences, successfully depriving them of S$102,000 worth of illicit financial gains.

13. CNB also conducted 18 transnational operations with international counterparts - including one in January 2026 with British law enforcement, which led to the dismantling of a transnational drug network and cannabis seizures totalling more than 920 kg.

14. I want to highlight a commendable case locally. In May 2026, CNB followed up on a 12-year-old girl who was caught for abusing methamphetamine. The girl admitted to smoking with an adult male before but could only provide a name. CNB officers conducted extensive investigations to swiftly establish the 30-year-old suspect’s identity and apprehended him at his residence, along with a 16-year-old girl who was also arrested for drug abuse. The officers’ alertness and diligence helped to prevent this suspect from contaminating more youths. Well done to the officers!

15. On the demand side, we see annual abuser arrests remaining stable, at 3,280 in 2025. CNB’s Supervision 2.0 was first announced in MHA’s 2024 COS speech, with the aim to better support supervisees’ reintegration journey. A key move was to replace urine testing with hair testing. There is evidence of early success, with better detection of relapses and more time for officers to engage supervisees meaningfully.

16. There are many heartening stories as part of CNB’s supervision but let me just speak about one. Senior Staff Sergeant Rasshidy was on duty when he saw a new supervisee carrying three bags of personal belongings with him. Upon interview, the supervisee shared that he was homeless and sleeping on the streets. Rasshidy took the initiative to explore available accommodation options, eventually finding a space for him at a halfway house. His actions are reflective of CNB’s professionalism and dedication. Good job Rasshidy!

Preventive Drug Education

17. On preventive drug education, CNB has continued to leverage government networks through the Inter-Ministry Committee on Drug Prevention for Youths to identify, educate and support our DrugFreeSG Champions. This has led to many innovative, ground-up initiatives. Let me share two examples.

18. Republic Polytechnic’s Champions organised a campaign which featured a series of posters and videos created by students to raise awareness on leading a drug-free lifestyle. In another instance, a Singapore Institute of Technology Champion led a group of students in producing an anti-drug video that highlighted the harmful effects of drug abuse and the importance of community support for individuals on their path to recovery. The video was shared during orientation programmes and at campus media platforms.

19. Our community partners have also stepped up their advocacy efforts with more self-initiated projects, organised with the support of the DrugFreeSG Fund. In 2025, eight projects were completed with over 6,400 participants reached and 1.1 million views online. One example is “The Hidden Cost”, developed by students of Ngee Ann Polytechnic's Diploma in Community Development. The project employed drug-related exhibitions, escape rooms, and street interviews to expose the concealed emotional, mental, and social consequences of drug abuse. You can find out more at the exhibition area later.

20. I am pleased that our preventive drug education efforts have borne fruit. The National Drug Perception Survey 2025 showed that more youths now perceive that drug abuse is harmful, with 87.7% of youths holding conservative views compared to 83.2% two years ago. We also observe very strong support for Singapore’s drug-related laws – 92.7% of youths and 96.3% of adults feel that we should continue to maintain our tough drug laws. This is highly encouraging.

International Engagement

21. We also look beyond our shores to grow and strengthen our international and regional partnerships, as we do not have to fight drugs alone. CNB successfully championed for a joint-ASEAN Statement, delivered at the 69th Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in March 2026. This took a lot of hard work and close coordination with our ASEAN allies.

22. This year, we also had the inaugural ASEAN Drug Victims Remembrance Day on 26 June, in tandem with the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. This will be an annual event across ASEAN, where we seek to remember the victims of drugs, reinforce solidarity and commitment towards the shared vision of a Drug-Free ASEAN.

23. The latest Regional Perception Survey conducted by MHA showed that 82% of respondents indicated they felt safe in Singapore, and 87% trusted that law enforcement officers, including all of you here as CNB officers, would keep them safe if or when they were in our country.

24. We must not take such strong public support and safety in Singapore for granted.

Challenging Youth Drug Problem

25. All that said, allow me to remind everyone that we cannot rest on our laurels.

26. To cite some worrying trends - the youngest abuser arrested in 2025 was just 12 years old, a primary school child. Instead of being able to play with friends after school, the youth now has to report for urine supervision.

27. Out of the 1,188 new drug abusers arrested in 2025, half were below 30 years old. While methamphetamine continues to be the most commonly abused drug, cannabis is still an area of concern, as 1 in 2 new cannabis abusers arrested were below 30 years old.

28. These are not faceless numbers. They are our children, our students, our neighbours, and our friends. We must continue to find new and engaging ways to drive the messages about the harms of drugs home.

Plans Ahead

29. To better safeguard our future, CNB is transforming as you saw in the video just now. This is a process called “CNB 2030”. Let me highlight three key initiatives.

30. First, on automation and robotics - The Next Generation Reporting Centre was first rolled out on 1 July 2026. It automates the urine handling process, reducing officers’ direct contact with specimens and improves overall operational efficiency and hygiene.

31. CNB’s Automated Armoury system, which was launched on 17 July 2026, improves the security and efficiency in armament handling, by allowing movement en masse and removing the need for an armourer to be present, while ensuring strict accountability of the equipment.

32. CNB’s Automated Exhibit Management System can handle drug exhibit photo-taking, weighing, labelling, packing and sealing, thereby reducing the risks of human error from manual handling, and enhancing evidential integrity. This system is set to commission in the fourth quarter of 2026.

33. Second, CNB will adopt Extended Reality to deliver training in a realistic and safe manner. The Virtual Reality Courtcraft provides officers with an immersive experience testifying in court. Features include cross-examination exercises with multiple-choice verbal responses, as well as real-time feedback and performance tracking.

34. Third, CNB will leverage on Artificial Intelligence to enhance its investigative work. Narconet is an AI-powered platform for investigation developed together with HTX. The tool can detect, flag and summarise incriminating information from text, audio, and video sources - and automatically populate drug case exhibit templates. This allows the Investigative Officer to focus on more significant investigative tasks.

35. CNB’s AI-Enabled Video Evidence Review can transform unstructured video data into actionable insights so investigation officers can extract relevant scenes containing objects, persons of interest or actions without the need to sift through the entire footage. This can significantly cut down the time spent on trawling through footage.

36. I am pleased to see how CNB has embraced technology to make their work more effective, and I hope all Home Team Departments will endeavour to do so in your respective lines of work.

37. As more abusers get access to drugs and harmful content online, we need to bring the fight there. CNB is taking decisive steps to tackle this issue.

38. CNB will soon be able to issue directions under the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA) to online platforms to take down harmful content. This effort, with the support of our private sector partners, will continue so our youths will not be exposed to such damaging content.

39. CNB will sharpen its intelligence and investigative capabilities by leveraging emerging technologies to expand digital intelligence‑collection functions such as phone forensics and financial intelligence screening, ensuring that the clandestine activities of those who try and hide behind the anonymity of the internet are brought to light.

40. I am grateful that we, as a government, do not have to go about this fight against drugs on our own. In this term of the Inter-Ministry Committee on Drug Prevention for Youths, we will be focusing on parental engagement. Our parents are allies to the cause, and we want to equip you with the knowledge, tools, and confidence to speak to your children early and frequently about the harms of drugs.


Conclusion

41. In conclusion, safeguarding Singapore’s drug-free future requires a united effort - forged by strong communities, strong partnerships, and strong will. We must continue to enhance our laws, review our policies, and engage the ground - to ensure CNB’s effectiveness, efficiency, and compassion in keeping Singapore drug-free. Thank you.