nder The Radar is a special series and newsletter offering from Diplomatic Courier bringing you compelling, under–the–radar stories from around the world over the past month. This month across Oceania and southeast Asia: ongoing efforts in Singapore to fight flash flooding, a controversial Indonesia free meals program, and Australia’s coffee conundrum. You can sign up to receive the newsletter here.
Singapore invests in community resilience to combat flash flooding
Singapore’s government is creating more resilient infrastructure to counteract a rise in flash flooding due to the climate crisis, investing in local companies and communities. The government relies on PUB, Singapore’s National Water Agency, to warn citizens of flash floods and provide quick solutions when areas are affected. PUB relies on X–band weather radar systems that predict flash flooding incidents around 30 minutes in advance. It also has a Catchment and Waterways Operations System that uses data sensors on drains, canals, and cameras to monitor the risk of flash flooding. By monitoring the sensors, PUB can send out Quick Response Teams (QRTs) to protect citizens in a flash flood and help mitigate the effect.
After an opinion piece by a concerned citizen calling for Singapore to invest in better technology to deal with the climate crisis, the director of PUB’s Catchment and Waterways Operation System indicated that PUB is working on improving their systems further. Singapore’s government has recently invested in better radar technology to improve flash flood preparedness. PUB this year will expand a national flood preparedness campaign, bringing it to more local communities. Since the cost of updating Singapore’s infrastructure would be substantial, PUB hopes that by educating communities and local businesses, it can help improve the infrastructure in their areas. PUB is also looking for ways to use AI and working with the Land Transport Authority to alert drivers of flash flood warnings by mid–2025.
Indonesia launches expensive Free Nutritious Meal program
In January 2025, Indonesia launched its Free Nutritious Meal program to provide free meals to children and pregnant women. President Prabowo Subianto ran on this program as part of his campaign promise to create a “Golden Indonesia.”
The program’s projected cost was $28 million, which economists warned was far too steep. Subianto argued that the meal program would increase farmers’ incomes and help children fight stunted growth, which affects 21.5% of children under age five. However, another $6.11 billion is needed to expand the program to over a quarter of the population. Subianto wants to rapidly expand the program since most students are still not receiving the meal.
Another problem the program is facing is the quality of its food. The program provides one meal to children at school. They arrive at each school once a day, accompanied by a team to facilitate the process. At the program's start, dozens of students at one school got food poisoning from undercooked chicken. Subianto acknowledged the need for better regulations. However, the program appears prepared for such incidents; the caterers must keep samples of the food for 48 hours after serving it to test it, and alternative food is ready, just in case. In this recent incident, students at the school who had not been served the undercooked chicken were given eggs instead.
Australia’s coffee dilemma
Australia is warning that coffee prices could rise to over AUD $10 by the end of 2025. Currently, a majority of Australia’s coffee beans are imported from Brazil. Brazil is famous for its delicious coffee, but prices rose by 112% in 2024, and prices could continue to rise due to the climate crisis. If Australia could lower the cost of its coffee by turning to its neighbors who grow coffee beans, including Indonesia and Vietnam. However, there are two massive roadblocks to this.
First: taste. Generally speaking, Australians seem to prefer coffee beans from Latin American countries to those from Southeast Asia. While you can find Indonesian or Vietnamese coffee cafes in Australia, a fermentation expert cites the traditional spices in Indonesian and Vietnamese coffee as one reason for the difference in taste.
Second: the lack of production. Although Indonesia is the fourth–largest coffee bean producer, it lacks the infrastructure to expand its production quality further. Often, coffee bean farmers only have one or two hectares of land and lack the resources to improve quality control despite the country’s immense potential for growing coffee beans. Vietnam is the second–largest coffee bean producer after Brazil, but the government's ability to expand production is limited. Due to the European Union's anti–deforestation trade law, Vietnamese coffee bean producers must prove they are not involved in deforestation. Thus, Australia will face challenges if it tries to shift from Brazilian coffee beans.
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Singapore’s battle against flash flooding
Singapore. Photo by ethan p via Pexels.
February 11, 2025
Diplomatic Courier writer Stephanie Gull brings you three under–the–radar stories from Oceania and southeast Asia: Singapore flash floods, an Indonesian meal program, and Australia’s coffee dilemma.
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nder The Radar is a special series and newsletter offering from Diplomatic Courier bringing you compelling, under–the–radar stories from around the world over the past month. This month across Oceania and southeast Asia: ongoing efforts in Singapore to fight flash flooding, a controversial Indonesia free meals program, and Australia’s coffee conundrum. You can sign up to receive the newsletter here.
Singapore invests in community resilience to combat flash flooding
Singapore’s government is creating more resilient infrastructure to counteract a rise in flash flooding due to the climate crisis, investing in local companies and communities. The government relies on PUB, Singapore’s National Water Agency, to warn citizens of flash floods and provide quick solutions when areas are affected. PUB relies on X–band weather radar systems that predict flash flooding incidents around 30 minutes in advance. It also has a Catchment and Waterways Operations System that uses data sensors on drains, canals, and cameras to monitor the risk of flash flooding. By monitoring the sensors, PUB can send out Quick Response Teams (QRTs) to protect citizens in a flash flood and help mitigate the effect.
After an opinion piece by a concerned citizen calling for Singapore to invest in better technology to deal with the climate crisis, the director of PUB’s Catchment and Waterways Operation System indicated that PUB is working on improving their systems further. Singapore’s government has recently invested in better radar technology to improve flash flood preparedness. PUB this year will expand a national flood preparedness campaign, bringing it to more local communities. Since the cost of updating Singapore’s infrastructure would be substantial, PUB hopes that by educating communities and local businesses, it can help improve the infrastructure in their areas. PUB is also looking for ways to use AI and working with the Land Transport Authority to alert drivers of flash flood warnings by mid–2025.
Indonesia launches expensive Free Nutritious Meal program
In January 2025, Indonesia launched its Free Nutritious Meal program to provide free meals to children and pregnant women. President Prabowo Subianto ran on this program as part of his campaign promise to create a “Golden Indonesia.”
The program’s projected cost was $28 million, which economists warned was far too steep. Subianto argued that the meal program would increase farmers’ incomes and help children fight stunted growth, which affects 21.5% of children under age five. However, another $6.11 billion is needed to expand the program to over a quarter of the population. Subianto wants to rapidly expand the program since most students are still not receiving the meal.
Another problem the program is facing is the quality of its food. The program provides one meal to children at school. They arrive at each school once a day, accompanied by a team to facilitate the process. At the program's start, dozens of students at one school got food poisoning from undercooked chicken. Subianto acknowledged the need for better regulations. However, the program appears prepared for such incidents; the caterers must keep samples of the food for 48 hours after serving it to test it, and alternative food is ready, just in case. In this recent incident, students at the school who had not been served the undercooked chicken were given eggs instead.
Australia’s coffee dilemma
Australia is warning that coffee prices could rise to over AUD $10 by the end of 2025. Currently, a majority of Australia’s coffee beans are imported from Brazil. Brazil is famous for its delicious coffee, but prices rose by 112% in 2024, and prices could continue to rise due to the climate crisis. If Australia could lower the cost of its coffee by turning to its neighbors who grow coffee beans, including Indonesia and Vietnam. However, there are two massive roadblocks to this.
First: taste. Generally speaking, Australians seem to prefer coffee beans from Latin American countries to those from Southeast Asia. While you can find Indonesian or Vietnamese coffee cafes in Australia, a fermentation expert cites the traditional spices in Indonesian and Vietnamese coffee as one reason for the difference in taste.
Second: the lack of production. Although Indonesia is the fourth–largest coffee bean producer, it lacks the infrastructure to expand its production quality further. Often, coffee bean farmers only have one or two hectares of land and lack the resources to improve quality control despite the country’s immense potential for growing coffee beans. Vietnam is the second–largest coffee bean producer after Brazil, but the government's ability to expand production is limited. Due to the European Union's anti–deforestation trade law, Vietnamese coffee bean producers must prove they are not involved in deforestation. Thus, Australia will face challenges if it tries to shift from Brazilian coffee beans.
