1.         The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) is sending two six-man construction engineering teams to Bamiyan Province in central Afghanistan.  Each team will be deployed for about three months between 3 May and 31 October 2008.  This deployment is part of Singapore’s overall contribution to the international humanitarian assistance and reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan.

2.         The SAF engineering team will be operating as part of the New Zealand Defence Force's (NZDF) Provincial Reconstruction Team in Bamiyan.  The SAF team will supervise the construction of a Regional Health Training Centre (RHTC), which will serve as a one-stop centre for the training of all healthcare workers in Bamiyan province.  Upon completion, the RHTC will be handed over to the local authorities. 

3.         The SAF had previously deployed a five-man dental team and a five-man engineering team to Bamiyan with the NZDF for about three months each in 2007.

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Please attribute the photograph to MINDEF. Thank you.

Chief Guards Officer, COL Tung Yui Fai presenting the State flag to the six-man engineering team leader LTC James Tan Ming Chong