Introduction

In December 2015, Singapore and the United Nations (UN) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to jointly develop an information management tool for UN peacekeeping. The Singapore Armed Forces has worked closely with the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (UN DPKO) and Department of Field Support (UN DFS) to jointly develop the Notification of Casualties (NOTICAS) software application to enhance casualty reporting and situational awareness of UN peacekeeping operations.

Notification of Casualties (NOTICAS) Reporting Application

The NOTICAS is a secure web-based programme which enables electronic submission of casualty data for UN personnel serving in all Peacekeeping and Special Political Missions to the UN Headquarters (HQ) in New York. Compared with the current manual process of casualty notification which can take up to two weeks, the information processing time will be improved significantly. Key stakeholders at the UN HQ will also be automatically notified upon entry of the casualty data into the software.

The process entails the following steps: (i) personnel from the UN peacekeeping mission reports the casualty information in the database; (ii) an automated email notification will be sent to the First Authoriser to verify the information; (iii) another automated email notification will be sent to the Second Authoriser to confirm the accuracy of the information; and (iv) a final email notification will be sent to the key stakeholders to notify that there has been a casualty. The casualty information will be posted on the programme and can be accessed by specific users at the UN Headquarters in New York, and all Peacekeeping and Special Political Missions.

Other key features of the NOTICAS software application include (i) secure online login; (ii) recording, viewing and editing of casualty record functions; (iii) customisable search for the analysis of casualty data; (iv) home page for a one-glance view of all casualty records; (v) data charts to monitor casualty trends; and (vi) automated email notifications.

The NOTICAS software application is interoperable with other UN systems, thus ensuring a seamless workflow process within the UN. The security of the casualty records is also enhanced as information is restricted to only users with access rights. The loss of data due to the misplacement of casualty records or human error will also be minimised.