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Where expertise is critically scarce and investigation can permanently alter the evidence, the state can take a more active role.<\/p>\n
At Adam Park, the SLA tender requires the successful tenderer to appoint a project archaeologist to conduct mitigation works to recover and document archaeological materials and features. Who should set the research design and methodology, determine the qualifications of those leading the work, and ensure its quality? With the small number of experts available, separate tenders, on their own, may not be able to supply the right people or establish consistent standards.<\/p>\n
If the state could play a more active role, the authority would set the scope and methods, determine appropriate qualifications and provide for independent review where a site\u2019s archaeological potential is substantial. This would establish a national framework instead of leaving requirements to ad hoc formulations in successive tenders.<\/p>\n
There is already an institutional foundation. NHB\u2019s Archaeology Advisory Panel advises on archaeological initiatives and policies, while legislative proposals put forward for public consultation in 2024 envisaged a more direct regulatory role for NHB.<\/p>\n
A national system could ensure that field records, drawings, photographs, finds registers and digital data are consistently deposited and accessible. Each development-led investigation could contribute to a cumulative national record, while fieldwork creates sustained opportunities for local practitioners and students to gain experience.<\/p>\n
Singapore has made important progress by bringing heritage into planning earlier and more regularly. The question now is whether capacity and oversight have kept pace.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For built heritage, that means strengthening the professional base and review. For archaeology, where expertise is exceptionally scarce and the work can destroy the evidence it seeks to understand, a more state-led model deserves serious consideration.\u00a0 A poor heritage study can lead to an irreversible decision. In archaeology, it can also mean the irreversible loss of the evidence itself.<\/p>\n
Kevin Tan is President of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) Singapore and a law professor.\u00a0Yeo Kang Shua is Vice-President of ICOMOS Singapore and an associate professor at the Singapore University of Technology and Design in architectural history and conservation.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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