Singapore’s growing engagement in international genomics data standards took a meaningful step forward in May 2026, as representatives from CoRE-SDO and the National Mirror Working Group on ISO/TC 215/SC 1 Genomics Informatics travelled to Sendai, Japan, to participate in the 13th ISO/TC 215/SC 1 Plenary Meeting and the 12th meeting of its Working Group on Genomics Data Sharing. Held from 4 to 7 May 2026 and hosted by the Tohoku Medical Megabank Organization (ToMMo) at Tohoku University, the week brought together genomics standards experts from across the world to shape the future of how genomic data is described, exchanged, and quality-assured in clinical and research settings.
For Singapore, the meeting marked an important moment — both as a platform to introduce a nationally led proposal into the ISO standards pipeline, and as a signal of Singapore’s expanding voice in one of the most strategically important domains in health informatics.
Singapore’s Proposal Enters the ISO Pipeline
The headline outcome of the week was the successful endorsement of Singapore’s proposal on Specifications of Quality Control Metrics for Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS-QC) as a Preliminary Work Item under ISO/TC 215/SC 1 — the first formal step in the ISO development pathway. Co-led by Dr Nicolas Bertin and Mr Justin Jeyakani of the Genome Institute of Singapore (A*STAR), the proposal originated from work developed by the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH) and is now positioned to progress through the ISO process toward eventual standardisation.
The proposal was presented during the Working Group 1 meeting and accepted as a Preliminary Work Item at the closing plenary with no objections — a meaningful early endorsement given the technical depth of the subject matter and the careful scrutiny new proposals attract at this level. The Singapore delegation engaged actively with international counterparts throughout the week to refine the title and scope of the proposal for greater clarity, and to build the cross-country support that will be essential as the project advances. Constructive input from the Danish delegation helped sharpen the final scope, and endorsement from GA4GH leadership reinforced the proposal’s positioning at the interface between research-led standards development and clinical-grade standardisation.
The road ahead is a multi-stage one. A Call for Experts will be issued in mid-2026, requiring participation from at least five P-member countries before the proposal can progress to a New Work Item Proposal ballot — which is currently targeted around the next plenary in Seville, Spain in November 2026. Only after that ballot is approved will the project formally enter the drafting stage as an Approved Work Item, with publication of any resulting standard typically several years beyond that point. Once published, the standard would provide consistent quality benchmarks for whole genome sequencing data — work that is directly relevant to national genomics initiatives such as PRECISE, to clinical genomics adoption, and to industry partners across the sequencing ecosystem.
A Subcommittee Evolving with the Field
The Sendai meeting also marked a structural turning point for ISO/TC 215/SC 1 itself. Members endorsed a proposed name change to “Genomics and Multi-Omics Informatics” — a recognition that the committee’s scope has grown to encompass not just genomics, but the broader omics landscape including phenomics and proteomics. A new Working Group 2 on the Secondary Use of Genomics and Multi-Omics Data was also established, focusing on FAIR data principles, data provenance and quality harmonisation, and privacy-preserving computational technologies. This new working group is particularly relevant to Singapore, where secondary use of clinical genomic data underpins national precision medicine initiatives, and where international standards in this space will increasingly shape future data governance frameworks.
Several new proposals from across the international community were also tabled — spanning gut microbiome metadata, quality management for multi-omics quantitation, annotation standards for clinical genomic reports, and minimal residual disease assessment by sequencing. Many of these intersect with active areas of Singaporean expertise, and CoRE-SDO will be circulating the relevant materials to NMWG members and partner working groups to identify suitable experts for potential nomination.
Singapore to Host the 17th Plenary in 2028
In a clear signal of Singapore’s growing standing within the subcommittee, CoRE-SDO secured the opportunity to host the 17th ISO/TC 215/SC 1 Plenary Meeting in Singapore in 2028. The hosting opportunity reflects both the trust placed in Singapore by international counterparts and the strategic importance of bringing the global genomics standards community into the region. With future ISO meetings returning to a face-to-face format, hosting the 2028 plenary will offer Singapore-based experts a rare opportunity to engage with international peers on home ground.
Regional Collaboration Beyond the Meeting Room
Beyond the formal agenda, the meeting host ToMMo provided a tour of its facilities and an overview of one of the most ambitious population genomics programmes in the world — encompassing whole-genome sequencing of 150,000 participants, including a distinctive three-generation cohort tracking genetic and health data within the same families. ToMMo expressed strong interest in collaborating with Singapore’s PRECISE programme, with the two initiatives offering highly complementary strengths.
Looking Ahead
Sendai builds on the momentum already evident across Singapore’s standards programme — from the Berlin meeting on next-generation cancer diagnostics in 2025, through the launch of the Genomics Informatics Task Force, to the consistent emphasis at recent Technical Committee meetings on directing Singapore’s international engagement toward domains where local expertise can credibly elevate national work onto the global stage. Genomics informatics is exactly such a domain.
The road from Sendai now leads to Seville in November 2026, then to Copenhagen, Arlington, and ultimately to Singapore in 2028. Each stop along the way is an opportunity to strengthen Singapore’s contribution to global genomics standards — and to ensure that the frameworks shaping the future of precision medicine reflect the perspectives and needs of our region.
CoRE-SDO welcomes Singapore-based experts in genomics, multi-omics, and related fields who are interested in contributing to this work. Interested parties are encouraged to reach out for more information on participating in the NMWG and in upcoming ISO project teams.