A scheme to secure and efficiently use the health data of seafarers in southeast and south Asia amid the coronavirus pandemic is being offered by a tech start-up backed by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.

Riverr, a Singapore-based technology firm, provides a digital platform that instantly verifies the health information of seafarers on a ship, including nationality, vaccination status and medical records.

Its scheme addresses the typical system of seafarers’ health records being managed and shared via email for authorising bodies to approve whether they can board or disembark at ports.  

Riverr said its digital platform enabled port authorities and other industry stakeholders to instantly validate seafarers’ medical and vaccination records trail without needing to hold them or store their data.  

Its ecosystem ensures that every touchpoint along a patient’s health and vaccination journey, ranging from medical providers to testing labs and national health organisations, are instantly verified on request via a mobile app or web interface.

Kristina Lynge, Riverr’s chief executive and co-founder, said the company had raised $1m in seed money to scale and rapidly deploy its verification solution platform across Singapore, the Philippines, India and Indonesia.

She said the fund was raised from KSL Maritime Ventures, a unit of Kuok (Singapore) Limited, and SEEDS Capital. The latter company’s contribution is part of a S$50m co-investment scheme for maritime start-ups supported by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.

“Riverr’s fresh funding and expertise will augment their efforts in accelerating digitalisation for the maritime industry and further strengthen Singapore’s position as a global leading maritime technology hub,” said MPAS assistant chief executive Kenneth Lim.