Nurturing the next generation of home-grown arts talent

Opening Remarks by Ms Low Yen Ling, Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Social and Family Development & Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth at the official opening of 10 Square @ Orchard Central

Mr Alvin Tay, Deputy Chairman for The RICE Company Limited and Chairman of The Business Times Budding Artists Fund

Mrs Jeannie Tien, Board Member for The RICE Company Limited 

Mr Colin Goh, Chief Executive Officer for The RICE Company Limited

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen

And all my youth friends

1. I am pleased to be here this morning at the Official Opening of 10 Square @ Orchard Central by The RICE Company Limited.
   
2. Singapore’s arts and cultural landscape has grown in vibrancy over the years. This is fundamental to developing a nation of cultured and gracious people, at home with our heritage, and proud of our Singaporean identity. As we continue on this journey together in building a shared culture and engaged community, we must also ensure that the less-privileged among us have the support needed to benefit from the arts.
   

   
   10Sq is nurturing the next generation of home-grown arts talent

3. I am happy to know that 10Sq is designed for this purpose. It will provide youth with access to the arts, right in the heart of our city. It is the training ground for youth from financially-challenged families, who are pursuing performing and visual arts training. I understand that it has the capacity to train up to 500 youths each year. I am also heartened to note that this effort has been totally ground up, led by The Rice Company Limited, and fully funded by The Business Times Budding Artists Fund. I would like to commend the good work done by the founders of The Business Times Budding Artists Fund, for having the vision to champion the arts for the less-privileged and levelling the playing field in the arts. This vision, which began 10 years ago, plays an instrumental part in advancing the arts scene in Singapore.
4. 10Sq’s programmes are designed with the aim to nurture our next generation of home-grown talents in the arts. It provides a safe and conducive avenue for our young people to express and hone their artistic talents, to produce creative works in areas like the visual and performing arts. These are efforts which can benefit the community and elevate Singapore’s arts scene.
5. I commend The RICE Company Limited for providing a dedicated space for our youths, regardless of their socio-economic background. This will allow them to experience the power of the arts, and how it can make a difference to their lives and the community. This is in line with MCCY’s mission to empower our youth, and to bring the arts to a wider community by enabling greater access to the arts.
   

   
   Corporate support

6. Partners and stakeholders are important for an initiative like 10Sq to succeed. Through the Government’s Community/Sports Facilities Scheme¹, Far East Organization has gifted this 13,000 square feet space for our young aspiring artists to realise their potential. While the Government is committed and has invested much, we need and value the support of our private sector partners. We thank Far East Organization for their generous contributions of more spaces for the arts. You have helped open new doors as our youths take their first steps to pursue their dreams in the arts.
   

   
   The Dream Journal

7. I am also delighted that the Dream Journal initiative is staged here today as part of the official opening programme of 10Sq. Conceived out of the simple reason that everyone should have a dream, the Dream Journal is a collection of dreams that not only inspires the individual, but also our community. The heartfelt words penned by our Singapore youth will spur many of us to dream and aspire towards a better future for Singapore. The poems connect, challenge and create new inspiration. It also reminds our youth the importance of giving back to society, and that we are all interconnected in more ways than we know.

8. This is timely as we celebrate our nation’s 50th birthday next year, and we reflect upon our past, celebrate the present, and look forward to the future. Students from Hougang Secondary School have contributed their thoughts and inspirations to The Dream Journal and I’d like to highlight one of the illustrations from a group of seven students, some who are here with us today – Chelsea, Hafiz, Maytinee, Hairul and friends. They shared their interpretation of connections and what it means to them. They wrote: “All of us are here, we have a choice to come together or not. We’re now all scattered around. However, if we come together, great things happen.” Their picture acknowledged the power of connections - they recognised that by coming together, great things can happen - innovation, ideas, impactful knowledge, leadership and great friendship can take place.

9. This is simple, but important reminder to all of us – because indeed, together, we can make great things happen. Our nation’s 50 years is a great testament. The Dream Journal is the result of a ground-up effort with support from the SG50 Celebration Fund. Over 9,000 copies of this journal will be distributed to students in Secondary Schools, Junior Colleges and ITEs in Singapore. We hope this Journal will light up new hope and inspire our youths to dream big for our nation’s next 50 years and more.

10. Finally, to all my young friends here today – this wonderful and exciting space is yours. Pursue your dreams and seize the opportunities. The future waits to be shaped by your passion and imagination. Thank you.