Sports for all

Speech by Mr Eric Chua, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth & Social and Family Development, at the Committee of Supply Debate 2025, 10 March 2025

Introduction

1. Sir, sports enrich our lives and help to foster inclusive, healthier, and connected communities.

Sports for All

2. We are committed to enabling more to Live Better Through Sport by making sports programs and facilities accessible to all Singaporeans.

3. I will cover initiatives to boost sports participation among three groups:

1. Children and Youth;
2. Persons with Disabilities; and
3. Seniors

Boosting Children and Youths’ Sports Participation

4. Sir, I have a young son at home, so I fully appreciate that introducing children to sports early fosters healthy habits, builds character, reduces screen time, and nurtures their talents.

5. Mr Xie Yao Quan and Mr Mohd Fahmi will be glad to know that we have been and will continue to expand the opportunities for our children and youth to play sports, both in and outside of schools.

1. We partner MOE to promote sports in schools through programmes such as the Strategic Partnership Co-Curricular Activity (SP-CCA). This enables students to pursue CCAs beyond what their school offers, and at the same time encourages inter-school mixing.
2. As mentioned at MOE’s COS, we have expanded SP-CCA to include canoeing, and we plan to add hockey by 2026.
3. Outside schools, children can engage in sports through the ActiveSG Academies and Clubs (A&Cs), and lower-income families may tap on the SportCares Bursary to fully cover program fees.
4. Children and youth can take part in sports activities and interest groups organised by the People’s Association’s Community Sports Networks, such as the PAssion Community Football Programme for children aged 5 to 16 years old, or the PA Community Championship and Pesta Sukan for youth.
5. We also work with National Sports Associations, or NSAs, private academies and sport clubs to broaden the sports programmes available to all Singaporeans.

Making Sports Inclusive for Persons with Disabilities

6. Chairman, let me move on to sports for Persons with Disabilities, a topic Mr Baey Yam Keng and Mr Ong Hua Han spoke about.

7. Sport enhances the quality of life for Persons with Disabilities and can help transform societal attitudes toward disability, by spotlighting strengths, instead of disability.

8. We first launched the Disability Sports Master Plan in 2016. Since then, we have seen an increase in sports participation rates amongst Persons with Disabilities from 28% in 2015 to 45% in 2024, and our para sports athletes have also consistently performed well at Major Games.

9. But we wanted to do more.

10. We set-up the Enabling Sports Taskforce, engaged stakeholders and launched a refreshed Master Plan last November, which aims to raise sports participation rate of Persons with Disabilities to 70% by 2030.

11. This plan focuses on three ‘A’s:

1. First, to increase Accessibility;
2. Second, to raise Awareness; and
3. Last but not least, to fulfil Aspirations

12. First, we will continue to increase accessibility by further increasing the capacity of our disability sport programs and make ActiveSG sports facilities more inclusive.

1. Take Ms Diana Yap and her son, Aaron, whom I met for example. Diana shared that Aaron did not like playing sports initially, but fell in love with badminton since joining SportSG’s Play-Ability and now looks forward to every single badminton session!
2. With better outreach, we hope that more Persons with Disabilities can enjoy sports like Aaron!

13. Second, we will raise awareness of disability sports and inclusive sports activities by expanding initiatives like Play Inclusive so that all Singaporeans can play and enjoy sports together, regardless of ability.

1. This includes working with MOE to have all students in mainstream schools experience at least one disability sport by 2028.

14. Third, we want to support the aspirations of Persons with Disabilities who desire and have the potential to pursue sports at the high-performance level.

1. We will continue to build the capabilities of disability sport coaches and support personnel.
2. We will also establish a para-sport National Training Centre (NTC) within the home of TeamSG at Kallang Alive and set up Para Sports Community Hubs (PSCHs) across the island so that Persons with Disabilities can access sports closer to home.
1. We have set up five Hubs to date and plan to add more progressively.
2. These Hubs are intentionally set up at ActiveSG centres, so that both Persons with Disabilities and members of the public can enjoy sports together at the same space. I was told that this has actually allowed for Persons with Disabilities to make friends with members of the public and this integration is exactly what we hope to see!

15. Lastly, based on feedback from our engagements, we will launch a new Enabling Sports Fund in the second half of (2025) to support more community initiatives in disability sports.

1. We target to have at least $10 million in the fund by 2030. We have $5 million to be raised through donations and the other $5 million matched dollar-for-dollar by the Government.
2. We encourage everyone to contribute actively to this Fund.

Increase participation in sports by bringing sports to seniors

16. Sir, Singapore will become a super-aged society by 2026 and by 2030, more than one in four residents in Singapore will be 65 years or older. With this comes a growing concern – frailty, a condition which reduces the function and health of older individuals.

1. Aside from inactivity, poor nutrition, and social isolation, frailty is related to muscle loss, also known as sarcopenia, which begins as early as 30 to 40 years old. By the age of 70, we may lose about 25% of our muscle mass!

17. In response to Mr Xie Yao Quan, Mr Daryl David and Mr Sitoh Yih Pin, I would like to share about the Active Health initiative and its Frailty Prevention Programme or FPP, which was introduced by SportSG in collaboration with the Agency of Integrated Care (AIC) and features an 8-week Combat Age Related Loss of Muscle (CALM) programme.

1. Now, seniors in the programme participate in exercises involving resistance bands and dumb bells, along with guidance on nutrition and sleep.

18. The FPP also offers adaptive sports such as sport stacking, ladder toss, boccia, disc golf and seated floorball - activities which are modified to enable players of differing abilities to participate.

1. Aside from providing a good workout, these sports promote teamwork and interaction amongst seniors, reducing the risks of isolation and loneliness.

19. To bring sports to seniors where they are, the FPP is being conducted at Active Ageing Centres in our communities.

1. To date, 54 AACs have completed the CALM programme and we aim to double this to about 100 AACs by the end of this year.
2. We also aim to provide adaptive sports equipment to about 100 AACs by the end of this year too.
3. To ensure successful rollout, we aim to train staff and volunteers from all active ageing centres who come onboard the Frailty Prevention Programme.

20. From my chats with seniors, I have heard directly from them about how the FPP have improved their lives.

21. Recently, I met Mdm Tham Yoke Cheng, Mdm May Mak and Mdm Lam Ngiat Yin who were participating in the CALM programme at Chong Hua Tong AAC in Moulmein Cairnhill (MoCa).

1. I was glad to hear that CALM has helped them to strengthen their muscles and improve their walking gait, especially for Mdm Lam who has issues with her knees.
2. For Mdm Mak, she even shared that she had mostly stayed at home for the past three years prior to joining the programme. Now, thanks to CALM, Mdm Mak likes to bake treats to share with her fellow seniors at the AAC!

22. Through my visits, I have also seen the enthusiasm that seniors have for adaptive sport.

1. Some are very competitive! I have played many of these games – and lost many games with them!

23. So for seniors who have joined CALM or adaptive sports and enjoyed it – I encourage all of you to invite your friends to join in.

24. I also look forward to more AACs offering both the CALM and adaptive sports programmes at your centres.

25. Sir, in Mandarin please.

26. 运动不仅能让我们保持身体健康，更能让我们精神焕发，身手灵活，让我们的生活更有活力。

27. 为了帮助‘乐龄朋友们’积极参与运动，新加坡体育局 (SportSG)与 ‘护联中心’ (AIC)特别推出了 “防衰弱计划”，其中包括为期8周的《预防年龄相关肌肉流失计划》(CALM)。

28. 这些课程在邻里的‘活跃乐龄中心’（Active Ageing Centres）举行，在专业教练的悉心指导下，通过运动、营养和良好的作息，帮助大家维持健康的生活方式。

29. 参与计划的乐龄朋友们都反映收获良多，不仅身体更硬朗，生活也更充实

30. 我衷心希望已参加过的乐龄朋友们能够将这个好消息分享给身边的亲朋好友，同时也欢迎还未参与的乐龄朋友们到附近的《活跃乐龄中心》报名参加。

31. 让我们一起通过“三动”：也就是参加活动、和大家互动、打成一片后, 一起做运动，一起享受充满活力的黄金年华

Empowering individuals to participate in sports through ActiveSG facilities

32. Through the Sports Facilities Master Plan (SFMP), we aim to provide most Singaporeans with affordable sport facilities no more than a 10-minute walk from their homes by around 2030. Mr Xie Yao Quan asked for an update on this.

1. To date, we have renovated 3 sport centres and completed 15 of our committed development projects, as part of our SFMP. This includes 2 sheltered basketball courts and 4 open surface courts at the new ActiveSG Sport Park @ Bedok North, which will open later this year.
2. In addition, this year, residents in Ang Mo Kio and Queenstown can also soon enjoy renovated facilities in their neighbourhood at the Queenstown Sport Centre and ActiveSG Sport Park @ Ang Mo Kio.

33. The Sport-In-Precinct (SIP) initiative is yet another key strategy by SportSG to bring facilities closer to Singaporeans and their families.

1. To-date, we have completed 10 SIP facilities, with another 24 in the pipeline.
2. Out of these, 6 SIPs are already under construction. Residents in Keat Hong, Tampines North, Pasir Ris East, Whampoa, Ulu Pandan, and Choa Chu Kang can look forward to their completion over the next few years.

34. To keep pace with demographic shifts, we will also build sport facilities that cater better to the needs of seniors and working adults.

1. An example is the upcoming “Active Health Fitness Trail” at Mei Ling, which has specially designed equipment and architecture to create a safe and effective exercise environment for seniors. This is an important feature of the broader Health District @ Queenstown.

35. To ensure fair access, SportSG introduced the MyActiveSG+ booking platform in June 2024 - as pointed out by Mr Xie Yao Quan and Mr Faisal Manap.

36. The new platform addresses concerns that some users were abusing scripts to monopolise bookings. Now, everyone can only have one account tagged to their SingPass, and peak hour slots are allocated by ballot.

37. This ensures that everyone has an equal chance of booking their preferred slot and facilities, which has also increased the number of individuals with successful bookings.

38. We have also enhanced the platform based on feedback, adding features like high-demand indicators, and improved search filters.

39. We continue to welcome feedback as we continue to improve the platform.

Conclusion

40. To conclude Sir, I have spoken several times in the past in this Chamber about how through sport, one can defy the odds, and redefine the deck of cards that life deals each of us.

41. In past COS, I have shared about the story of boccia para-athlete, Aloysius Gan who despite being quadriplegic and non-verbal, shows us clearly that the human spirit triumphs disabilities. Last summer, I was privileged to have joined Jeralyn and Pin Xiu and Team Singapore para-athletes in Paris, as they brought home a historic haul of Paralympic medals.

42. I am extremely proud of all of them, and I am also sure that they would agree with me when I say that true inclusion in sport is not merely about catering carve-outs for persons with disabilities, or our seniors. It is about creating common spaces where all, regardless of age, abilities and persuasions, feel welcomed, respected, and valued. We need to start from young; and we can start with each of us.

43. Sport has always been a powerful force for unity, transcending differences, bridging divides. By fostering inclusion in every game, every match and every athlete’s journey, we are weaving a stronger fabric of diversity into the very DNA of Singapore society. Let us make inclusion not just a goal, but a living and breathing part of who we are.