Weaving a Cohesive and Contributing Community

Speech by Mr Alvin Tan, Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth, and Trade and Industry, at the Committee of Supply Debate 2025

Introduction

1. Chairman, Minister Tong spoke of how our shared experiences weave a rich tapestry capturing the stories and dreams of our people and our nation.

2. I experienced this recently at ART SG, when weaving a small part of a 60-metre-long tapestry on display. This tapestry was made from upcycled fabrics by UBS employees, community partners, and children from Care Corner in a bid to commemorate SG60.

3. It’s a great example of how arts and heritage, and culture, in fact, bring Singapore and Singaporeans together to contribute to our rich culture, as SMS Low has just described.

4. It represents how we weave together diverse races, religions, generations, and perspectives into a rich tapestry.

5. Sir, we have two priorities at MCCY: tightening the weave of our social fabric and also expanding our vibrant tapestry.

Tightening our Weave

Our Strong Social Fabric

6. Sir, as a diverse nation with migrant roots, our pioneers built a cohesive community for all Singaporeans, regardless of race, language, or religion.

7. And today, we benefit from the strong social fabric that they have woven.

Weaving a Stronger Social Fabric

8. Like the generations before us, we must weave a stronger and tighter social fabric, pulling different threads together to contribute to this tapestry.

9. And we have a long tradition of communities coming together to do well and to do good. A tradition that is older than our nation, of collective responsibility and mutual support which is a key thread in our social fabric.

10. I’m speaking of course of our co-operative societies, or “co-ops” for short. And this year, we celebrate the centenary year of our co-op movement here in Singapore.

1. Since 1925, our co-ops have played a critical role in building our nation and our social compact. In fact, our first co-ops were formed to help junior civil servants meet unexpected expenses.
2. Today, we have a much wider and a much richer landscape of co-ops. And they cover a diversity of needs, from daily necessities to seniors’ recreation and to help individuals with special needs.
3. Co-ops like the Runninghour Co-operative, which is an inclusive sports co-op that promotes integration of persons with special needs through sports. Runninghour was founded in 2009 as a running club with just 10 members with special needs. Today, Runninghour has grown to over 780 registered members – including persons with special needs, volunteers, and more. They run weekly. Sir, Runninghour is special to me. A good friend I’ve known since we were teenagers, who lost his sight in his twenties, is an active member.

11. This year, we celebrate the centenary year of our co-op movement.

1. And over the past 100 years, many of our social needs have been better addressed. But others are emerging – including our demographic challenges.
2. Our co-ops, too, now face a myriad of challenges; new, different challenges. They face greater competition, rapid digitalisation, and changing consumer needs. Therefore, our co-ops must transform, to attract and retain talent and to extend their reach.
3. To do good, our co-ops must continue to do well.
4. Sir, I spend a lot of time with our co-ops. I meet with them regularly to chat with them, and to learn and to engage with them and to see how we can support them as they continue to do good and continue to do well. In fact, over the last Saturday, I met with the Amalgamated Union of Public Employees Credit Cooperative. They were celebrating their 60th Anniversary, and we discussed how best to support co-ops like theirs. I told them to listen out for our COS debate.

12. This year, we will waive the first-tier Central Co-operative Fund contributions for co-ops.

1. Co-ops contribute part of their yearly surplus to the Fund, which supports their development and growth in areas like education, training, and research.
2. This waiver that I just announced will help over 60 co-ops. They can choose to redirect these savings to enhance their social mission or to better cope with rising costs.

13. And together with Singapore National Co-operative Federation (SNCF), we will also launch a consultation with the sector to develop a transformation road map for the next 10 years. This road map will help to extend co-ops’ social mission and impact, help them to develop talent, and strengthen governance.

14. Mr Chairman, just as we are tightening our weave through our co-op sector, we will also encourage this spirit of mutual care through philanthropy – questions that Mr Keith Chua and Ms Jean See had raised.

1. Sir, over the years, donations received by our arts and heritage, and our sports sectors have risen significantly. We will continue growing philanthropy through tax deductions and dollar-for-dollar matching grants like our Cultural Matching Fund and our One Team Singapore Fund.
2. The Tote Board’s Enhanced Fund-Raising Programme likewise supports fundraising efforts of all eligible Singapore-registered charities, while our SG Gives matching grant encourages donations to support social and community programmes serving communities in need. These will all galvanise more donations and amplify the impact of giving on our charities and our communities.
3. And through NVPC’s Company of Good recognition system, we recognised 290 companies last year, in 2024. It is double the number in 2022, and includes four times the number of SMEs. It’s not just the MNCs and the large companies, but also SMEs, and we’re encouraging that.
4. All of these companies, regardless of their size, actively integrate social impact into their operations, and they give their time, their talents, their treasures – and it amounts to a combined total donation of around $323 million, and over 800,000 volunteer hours. We will encourage more companies to make doing good a core part of their business.
5. Sir, to build regional giving, we launched the Philanthropy Tax Incentive Scheme last year, and the Overseas Humanitarian Assistance Tax Deduction Scheme pilot this year, to include others in the fold of our tapestry and to expand this tapestry.

Expanding our Tapestry

Sharing our Tapestry with the World

15. And one way we are expanding our tapestry is by connecting communities in an increasingly fractured world.

16. That’s why we’re hosting the 3rd edition of the International Conference on Cohesive Societies (ICCS) in June. Ms Joan Pereira asked how ICCS 2025 can facilitate deeper understandings of multiculturalism and interfaith harmony.

1. Sir, we are gathering practitioners, community and youth leaders, and academics from over 30 nations.
2. And over a quarter of our delegates will be below 35 years old. In fact, our youth leaders will join the working committee of the Young Leaders Programme at ICCS to facilitate breakout sessions, and hold cultural sharings.
3. I recently spoke to a group of youths about the importance of our precious, hard-won racial and religious harmony. I shared how Singapore, through our example and platforms like ICCS, can contribute perspectives on striving for harmony in an increasingly divided world.
1. So ICCS 2025, the third edition, will bring participants to our iconic places of worship and heritage districts to witness diverse religious and cultural practices coexisting harmoniously in shared spaces across Singapore. Our community leaders will also share their lived experiences of harmony in diversity.
4. At 60 years, we are still a young nation and have much to learn from others. I’ve been involved with earlier ICCS editions and have witnessed the impact it has made in Singapore, and beyond our shores. Through ICCS 2025, we get to share our challenges, learnings, and brainstorm solutions and areas for improvement, in a never-ending effort to remain open and connected.

Enriching our Tapestry

17. Sir, remaining open and connected allows us to enrich our tapestry with new weaves and fabrics, through friends from all over the world and our next generation.

1. Like Conal McMahon, PwC’s Head of Market Insights. He told me he moved to Singapore about 7 years ago after living in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. He and his wife were attracted by Singapore’s lifestyle and personal growth opportunities.
2. In his free time, Conal teaches professional skills at Aidha, a charity looking after migrant domestic workers. Conal also serves on the board of the Jane Goodall Institute, which empowers youth to take action for the environment, for the animals, and community.

18. It’s wonderful to have people like Conal call Singapore home and contribute to our nation and our community.

19. And we too must welcome our overseas friends with open arms.

1. I understand – having lived overseas for over 9 years across my career. While overseas, the community surrounding me and my young family helped us to settle down and find home in that particular city for that particular season.
2. Newcomers to Singapore alike also navigate unfamiliarity every day. And we can all play a part to make them feel at home in that particular season of their lives.

20. Mr Sitoh Yih Pin asked how we are fostering greater understanding and integration of foreigners in our society. I agree we should do more, beginning at our workplaces.

21. Therefore, this year, MCCY is partnering our business community to convene an Alliance for Action on Integration of Foreign Professionals.

1. I co-chair this with PwC Singapore Chairman Mr Marcus Lam, who serves in the Singapore National Employers Federation and Singapore Business Federation; alongside 15 other industry representatives.
2. We began engagements last year – we’ve met quite a few times now, including with Focus Group discussions – and have so far gleaned some learnings:
1. First, local employers are committed to fair, equal-opportunity hiring; they want to better integrate employees and foster positive interactions in workplaces.
2. Foreign professionals also want to adapt to Singapore’s cultural norms and build relationships with their local colleagues.
3. And efforts have already begun, so we have a running start:
1. Last year, OCBC organised their inaugural run of the Singapore Immersion Programme (SIP), which provides opportunities for foreign employees to get involved in the community alongside their local colleagues.
2. I recently spoke with Diallo Ramatoulaye, a Canadian lady originally from Mali.
3. Through SIP, Rama deepened her understanding of our culture and our work ethic, and built meaningful relationships with her local colleagues. She is giving back to Singapore, through teaching financial management to children with special needs and also befriending underprivileged families.
4. Our AfA will rally and equip more employers to nurture inclusive workplace communities. And we will share more about what we’ve learnt and what we plan to do in the second half of this year.

22. Sir, just as in the workplace, we are also doing this in the community. We plan to refresh our Integration and Naturalisation Committees and Champions (INC) programme.

1. Since 2006, INC volunteers have helped newcomers settle into their communities and adapt to our Singaporean way of life – including Ms Jessica Tjung from my constituency.
1. Jessica is a Singaporean citizen originally from Indonesia and has lived here for over 26 years. Her first-hand experiences navigating integration’s challenges led her to volunteer as an Integration and Naturalisation Champion.
2. Jessica has spearheaded initiatives like an Old School Games Carnival in 2023 for residents of all ages and backgrounds to learn about our heritage.

23. Like Conal, Rama, and Jessica, every thread contributes unique colour and texture to our Singapore tapestry.

Expanding our Tapestry into the Future

24. And sir, we have good cloth. We have good cloth in our youths. Our youths bring fresh colour and perspective, and are our future leaders, who will take on the work of tightening our weave and expanding our tapestry into the future.

25. Mr Shawn Huang asked about our Youth Panels. Our inaugural Youth Panels gave our youths a platform to be involved in policymaking. And our youths have responded with great interest.

1. 120 youths stepped forward to work with Government to deliberate on policy issues.
2. We put together 4 panels together with our youths; we called them #LifeHacks, #JobHacks, #TechHacks, and #GreenHacks. And the youths spent over a year developing their ideas across these four panels, and engaged over 5,000 of their peers through surveys, focus group discussions, and our Youth Policy Forum.
3. They then distilled their views into 4 policy papers with 11 recommendations.
1. At one of my many engagements with these energetic Youth Panels, I spoke with Kimberly Quek, a final year Life Science student at NUS. Despite her hearing loss, Kimberly has excelled in her pursuits in bowling and passions in the sustainability space.
2. In fact, Kimberly led our #GreenHacks panel to propose solutions like segregated recycling bins and standardised recycling labels, to improve consumer knowledge and promote better recycling habits.
4. We are considering the Panels’ recommendations and will respond soon. To Mr Shawn Huang’s question, we are also reviewing the Panels to better involve our youths in shaping Singapore’s future.
5. The Youth Panels have concluded. And I recently hosted them here in Parliament to deep dive into their recommendations. We had a really lively dialogue, and they gave excellent solutions and recommendations. And in fact, it doesn’t end here, because many Youth Panel leaders have gone on to thread new pathways. One of them, Josh Lee, was a contributor to our #TechHacks Panel, and now serves as a youth representative to the Media Literacy Council. So there is a channel for them to contribute even more to national issues.

26. Just as we have empowered youths like Josh through the Youth Panels, we are doing the same for other youths through Mentoring SG, our national mentoring movement.

1. Over 260 partners – which involves corporates, mentoring organisations, community groups – have joined the movement since we launched it in 2022.
2. And we are doing more; there is good momentum. We are doing more to guide our youths through life’s key transition stages.
1. We are now partnering with Institutes of Higher Learning to match more youths with mentors. We launched the first Youth Mentoring Hub at Singapore Polytechnic in November that will connect 10,000 students to mentors over the next 3 years.
2. This commitment extends across sectors. Companies, or corporates like Jobstreet by SEEK and Prudential offered flash mentoring at careers roadshows, and they provide valuable insights as our youths prepare for work. We also partnered trade associations and chambers like the Singapore Semiconductor Industry Association, to promote mentoring to ITE students, and attract future semiconductor leaders. I’ve attended these sessions over the years at ITE College Central many times and saw firsthand how interested our youths are in exposing themselves to new opportunities in the semiconductor space.
3. We invite everyone to join us as mentors – we will not leave you hanging, because we will train you. You can pick up mentoring skills through our Mentoring 101 programme and Workforce Skills Qualification-accredited Mentoring for Youth course.

27. Sir, as we mentor a new generation of youths to lead and take action for their lives, community, and our nation, we are also creating platforms for them to design Singapore’s future tapestry, points that Mr Shawn Huang had raised.

28. This SG60 year, we are embarking on a year-long series of engagements with our youths, for them to step forward to share their views and realise their aspirations.

1. These are platforms for our youths to connect on what Singapore can be for them and how they want to contribute, in areas such as volunteerism and mental well-being.
2. Every youth is invited to participate and be a changemaker in an area that interests them, and is close to their hearts.
3. I attended a recent session at the Red Box in January by our partner Growthbeans, who are connecting over 100 youths and stakeholders on the issue of youth well-being.
1. Including Shannen Yeo, a Secondary 1 student and active volunteer who facilitated discussions at the engagement.
4. Now these contributions will culminate in our SG Youth Plan; and this SG Youth Plan is a five-year action blueprint for youths, by youths, supported by the whole-of-society.
5. Now, there are many ways to contribute. I invite everyone – youths, organisations like Growthbeans, and individuals – to shape our SG Youth Plan together.

Conclusion

29. Chairman, I’ve spoken of how we are tightening our weave and expanding our tapestry. And how every single one of us can play our part.

30. Like Thaddeus Tan, whom I met in November at a counter-terrorism seminar he helped us organise. It was called The Radical Shift and we held this at the Civil Service Club. A member of the MacPherson Racial and Religious Harmony Circle. Thaddeus is spearheading an interfaith concert in July, showcasing young local talent in celebration of Racial and Religious Harmony Month.

31. Thaddeus is an excellent example of how every successive generation of Singaporeans must continue this meaningful endeavour to ensure that our Singapore tapestry remains vibrant.

32. MCCY will continue fostering communities who care and contribute to the Singapore tapestry.

33. And one of these ways is the unifying power of sports, which SPS Chua will speak on, before bringing us to the finish line.

34. I look forward to our tapestry growing more vibrant and colourful, as each one of us threads our unique stories into the living masterpiece we call our home.

35. Thank you.