Mr Chairman, when we began the debate on MCYS’ budget, we noted that it is challenging but important to build an inclusive society of Hope, Heart and Home.

 

Within the government, this is something that cuts across different areas.  Beyond the government, we need a whole-of-society response.  Overall, we need the positive involvement of all Singaporeans and active partnerships among the public, private and people sectors.  

 

For MCYS, we have two key thrusts to our response - strengthening our social safety nets and developing our social service sector.  Let me now also share briefly how the ministry’s work in the areas of sports and youth development and how all these fit into our plans and approach.

 

 

Sports can serve as a key strategy for us to thrive in the new socio-economic landscape, and to foster an inclusive society.  It nurtures healthy bodies and minds, shapes values, and builds character and resilience.  Sports can also bond our diverse communities and ignite the passion and unity of our citizens.  These are positives that will serve us well in the new landscape. And this is especially important as we go forward in our next phase of development where we will have greater diversity amongst our people.

 

Mr Nicholas Fang has rightly pointed out that developing a sporting culture requires much more than increasing sporting facilities.

 

Seven months ago, I convened the Vision 2030 Committee to chart our future direction for sports development in Singapore.  The private, people and public sector members in turn consulted some 2,500 people from all walks of life.  Many Singaporeans – including youths, parents, seniors, working adults and students – spoke passionately and gave their ideas.

 

We started this process by asking ourselves - beyond seeing sports as the end, what can sports do for the individuals, the community and our nation. We ask people, and we consult them – not just people in the traditional sports fraternity, but we also wanted to reach out to people who are not in the sports fraternity.

 

The Vision 2030 Committee released its preliminary report last month.   The wide-ranging recommendations centre on 3 key themes.  First, creating more Opportunities for Singaporeans to engage in sport throughout our life cycles.  Second, promoting Access through a more inclusive approach to sports facilities, and capitalising on the power of sports-based social activism. Third, building Capabilities to support growth in the quantity and quality of sports programmes.

 

Many of the Committee’s proposals support one or more of these themes.  These include:

• Regional Super Sports Clubs and Corporate Leagues to bring more sport programmes to the community and the workplace;
• The Super Sports Clubs will be a home base for families and community to gather for sport and recreation. They will provide affordable programming and coaching for all skill levels and age groups, including fundamental movement skills for young children and modified sports for seniors. The Clubs will also welcome corporate sports teams to participate in Corporate Leagues. The pilot concept for the Super Sports Clubs will be implemented this year.
• A Sports Pathway Committee to coordinate sporting opportunities for youth both in and outside of schools, and to involve them not just as athletes, but also in other roles such as coaches and officials;
• A rich sport event calendar with enhanced spectator experience, to build interest in sports and add vibrancy to Singapore;
• Connecting Team Singapore athletes with the public so as to strengthen support for them, and inspire wider sport participation;
• A coaching academy to produce coaches who can cater to the needs of people of different ages and sporting abilities; and,
• A SportCares Movement and a Sports Volunteer Framework, to encourage the public and businesses to contribute to the sports scene. 
• The SportCares Movement aims to inculcate stronger social values among Singaporeans through sport.  It will provide opportunities to include the vulnerable segments of our society in sports.  It will also serve as a platform for businesses to use sport for corporate social responsibility.  The Movement will facilitate individual donations and sport volunteerism as well.

The Committee also proposes to engage the corporate sector, to deepen their involvement in sports through innovative ways.  

• Sports can be leveraged as a company’s branding and marketing efforts.  
• Or it could be part of a company’s corporate social responsibility – giving back to society through sports.  It could also deploy its younger members for leadership and team building with the National Sports Associations (NSA). 
• Corporates can take up representation at national and community platforms.  They can bring their expertise to the table, while developing their employees.
• On this point, I’ll like to respond to Mr Nicholas Fang’s suggestion. I fully agree we should professionalise our NSAs in order to involve more people in sports. We have to look at new ways to bring in new expertise into the NSAs beyond the traditional pool of ex-athletes. We can involve corporate and community partners. It is only when everybody gets involved in helping our NSAs, then can we have strong NSAs. Only with strong NSAs will we have the strong supporting structure and organisations to give our athletes – be it recreational athletes or competitive athletes – the best chance to perform on the world stage. 
• We want to do justice to our athletes. Over the last week, I have met up with 50 NSAs to share with them some of the good practices that we will like to encourage all our NSAs to do. At the same time, we also want to encourage our bigger and better developed NSAs to play a leading role to guide the smaller and less developed NSAs. In this process, we are not just trying to just win medals, we also want to build an inclusive society and allow more people to enjoy sports.

Sir, Vision 2030 is an ongoing conversation.  I would like to invite all Singaporeans to share your feedback on the recommendations, so that we can fine-tune them. We want to see a fundamental change in the way we approach sports. It may take us a generation to do so but we need to get the fundamentals right.

 

 

Sir, I will now touch on young Singaporeans, who are our Hope for the future.  They are one group who have tremendous potential to contribute to an inclusive society.  

 

I have met many inspired and committed youths – students, youth organisation leaders, social service professionals, volunteers and many more.  They are full of passion, energy and ideas.  They not only believe in but also actively contribute towards this vision of inclusiveness.  

 

We are committed to supporting our youth in realising their full potential through diverse paths.  An inclusive society, after all, is one that accommodates different voices and opinions.  It also provides opportunities for people with different strengths and talents to strive, to excel and to contribute.

 

Nurturing young leaders who are committed to building an inclusive Singapore is one of the key goals of the National Youth Council (NYC).  Mr Alex Yam asked how NYC’s role is evolving in today’s dynamically changing youth landscape.

 

Our youth today are more educated and better travelled.  With advances in technology, they can quickly access information online and form networks with people who share similar views and interests.  There are also many competing demands on their time and attention.

 

To effectively engage our youth, we will have to evolve our approach to keep pace with these trends.  We will need to adapt to the changing youth environment, and embrace new technologies to our advantage.  This is a work in progress for the NYC.  It aims to be an enabler, to build a strong and vibrant ecosystem of youth sector organisations.  

 

Going forward, the NYC will strengthen its role as a connector and an enabler.  Through partnerships with people, public and private youth sector organisations (YSOs), the NYC will work together to build a dynamic community of youth interest groups.  In the process, it will also identify and nurture a committed core of youth leaders.  We look to this group of youth leaders to reach out to their peers.  To increase the social capital of Singaporean youth, and foster an active and caring youth community. 

 

I will like to encourage many more ground up initiatives amongst the youth. NYC will partner, groom and support youth in whatever way it can.

 

We will also step up our engagement efforts to facilitate greater youth advocacy, to allow young people's voices to be heard.  Schooling youth will have more opportunities to learn about the policy making process, and contribute on issues concerning them.  

 

We will also grow a community of youth representatives in their 20s and 30s from the people and private sectors.  They will represent youth on national and community issues, and champion youth causes.  We will enable them to develop a well-rounded understanding of national imperatives and policies, as well as community issues and needs.  I will share more details in the coming months.

 

Sir, I am focused on building the community of youth leaders because they will be the leaders of Singapore going forward. We need to lend them our shoulders for them to stand taller and see further, so that they can take Singapore to even greater heights.

 

 

Sir, my MCYS colleagues and I have outlined the ministry’s plans to contribute towards building an inclusive society of Hope, Heart and Home for Singapore.  Not alone.  Not just among government agencies.  But through active 3P partnerships which were the originator of these plans, and which will now serve as the basis for their implementation.  And with the involvement of all Singaporeans. 

 

Inclusiveness is not just about Government putting in more resources.  Neither is it just a matter of new programmes.  As several members have reminded us, inclusiveness is more of a mindset and a value system.  It is also about the wider community and its attitude towards the less able and those in need, or simply those who are different.  

 

I cannot agree more with this point.  The Enabling Masterplan which my SPS has just spoken about will not work if employers do not give persons with disability a chance.  The plans which my MOS had shared on community and home-based eldercare will not get past the starting line if all Singaporeans say “good idea, but not in my backyard.”  

 

On this note, I agree with Mr Laurence Lien on the important role played by civil society – in outreaching to and identifying those in need, in developing local and innovative solutions, in taking ownership over issues which their communities may face.   

 

We welcome the efforts of VWOs and everyday Singaporeans to make Singapore more inclusive.  We are confident that they can – and will – do more, working hand in hand with Government as partners and co-creators.  

 

I draw this conclusion from the many caring social service professionals and volunteers whom I met over the past 10 months at MCYS.  From the organisations – in both the private and people sectors – I have visited, I have seen tremendous energy and passion. And from the ordinary Singaporeans who spoke up for our elderly during the recent public discussions on locating eldercare centres at HDB void decks. 

 

There is hope for us because our community is increasingly more sensitive to the needs of the people around us and are willing to step forward and put in their efforts to make a difference.

 

At a more macro level, as Mr Lien would be familiar, our volunteerism rates have increased over the years, surpassing the 20% mark for the first time in 2010.  Tax deductible donations have almost tripled in the past decade - from $325 million in 2000 to almost $900 million in 2011. But we will not be complacent, we hope to do more and do better for those in need, and encourage people to join us in building an inclusive society that all of us want.

 

We should build on this.  My Ministry will continue to develop the giving and volunteerism landscape.  My Ministry intends to engage the people and private sectors for more ideas to grow a strong giving culture.

 

Mr Seah Kian Peng suggested raising the tax benefits for donations from 250% to 300%.  What we provide today is quite generous by international standards.  In some areas, the Government also provides matching of donations on top of the tax benefits, to encourage giving to targeted causes.  MCYS and MOF will continue to work together to see how else we can encourage greater charitable giving in Singapore.

 

Beyond monetary giving alone, I also share Mr Lien’s view that every person has something to contribute to the community.  Persons we seek to help also have strengths we can encourage, nurture and leverage.  Asset-Based Community Development is a good idea.  I hope to see it being deployed in more of our programmes. 

 

Let me share an example on the Lions Befrienders programme. They wanted to befriend the many elderly amongst us. However, they know that the number of elderly will grow while the number of young will shrink. Eventually, they came up with a very simple solution. It is not just the young that can befriend the elderly, the elderly themselves can befriend many elderly, giving them a new sense of purpose and mission, and that is what we called “ageing with a purpose”. 

 

In what we do and how we do it, MCYS hopes to nurture social capital.  We will continue to facilitate and encourage such efforts as they are a critical part of building a caring community.

 

Let me now conclude by recapping my ministry’s plans.

 

 

First, we will support the effort to strengthen the Hope of Singaporeans and their children.  Hope to share in the fruits of an inclusive society and to do better.  And to be able to get back on their feet with some help during periods of difficulty, such as an economic downturn.  

 

The Ministry will strengthen our social safety net.  This means extending support to more Singaporeans who need a boost to keep Hope in sight.  It also means better outreach and more effective delivery of help.

 

Stronger Heart 

 

Next, we will carry out our work in a way that preserves the community activism and self-help that exemplifies the Heart of an Inclusive Society.  VWOs will remain central to our social service sector.  We will work with them to build capability for the future. 

 

In delivering help to the needy and vulnerable, we will not just address their material needs.  But also nurture their hearts – to strive to do better for themselves and their families.

 

Our ultimate goal is to see those who have received help coming back to contribute.  With an appreciative and compassionate heart, to help others just as they have been helped.   

 

 

Finally, we seek to strengthen our social compact on the basis of a strong sense of responsibility to our families and country.

 

And continue to work together towards the vision of an inclusive society.  Where whether we are rich or poor, young or old, able-bodied or disabled, we will feel a deep sense of belonging to this place we call Home. Ultimately, policies and schemes do not make for an inclusive society, we do.

 

Thank you.