PUBLISHED ONSeptember 30, 2024 12:30 AMBYKhoo Yi-HangThe People's Association (PA) announced a range of measures under the new Community 2030 plan, along with a refreshed mission statement and vision on Sunday (Sept 29).
Aimed to boost volunteering, expand the network of community partners and foster closer ties among residents, the initiative was launched by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong at PA's community seminar at One Tampines Hub.
The seminar, officiated by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong — who is also Chairman of PA — was attended by about 2,000 volunteers, partners and grassroots leaders.
To achieve greater community participation, the PA will scale up its Community Volunteer (CV) scheme by increasing the number of projects and community volunteers.
The association also plans to launch a Youth Charter next year to encourage youth to be proactive with addressing community issues and causes they are concerned about.
PA will also improve the National Community Leadership Institute (NACLI), building upon it with a focus on developing youths to be future community leaders, and connecting leaders in the community sector.
To foster opportunities for community building, the association will upgrade the 750 Residents' Network (RN) centres across Singapore.
At present, about 200 centres have been upgraded with smart technology, allowing residents to book and access facilities at their own time, without having to wait for PA staff.
These upgrades are expected to be completed for all RN centres by 2026.
PA is also working with GovTech to develop community portals for residents to access community news, stories as well as sign up for activities, volunteer projects and work opportunities.
This change in engaging residents and communities also means a shift in mission statement for PA, Tong said.
The refreshed mission statement — "Spark and nurture community participation for a caring and united Singapore" — allows PA to focus on creating opportunities for members of the public to take the initiative, encouraging a more hands-on approach for residents in caring for one another and shaping their community.
Speaking at the seminar, Tong shared that the PA's vision is to "build a community that cares, where people feel connected to and responsible for one another".
"This sense of unity will help us stand strong as a nation during both peacetime and in times of crisis," he said.
The journey to putting this new vision and mission into action will not be easy, Tong noted.
"I have full confidence in the collective force of the committed community of leaders, volunteers and partners we have here in this hall today."
Making use of the upgraded residents' network centre, Bryan Leong, 40, has been hosting board game sessions for fellow Punggol residents since March last year.
While this initiative saw the attendance of a small group of friends and passers-by at the start, the WhatsApp community group for his board game sessions has grown to comprise over 140 members, made up of mostly parents and their children.
Calling himself a "board games geek", Leong told AsiaOne on Saturday that he had amassed a collection of games and wanted to share them with the community.
To date, he has spent about $50,000 on more than 3,000 board games. Leong, who works in the pharmaceutical industry, shares over 1,200 of them with the community.
The board games sessions are held once every other Sunday morning, from 10am to 1pm in the RN centre.
When Leong isn't taking his son to enrichment classes, he can be found in the RN centre, teaching children and adults alike how to play board games.
"We can see the residents coming down and being jolly together, and that's something we all like," he told AsiaOne.
"You can really see the kampung spirit."
Meanwhile, optometry graduate Ng Bao Yi, 20, has given back to her community in East Coast by caring for the elderly.
Noticing that many in her community were unaware of common eye problems, she approached the East Coast Grassroots Organisations (GROs) to organise eye care sharing sessions and offer free vision screenings under her Eye (I) Care for Your Health movement that began in January this year.
As most of the residents with eye problem concerns are seniors, Ng pivoted her sessions to be held in both English and Mandarin, so that more elderly would be able to understand her.
With guidance from her lecturer in Singapore Polytechnic on her programme, as well as the assistance of about 20 course mates to carry out the sessions, Ng's initiative has since benefited over 200 residents.
She's even managed to identify some individuals with high eye pressure — a symptom of glaucoma which could lead to blindness.
"Knowing that I could make a tangible difference to others' lives, it brings me a sense of fulfilment," she told AsiaOne on Sunday.
"I believe it could have possibly saved the sight of the few people we've identified, and it's a very big thing to me that these people do not have to go through the stages of losing their sight in the future."
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