Press Releases
Increased Funding for Uniformed Groups Creates More Opportunities for Students
From April 2009, students participating in Uniformed Groups (UGs) can look forward to more opportunities to participate in overseas programmes and enhanced training. The Ministry of Education (MOE) will inject an additional $1 million in funding for all UGs, bringing the annual recurrent funding for UGs1 to $6 million.
The move is in recognition of the pivotal role that UGs play in citizenship education, leadership training and character development of our students. With the extra funding, UGs will be better equipped with the necessary resources to support the roll out of programmes to broaden the exposure of students.
The increase in funding will cover 4 areas:
Increase in Per Head Grant
MOE will raise the annual per head grant for students of UGs from $8 to $12. This increment will enable the UGs to enhance various training programmes to keep up with the changing social, security and environmental landscape. These include leadership training and outdoor courses, as well as enrichment programmes offered by various national agencies and partners.
Increase in Travel Grant
The total annual travel grant for UGs will be doubled from $30,000 to $60,000 to allow a greater number of UG cadets and teachers to attend international camps, events and conferences for overseas exposure. Through these overseas programmes, UG cadets will have the opportunity to learn from their counterparts from other countries. The exposure not only provides a good platform for students to hone their social and leadership skills but also imbues in them a strong sense of national identity.
Subsidy for the Purchase of Uniform for Primary School Cadets
Primary school pupils who participate in UGs will receive a once-off $25 subsidy each to purchase uniforms when they first join the UGs. This is a new initiative aimed at attracting more pupils to join UGs at a young age.
Special Project Fund
In addition, $650,000 will be put aside every year for the Special Project Fund which will benefit all nine UGs. The UGs can tap on this fund to implement new initiatives, enhance current projects or develop training resources. This will increase the capacity of the UGs in delivering quality programmes to enhance the learning experiences of students.