Keynote Address by Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Minister for Education. at the South West Community Development Council Appointment Ceremony 2006, on Tuesday, 25 July 2006, 8.15 pm at the Old Parliament House (The Arts House)

KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY MR THARMAN SHANMUGARATNAM, MINISTER FOR EDUCATION AND SECOND MINISTER FOR FINANCE, AND MP FOR JURONG GRC, AT THE SOUTH WEST COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL APPOINTMENT CEREMONY 2006, ON TUESDAY, 25 JULY 2006, 8.15 PM AT THE OLD PARLIAMENT HOUSE (THE ARTS HOUSE)

Dr Amy Khor, Mayor of the South West District,

Parliamentary Colleagues,

Members of the South West Community Development Council,

Community Leaders,

Ladies and Gentlemen.

This evening’s Appointment Ceremony for new Councillors and Committee Members opens yet another chapter in the good work of South West Community Development Council (CDC). First and foremost, I would like to commend the outgoing Council and Committees for their leadership and commitment to achieving our goals in the CDC. I also congratulate the team of capable and dedicated Councillors and Committee Members who will be officially appointed today, to continue the good work done by the last Council and take the CDC further and to greater heights.

2 The CDCs will turn 10 years old next year. They are young organizations, but their functions and responsibilities have been evolving and expanding. In fact, we sometimes forget that it was only in 2001 that five full-time Mayors were appointed to head the CDCs. That was also the year in which employment assistance was devolved to the CDCs, in addition to social assistance and community bonding.

3 However, while our methods and schemes will evolve, the fundamental objectives of the CDCs are simple and clear. We want to help residents who are going through difficulties so that they can be self-reliant. And we want to promote community bonding and social cohesion.

Achievements of the South West CDC

4 These objectives are reflected in the South West CDC’s strategies. I’m glad that the CDC has pressed on with its three strategic “ABC” thrusts – Assisting the needy, Bonding the Community and Connecting with the Community.

5 We are making an impact. In FY2005/6, the South West CDC organized or supported some 800 projects, involving some 780,000 participants. What is worth highlighting is that more than 700 of these projects were organized by grassroots organizations and supported by the South West CDC. The CDC also helped nearly 9,000 residents who sought financial assistance.

6 However, the most important area of the CDC’s work from my perspective has been in helping unemployed residents to get jobs and get back on their feet. South West CDC helped some 4,000 residents find jobs over the last year. Apart from the broad-based effort to tap on the CDC’s 1,300 corporate partners for job vacancies, the CDC has been reaching out to specific groups of people through focused job fairs. For instance, it organized the first-ever Women’s Job Fair in April this year, which featured more than 1,000 job vacancies. It was targeted at women wanting to return to the workforce after a long period of time due to family commitments. More than 5,000 women came to the job fair. Other than regular job fairs, the South West CDC also implemented the “Place and Train” Programme, which aims to equip older workers with the skills they need for gainful employment.

7 Another noteworthy project of the South West CDC is its Corporate Partner Scheme. This is a strategic initiative to induct corporations into community service and nurture in them a sense of ownership of the community. These corporations become part of the CDC’s outreach to needy residents. For instance, the Exxon-Mobil - South West Bursary for students from less-privileged families is into its third run this year. Mapletree Investments Pte Ltd, a new corporate partner, hosted a Chinese New Year lunch for the elderly in the Southwest District and also provides monthly basic necessities for financially-stricken families.

EMPLACE @ South West - Helping Ex-Offenders and the Disabled Find Jobs

8 We will continue to focus our outreach to our less-fortunate residents. The CDC is now embarking on a new scheme to help ex-offenders, disabled residents and their families.

9 I am pleased to announce the latest South West initiative – “EMPLACE”- Employability and Placement Programme. It is a special programme aimed at helping ex-offenders and residents with physical or intellectual disabilities to obtain gainful employment. EMPLACE will be another South West CDC localised ComCare initiative. The CDC will work with government agencies such as the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA), the Singapore Cooperation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE) and private corporations to provide relevant training and employment opportunities for ex-offenders and the disabled.

10 Every year, approximately 11,000 ex-offenders walk out of the prison gates. Some are able to find jobs on their own, but others have great difficulty. Last year, 1300 ex-offenders sought the help of SCORE to get jobs. Most were above 35 years and with limited formal education and skills. SCORE managed to help 46% of them find jobs . But we all know that there are more other ex-offenders out there who have not come forward to SCORE and are still looking for jobs[1].

11 The South West’s EMPLACE scheme will try to reach out to them, see what their training needs are, and help them stand on their own feet. It is not a small task. If we have 11,000 people leaving the prison gates each year, it means roughly 2200 ex-offenders coming home in the South West each year. We do not know how many of them will be unable to find jobs on their own, but will build up the networks to reach out to those who need our help.

12 My fellow MPs will be familiar with the problem, because I’m sure we all meet ex-offenders at our MPS sessions. Some need to be counseled and motivated to find a job. But there are also many who need no persuasion, who are very keen to find a job or get trained for one, keen to provide for their families, keen to be proud of what they can do for themselves. We want to do more to help both these groups of ex-offenders.

13 A similar challenge exists for residents with physical or mental disabilities. Currently, 55% of them are gainfully employed. Not all of the others are capable of working, but we know that many can and want to. They want to be self-reliant.

14 The EMPLACE @ South West scheme is a very good example of how the CDC is able to add value - by pulling together community resources, networking with national agencies, and working with corporate partners. The CDC will link up with WDA to identify the core skills which these residents can master, and seek to place them with collaborating corporate players.

Conclusion

15 Once again, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the outgoing members of the CDC who have contributed tirelessly to the CDC. I would also like to congratulate Amy on her re-appointment as Mayor of the South West District and for taking to her new term with such verve.

16 The past year has been a job well-done by everyone involved in South West CDC – our CDC Councilors and Functional Committee Members, our grassroots organisations, town councils, government agencies, schools, voluntary welfare organizations and our corporate partners.

17 Finally, I wish the new members all the best in your upcoming term. With your passion, I’m sure you can enthuse more and younger members to participate and be involved in community work. The strengthening of community ties and outreach to the less-fortunate residents in our community is a continuous process. Let’s all work together to build a stronger, more resilient community in the South West District.

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[1] In 2003 and 2004, somewhat more ex-offenders sought help from SCORE - about 1745 each year. About a third were able to find jobs after assistance.