Mr Seah Kian Peng, Group CEO, FairPrice Group
Supporting schools and partners of FairPrice Share-A-Textbook 2020
1. A very good morning to all of you. Thank you for joining us here today for the launch of FairPrice's signature community project, 'Share-A-Textbook'.
2. 2020 has been an eventful year. The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the lives and livelihoods of many and aggravated the challenges faced by many Singaporeans, including students from vulnerable backgrounds. I am heartened that despite the current climate, many have stepped forward to contribute in whatever ways they can to help those adversely impacted.
3. In light of this, 'Share-A-Textbook' project is particularly meaningful in supporting our students from low-income families with textbooks for their education. This project, which is in its 38th year this year, is one of many initiatives that FairPrice organises to do good and reach out to the less fortunate in our community.
4. FairPrice has established itself as a household name and is an integral part of the community. Their commitment to Singaporeans was clearly evident during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic when FairPrice employees worked round the clock to ensure supermarket shelves were stocked to provide essential supplies for everyone. Beyond providing affordable and accessible daily necessities, FairPrice leads several initiatives throughout the year to support the community. It is indeed a remarkable achievement to persevere and organise such an event year after year. I would like to applaud FairPrice's efforts to do this annually and in galvanising the community to do good.
5. The Ministry of Education continually strives to offer equal opportunities for all students in Singapore to access education. UPLIFT, the inter-agency taskforce which I chair, aims to strengthen the support for students from disadvantaged families so as to enable them to meet their full potential. It is through collective efforts and support from community partners and volunteers that we can continue to achieve this.
6. I would also like to extend my gratitude to the supporting partners, including schools, who have come forward to pledge commitment to this project. It is especially important to keep the spirit of giving alive in times like this. I would like to also thank the volunteers for coming together to do more – the effort and time dedicated in sorting and distributing the used textbooks goes a long way in the UPLIFT effort.
7. I hope this initiative will continue to inspire others to do good and use similar platforms to serve the educational needs of the less fortunate in the community. Through the collective efforts of the government agencies, community partners and corporates, we can build a network of care for our disadvantaged students and their families. Working together, we can emerge stronger as a society from these challenging times.
8. With that, I congratulate FairPrice for the successful launch of 'Share-A-textbook' today. Thank you.