Chapter 4, How can we work together for the good of the society

Question 1

Addressing needs of society

Answer 1

• The individuals, community groups and government have different but crucial roles in addressing the needs of society.
• The government set up structures, policies and national programmes in a targeted manner, creating opportunities for the community to show care to those around them.
• Despite the efforts of community groups and the government, there could still be gaps in addressing specific needs of groups of people.
• To bridge these gaps, individuals can initiate their own efforts or actively tap on community groups.
• They can also create new community groups to further attend to the specific needs of society that have not been addressed.
• The complementary efforts of the government, community groups and citizens are important as the needs and challenges of certain groups in society are complex and some would benefit from more personalized attention and care.

Question 2

Efforts by individuals

Answer 2

• Citizens can offer their knowledge, skills and experiences, and initiate new efforts.
• They can also use the resources, programmes and structures provided by the government to supplement their efforts to address the needs of society.
• Mdm Malligesvari is an example of a citizen who actively contributes to the good of society.
• Through the Organisation of Senior Volunteers (RSVP Singapore), she identified areas of need in the community that she was passionate and concerned about.
• She volunteers as an instructor for the Age Well Everyday (AWE) Organization.
• She teaches senior citizens how to stay healthy, exercise and keep active through brain stimulating activities.
• This helps seniors in active ageing and healthy lifestyles to reduce the risks of dementia.

Question 3

Efforts by community groups

Answer 3

• Community groups can offer their knowledge, skills and experiences and initiate new efforts.
• They can use the resources, programmes and structures provided by the government to supplement their efforts to address the needs of the society.
• RSVP is an example of a social service agency (SSA), a formal community group organised by citizens to engage senior citizens in volunteerism.
• The group believes that seniors play a vital role in society and seeks to provide them with meaningful opportunities to contribute to the community.
• Volunteers at RSVP Singapore serve more than 200,000 beneficiaries every year.
• Beneficiaries include the socially isolated seniors, elderly patients discharged from hospital care, the mentally disadvantaged and at-risk children from low-income families.
• RSVP also runs the Volunteer Learning Centre, where qualified senior volunteers train other volunteers.
• For example, the Cyberguide programme at RSVP Singapore offers a wide range of courses that equip senior citizens with up to date IT skills and knowledge. This helps them to use their IT skills to make e-payments and guide against online scams.

Question 4

Efforts by the government

Answer 4

• The government can create opportunities for the community to show care to those around them by setting up structures and national programmes.
• They can also provide resources in a targeted manner.
• In Singapore, government agencies work with community groups to encourage seniors to stay active, healthy, and engaged.
• For example, government agencies such as the National Council of Social Service (NCSS) develop resources to enhance the capabilities of SSAs, including those who are committed to meeting the needs of the elderly.
• NCSS developed the Volunteer Toolkit 2.0 to provide SSAs with a framework and guidelines on how to manage volunteers effectively. It worked with various partners such as RSVP Singapore to contribute to the development of the Toolkit by sharing their best practices in Volunteer management, so that the learning can be shared with the rest of SSAs.

Question 5

Examples of influencing Decision Making in Public

Answer 5

1. REACH
2. Citizens’ Jury for the War on Diabetes

Question 6

REACH

Answer 6

• The government can provide citizens with equal and fair opportunities to participate and influence public policy decision making.
• Citizens can influence decision making in public affairs by sharing their opinions with the government through engagement platforms; and working with the government to craft recommendations based on rigorous discussions and consensus.
• In Singapore, citizens and government can work together to make decisions for the good of society through engagement platforms such as Reaching Everyone for Active Citizenry @ Home (REACH).
• REACH is the national feedback and engagement unit under the Ministry of Communications and Information. It seeks to engage the citizens’ views on public policies and listen to their concerns and issues.
• REACH consolidate and shares the feedback received with relevant government agencies.
• REACH uses social media platforms to encourage Singaporeans to highlight the key issues of concern to the government.
• For example, REACH Chairman Mr Tan Kiat How shared a survey of more than 600 healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The healthcare workers feedback that they are breaking down and miss spending time with their family, due to three shifts nonstop for X number of days. As a result, the Ministry of Health later issued a circular in October 2021 and stated that they would boost manpower in the sector and healthcare staff would be rostered for leave towards the end of December.

Question 7

Citizens’ Jury for the War on Diabetes

Answer 7

• In Singapore, citizens and government can work together to make decisions for the good of society through engagement platforms such as the Citizens’ Jury for the War on Diabetes.
• In 2016, the Ministry of Health (MOH) launched a nationwide effort, the War on Diabetes, to help Singaporeans prevent and manage diabetes.
• As part of the effort, MOH organized Singapore’s first ever Citizens’ Jury to develop community based and community driven recommendations to combat the problem of diabetes.
• 76 Singapore citizens and PRs including people living with or without diabetes, caregivers and healthcare providers participated as citizen jurors.
• With confidential statistics on diabetes and 21 experts from various organisations, they debated over 7 weeks between November 2017 and January 2018.
• Groups then made their final recommendations and presented their final report to MOH.
• As a result, MOH announced that it will support 14 out of the 28 recommendations and explore the remaining 13. The government installed more water coolers in public areas as part of the recommendation to encourage drink more water campaigns. Another recommendation that was taken up was a diabetes campaign and curriculum for children.
• The Citizens’ Jury for the War on Diabetes showed that citizens can actively work together with the government to craft public policy based on analysis of information, rigorous debate, and consensus. The government in turn plays an integral part in providing citizens with equal and fair opportunities to participate.

Question 8

Strengthening citizens’ sense of belonging (DC)

Answer 8

• When there is unity among citizens, they are attached to fellow citizens and their country.
• They showed care and take action to help one another. They feel that they have an important place in society and become more concerned about shaping the country’s future.
• An example of citizens and government working together to build a stronger sense of belonging is their efforts to preserve memories of Dakota Crescent, which is seen as a part of Singapore’s heritage.
• In 2014, the government announced that Dakota Crescent, one of Singapore’s oldest housing estates, would be redeveloped as part of renewal plans for older public housing estates.
• Residents would be able to relocate to Cassia Crescent, a nearby estate of new HDB flats with elder friendly universal design features.
• In 2017, another announcement was made that some of the buildings and a playground in Dakota Crescent would be retained and repurposed for civic and community uses.
• When there is unity among citizens, they are attached to fellow citizens and their country. They show care and take action to help one another.
• They feel they have an important place in society and become more concerned about shaping the country’s future.

Question 9

Efforts by Individuals (DC)

Answer 9

• Various citizens joined the joined the Between Two Homes initiative, an informal community group. These volunteers conducted interviews with the residents if Dakota Crescent and documented their stories.
• Through the Between Two Homes project, volunteers became more aware of the needs of the Dakota residents. To care for these residents as they moved, some volunteers formed the Cassia Resettlement Team (CRT) to focus on helping the residents overcome the challenges before, during and after the relocation from Dakota Crescent to Cassia Crescent. Some of the CRT activities include weekly house visits and potluck parties for the residents.
• In this example, a group of passionate citizens came together as an informal community group and played an active role in preserving memories of Dakota Crescent, complemented by government support.
• These efforts helped to build a stronger sense of belonging as the citizens develop an attachment to the history, people, and places in the country.
• When people have a stronger sense of belonging, they show care and take actions to help fellow Singaporeans and become more concerned about shaping the country’s future.

Question 10

Efforts by community groups (DC)

Answer 10

• Mr Cai Yinzhou and Mr Jeremy Ho came together to form an informal community group for a project called Between Two Homes in 2016 as the residents of Dakota Crescent began to relocate.
• The group envisioned using Dakota Crescent as a case study on how a community could come together to preserve memories of a place and render assistance to those affected by the relocation.
• The group produced a multimedia website to document the rich heritage and community of Dakota Crescent and showed the impact of the relocation on the residents.
• It also conducted educational workshops in schools to discuss how plans for redevelopment and relocation can be improved.
• They spark discussions about heritage in Singapore through questions like “what does home mean to you?”
• As a result, Singaporeans can build a sense of identity and attachment to the history, people, and places in a country.
• The project also play an active role from the ground up in strengthening the sense of belonging by sharing and building common spaces, experiences and values.

Question 11

Efforts by Governments (DC)

Answer 11

• Our Singapore Fund, launched by the Singapore government in 2016, supports ground up projects that build the national identity or meet social and community needs.
• Successful applicants may receive funding of up to 80% of costs, subject to a maximum of $20,000 per project.
• As of 2020, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth has disbursed $4.3 million to support more than 240 ground up projects involving over 9000 partners and volunteers. Between Two Homes was one of the projects that received funding from Our Singapore Fund.
• The government can then provide citizens with a stake in the country’s affairs. The structures and funding can also strengthen citizens’ sense of belonging.