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Go beyond care and support to empower persons with disabilities: DPM Heng Swee Keat

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SINGAPORE - As part of a refreshed social compact, Singapore will have to do things differently, including in the area of disability and inclusion. Read more at straitstimes.com.

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Commentary: Singapore’s ageing population does not only bring challenges

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The stereotypical image of older adults needs to change as Singapore’s population continues to age. There’s a longevity dividend for the workforce and for businesses catering to older consumers, says SUSS’ Dr Kelvin Tan.

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8 in 10 young single S'poreans want to marry: Survey

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The proportion has been declining over the years - in 2016, it was 83%. Read more at straitstimes.com.

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CNA Insider

What does it take for the homeless to get a permanent roof over their heads? The documentary, Homeless in Singapore, tracks a group of them over five months and uncovers gaps in the system as they work towards their goal.

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'This is the happiest day of my life': Small wins, but long struggle, for the homeless in Singapore

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What does it take for the homeless to get a permanent roof over their heads? The documentary, Homeless in Singapore, tracks a group of them over five months and uncovers gaps in the system as they work towards their goal.

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Ministry of Social and Family Development

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Mr Tony Soh, President, YMCA of Singapore

Distinguished Guests,

YMCA's youth and parents

Good evening. It is my pleasure to join you here this evening at the YMCA's Giving Gala 2023.
Celebrating the Achievements of YMCA and Our Youth
2 Tonight, we come together to celebrate the achievements of our youth and to recognise the efforts by YMCA in empowering and developing youth to reach their fullest potential. On behalf of both my ministries, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF), I would like to express my thanks to social sector partners like YMCA which run many ground-up programmes to cater to the needs of our youth.

3 YMCA in Singapore has a rich history dating back to 1902. The YMCA has a mission that aims to develop individuals in body, mind and spirit and to foster a spirit of service to the larger community. Its services have been wide-ranging and expanded to cover support for youth with special needs, and helping out-of-school youth and youth-at-risk. Let me speak briefly about these two areas.
Building a Caring and Inclusive Society
4 We thank YMCA for championing and advocating for an Inclusive Society in Singapore. Persons with special needs are integral members of society. With some support and encouragement, they can live Enabled and Empowered Lives. Youth with special needs have benefited from YMCA's arts, sports, and employment training programme. Allow me to share one example of a YMCA's programme that cater to youth with special needs - the YMCA Inclusive Climb!

5 In August this year, a group of 10 Special Needs youth conquered Japan's tallest mountain, Mt. Fuji, as part of YMCA's Special Needs Inclusive Challenge. To prepare for the climb, YMCA trained the 10 members for weeks, conquering countless stairs and hiking trails. They built confidence and resilience, and achieved this feat they never imagined possible. I would like to invite the Special Needs Mount Fuji climbers who are here tonight to rise. Let us give them a round of applause for their determination and outstanding achievement!

6 Another programme worthy of mention is YMCA's Vocational and Soft Skills Programme. This programme started in 2011. It is a 6-month vocational training programme that equips youth-at-risk and youth who had committed offences with vocational skills in an industry they may be interested in. Over six months, YMCA's dedicated team of social workers work alongside these youth to provide them with emotional and social support to get them ready for work. Following the programme, participants could decide if they would like to pursue employment, or to further their studies.

7 More than 800 youth have completed the VaSSP programme. Approximately 70% of them were employed or went on to pursue further education. Since May 2022, 84 youth who were MSF clients (some undergoing diversionary programmes or probation, others were residents of Singapore Girls'/Boys' Home) have attended the programme. These youth have resolved to overcome obstacles, break the cycle of offending and become better versions of themselves.
Support of Donors, Community and Families
8 One key ingredients of the success stories of YMCA's programmes is the unwavering support from its generous sponsors and donors. They have contributed their money, resources and time, and this is something that we should laud and continue to encourage. Thank you very much for your generosity!

9 I would also like to thank the parents and caregivers who are here with us today. All of you play an important role in being our youth's pillar of support, and contributing to their success. Strong families are the bedrock of our society, and this is something we should treasure and protect.
Conclusion
10 MSF has designated 2023 as the Year of Celebrating Social Service Partners. Community partners such as YMCA and their supporters play an important role in working with the government to support our youths to maximise their potential and thrive as contributing members of society.

11 Thank you for your good work so far, and for your continuing commitment to serving our community and our youth. I wish you the very best in all your future endeavours.

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Mr Tony Soh, President, YMCA of Singapore Distinguished Guests, YMCA's youth and parents Good evening. It is my pleasure to join you here this evening at the YMCA's Giving Gala 2023. Celebrating the Achievements of YMCA and Our Youth 2 Tonight, we come together to celebrate the achievements of our youth and to recognise the efforts by YMCA in empowering and developing youth to reach their fullest potential.

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This figure includes a short break to the region, clothes for festivities, red packets during Chinese New Year, but not the costs of treatment for chronic conditions and major illnesses.
THREE PROFILES OF SENIORS
Beyond demographics and rising expectations, policymakers should be mindful seniors are a very diverse group, not least in terms of educational levels, preferences, capacities, capabilities, and life experiences. These individual differences increase with age.

The needs of our seniors straddle multiple ministries and meeting them requires a comprehensive and coordinated approach to give them autonomy and allow them to age-in-place.

Broadly, seniors can be classified into three groups, based on functional age - which is a person's ability to perform tasks, such as bathing, dressing and eating.

This classification can be a guide when formulating policies and programmes for seniors.

The three groups are: The Go-Go seniors, the Go-Slow seniors and the No-Go seniors. While presented as distinct categories, in reality, they are a continuum and are often overlapping.

GO-GO SENIORS
This group, likely to be their 50s and 60s, is healthier, wealthier and more educated, compared to their predecessors from 20 years ago. In fact, with medical advances and healthy lifestyles, physically, some of these seniors may be as fit as those in their 30s or 40s.

At this life-stage, freed from the constraints of raising children and with fewer obligations to work, many may begin to engage in a variety of enrichment or learning programmes, leisure pursuits and recreational activities. Some wish to contribute back to the community by volunteering.

However, segments of this group may be a "sandwiched" generation. Due to late marriages, they may have children in their teens to support, as well as infirmed elderly parents or relatives to care for. Others may be required to care for grandchildren.

They may thus be experiencing substantial physical, emotional or financial stress. These pressures are set to increase, since by 2030, only two working adults aged 20 to 64 will support one senior aged 65 plus, suggesting an urgent need for more community services for caregivers.

Although this group are likely to be financially more well-to-do compared to previous cohorts, local surveys, such as the National Survey on Senior Citizens and the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices' research, reveal financial security and retirement adequacy remain a top concern for them, so many desire to remain gainfully employed.

However, with rapid technological advancement in workplaces, they need to be reskilled and upskilled to remain employed.

As some seniors may have to juggle the demands of work and caregiving roles, flexible work arrangements, whether part-time work or tele-commuting, may be required.

The above implies the need for close coordination by the Ministries of Health, Social and Family Development, Manpower, Education, Communications and Information, Trade and Industry.
GO-SLOW SENIORS
The Go-Slow seniors are likely to between their late 60s to 80s. As chronic illnesses such as hypertension, diabetics and heart diseases, tend to increase with age, this group may be plagued by health conditions.

Compounded with age-associated sensory decrements, such as hearing impairment, as well as changes in posture and balance, various modifications to their environment will be needed so that they can access amenities such as markets, community clubs, clinics, hospitals.

Public transport must be adapted to accommodate their needs.

Public housing flats and their vicinities must be designed with elder-friendly features including ramps, railings, grab-bars. A variety of housing options, schemes and grants would be needed, given their financial constraints.

Many Ministries and Statutory Boards will have to collaborate to meet their needs, not least, the Ministry of National Development, and the Housing & Development Board and the Ministry of Transport.
NO-GO SENIORS
This final group comprises seniors with multiple care needs, who may be non-ambulant, bed-bound, or highly dependent on caregivers. They may reside in their own homes, nursing homes, or are often in hospitals.

Besides debilitating illnesses, such as stroke, late-stage cancer, they may be suffering from psychological disorders, such as dementia or depression.

They require a suite of support services: Home care, meal services, counselling, befriending, transportation, escort services for medical appointments, financial assistance, end-of-life care and other therapeutic interventions for themselves and their families.

If they live in their own homes, their housing may require further modifications, more than for the Go-Slow group.

In Singapore, the suicide rates among the elderly have, for many years, been the highest across all age groups. Research has revealed that this group of seniors, with poor physical and mental health, are likely to be at higher risk of suicide.

For these reasons, close coordination amongst the Ministries of Health, Social and Family Development, National Development and Transport, is crucial.
IMPLICATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Ageing issues are multi-faceted and multi-dimensional, straddling multiple ministries. A multi-pronged, whole-of-government approach is required, to effectively deal with them.

While there have been efforts to target last-mile policy implementation and communications to seniors, such as through the establishment of a Silver Generation Office, and there have been piecemeal changes to set up departments in various ministries that focus on ageing, such as the Ageing Planning Office in the Ministry of Health, there is now huge demographic imperative to bring into sharper focus at the policymaking stage the challenges, concerns, issues and aspirations of our seniors.

In the same way that the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth examines issues close to the hearts of young Singaporeans, more intellectual muscle must be brought to bear to look at the preoccupations of Singapore seniors holistically.

The proposed Ministry should not merely be a coordinating body on ageing, but should critically analyse the current and future ageing-related issues, and lead in formulating a coherent, comprehensive and forward-looking national policy on ageing, while working in concert with other ministries, agencies and civil society groups.

Such a policy should incorporate concrete legislative frameworks, programmes and schemes that benefit seniors as Singapore shifts into the next phase of her development.

Following from the above, the critical need for appropriately trained manpower who understands senior concerns cannot be over-emphasised. Gerontology, the multi-disciplinary study on ageing, should be a required course for all involved in the formulation of policies and programmes for seniors.

While population ageing has often been portrayed as a challenge and viewed negatively, it also presents many opportunities.

Silver industries such as senior tourism, devices and tools may be expanded. Indeed, by leveraging technology, such as artificial intelligence, robotics and virtual reality, the possibilities are boundless.

Exoskeletons could help seniors be more independent. Motion sensors and wearable technology could help seniors alert medical services to a fall or a heart attack.

With improvements in health status, many seniors can remain in the workforce, and continue to contribute to the economy. Indeed, recent statistics has shown that Singaporeans have the longest healthy years. Their strengths and potentials should be proactively harnessed.

The ongoing rhetoric of the Government has been on building a caring and inclusive society, where no one gets left behind. Seniors are an integral part of society. Very soon, this group will constitute an extremely significant proportion of society.

Seniors should be valued for their intrinsic worth as human beings, have their concerns tackled in a more focused fashion and be recognised for their potential. The time is ripe to establish a Ministry on Ageing Issues.

Dr Helen Ko is Senior Lecturer at the Graduate Gerontology Programmes, Singapore University of Social Sciences and concurrently Executive Director, Beyond Age. She has served in the sector for over 30 years and has sat in various inter-ministerial committees on ageing population.

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Commentary: It is high time for a Ministry on Ageing Issues

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Such a ministry can bring into sharper focus the concerns, challenges and aspirations of seniors, says SUSS' Dr Helen Ko.