Refreshing Our Social Compact in Education
1. Good evening, residents of Tanjong Pagar and Radin Mas SMC.
2. As Indranee said, tonight's dinner is special. This is the first time in 2 years that we are gathered here once again, to celebrate Tanjong Pagar's National Day. For many of us, this hall we are in will bring back fond memories. Memories of the time in 2015, when we had the memorial for Mr Lee Kuan Yew, and when he used to join us for the National Day dinner. This hall was also one of the first vaccination centres, where we rolled out COVID-19 vaccination for our people. The last two and a half years have not been easy. We are still battling the pandemic. New variants continue to emerge, and we cannot let our guard down.
3. COVID-19 is not our first crisis nor will it be our last. With each crisis, we grow, learn, and emerge stronger. And with each crisis, we learn how to manage and live with the risks, while never forgetting to look ahead, prepare for our future and to set our sights on new possibilities, as we have always done.
4. As per our tradition for the National Day Dinner, let me say something in Malay, and then in Chinese and finally in English.
Berdaya Bingkas Sepanjang Pandemic
5. Sudah hampir dua tahun setengah sejak COVID-19 menjejaskan kehidupan kita. Sepanjang pandemik ini, masyarakat kita bersatu dan semangat waja inilah yang menjadi kekuatan kita.
6. Saya ingin mengucapkan terima kasih atas sokongan para penduduk Melayu dalam perjuangan anda melawan COVID-19. Sejak dua tahun yang lalu, kita telah menyambut hari raya dalam keadaan yang sepi. Kekangan yang dikenakan menjadikan pertemuan dengan ahli keluarga, sahabat handai, terutama sekali orang-orang yang lebih tua, sukar. Namun, anda telah mencari jalan alternatif untuk tetap meraikannya dan menghubungi satu sama lain.
7. Banyak aktiviti keagamaan juga terjejas apabila kita mengetatkan lagi langkah-langkah keselamatan untuk masyarakat. Tetapi, anda semua mampu memberikan saranan baharu dan inovatif agar solat Tarawih dan solat Jumaat masih boleh diteruskan. Sekaligus, menghidupkan tradisi.
8. Apabila pemerintah melancarkan urusan vaksinasi, anda telah bekerjasama dengan positif sebagai rakyat Singapura demi melindungi diri anda sendiri, orang-orang yang disayangi dan masyarakat.
9. Oleh itu, saya berasa bangga melihat semangat tinggi masyarakat kita apabila saya melawat Bazar Geylang Serai tahun ini walaupun dalam keadaan kita masih diwajibkan memakai pelitup. Apabila saya berbual dengan beberapa orang pegerai, ramai yang terkesan. Mereka tidak pasti sama ada bazar akan diadakan lagi atau tidak. Ada yang tidak pasti sama ada perniagaan mereka masih boleh bertahan. Saya faham bahawa penyesuaian yang perlu dilakukan tidak mudah. Jadi, saya ingin mengucapkan terima kasih kepada anda semua kerana menghadapi kekangan-kekangan ini dengan baik serta bekerjasama dengan kami sepanjang pandemik ini. Oleh sebab usaha dan pengorbanan anda semua, kami mampu menghadapi masa- yang mencabar ini.
10. Walaupun penuh cabaran, dua tahun yang kita lalui memaparkan kisah bagaimana rakyat kita mengharungi cabaran dengan penuh kemanusiaan dan berdaya tahan. Contohnya, dalam Sukan SEA Ke-31 yang berlangsung dalam bulan Mei tahun ini, pesilat Iqbal Abdul Rahan telah berjaya meraih pingat emas dalam acara Seni Tunggal. Ini merupakan penampilan yang keenam bagi Iqbal dan pingat emas pertama yang dimenanginya dalam Sukan SEA. Iqbal telah menjadi inspirasi kepada kita semua kerana daya bingkas dan azamnya yang kuat.
11. Kisah Iqbal memaparkan sekilas pandang tentang ketabahan masyarakat kita iaitu, bagaimana kita tidak menunduk pada cabaran-cabaran yang kita hadapi, dan bagaimana kita akan sentiasa memacu ke hadapan untuk melakukan yang terbaik. Syabas dan terima kasih kepada anda semua.
12. Let me now continue in Mandarin.
更坚韧的社会
13. 大家晚上好，今天是一个特别的日子。我们再次回到这个老地方，一起相聚，一起庆祝国庆日。在我们欢庆国庆日的当儿，我也非常了解大家对于生活费上涨的忧虑。冠病疫情导致一些国人的薪酬下降，甚至有许多国人在这两年里也可能失业。而在我们逐步解决这些问题时，却有出现了新的挑战。俄罗斯与乌克兰的冲突改变了全球世界的局势。高通货膨胀和高利率给我国的经济复苏带来了更大的挑战，供应链也继续受到干扰。而最近这一两个星期，台海局势不断升温。所以我们可以说一波未平，一波又起。
14. 所有的人都实实在在地感受到了这些挑战的冲击。业界人士感叹成本激增，许多家庭面临生活费高涨，物价上涨，与全球供应链受干扰所带来的负面影响。我们虽无法幸免，但大家可以有信心，政府将竭尽所能，照顾好我们的国人和企业。我们也将继续在能力范围内为所有有需要的国人和企业，提供援助。
15. 考虑到当前所面对的困难，可以理解有一些国人会想，我们是否应该延迟调高消费税。有些国人也认为既然政府有足够的资金推出近期的额外援助配套，那么是否有必要上调消费税？这些疑问，我们都可以理解，政府也非常慎重的考虑这个课题。但关键是：我们社会逐渐老龄化，医疗、基础设施的翻新、缩小贫富差距等等的需要都不断增加。这些都是长远结构性的需要。
16. 短期，周期性的额外收入，其实不足以满足长期性，结构性的需要。打个比方，就如 ：一个老龄化的家庭，我们得未雨绸缪。短期得到一点额外的"花红"，不代表长期就不用开源节流。否则我们将累积债务留给子孙们。当然，如果短期有额外的资源，政府会利用这些资源，针对性地帮助有需要的家庭和企业。
17. 尽管我们的先辈早期生活十分艰苦并面对种种挑战，但他们仍然坚持以最大的努力为我们的国家建立好我们的储备金。也为我们这一代打造了很多现在我们享有的公共和基础设施，包括樟宜机场。我们必须感谢我们的建国一代，先辈们未雨绸缪地牺牲，让我们这些后代从而受益。今天，在我们的预算案里面，我们每花5块钱，其中超过1块钱，其实来自于我们的国家储备金净投资的回报。这跟其他国家比起来其实很不一样 — 有些国家每花5块钱，有1块钱就必须用于偿还上一代人所留下来的债务，拖累了这一代的人。这是我们在新加坡不希望看到的。我们应该秉持先辈的精神，继续谨慎地善用我国的财政资源。这样，我们的子孙才不会被结构性赤字或巨大的债务所拖累，尤其是在一个老龄化的社会。
18. 我们可以向各位保证，人民行动党政府将会继续尽心尽力照顾好我们最有需要的低收入家庭还有我们的企业。政府会继续本着妥善管理我国财政的信念，竭尽所能，为所有新加坡人提供支援，尤其是那些最有需要的群体。
Refreshing Our Social Compact
19. Let me now continue in English. In my Malay remarks, I have just shared how in the past few years we have weathered the storm of COVID-19. Some of you might recall reading in the news, that Singapore was one of the countries that emerged from the COVID-19 crisis with renewed confidence and with greater unity among our people. Kudos to all Singaporeans for playing a part in this. In my Chinese speech, I said that I can understand the worries that many among us might have, even as our nation celebrates our 57th birthday. When we look at the situation all around us, just as we are emerging from the depths of the pandemic, we continue to face many challenges on the international front. The situation in Russia and Ukraine, has helped us to ask whether in the next few years, we will still have the same stable international order. More recently, the disruptions in supply chains has made us experience firsthand the impact on the cost of living and the structures that are in place for essential supplies, such as food. But this is not something unexpected. Two years ago, we have started preparing for potential disruptions and most recently, the situation on both sides of the Taiwan Straits have continued to leave us concerned, and many of us have been wondering where the US-China relationship will go from here. Without a stable international order, it would be challenging for countries to relate to one another, and make it more difficult to survive and thrive post-COVID, or continue to grow our economy to create a better future. But the past two years have also shown me the enduring human spirit and resilience of our people. That gives me confidence.
20. Recently, DPM Lawrence Wong launched the Forward Singapore exercise to rebuild and refresh our social compact. Some of you may wonder what "social compact" means, and why we need to refresh ours now.
21. To me, Forward Singapore is an opportunity for us to take a fresh look at how we can renew our shared aspirations and collective responsibility as Singaporeans. It is also a chance for us to look at the world around us and ask ourselves how we will seize the opportunities amidst all the challenges. That's why this exercise is not only about what we would like the Government to do for us. Instead it is an exercise about what our shared goals as a nation are, and how we can chart the way forward together. It is about us coming together, making a commitment about what we would do individually, as a family, as a community, as an industry, doing our part in the social compact.
22. When I think about what makes Singapore special, I hope to see three distinguishing traits, that will last beyond this generation of ours. These characteristics will define Singapore and Singaporeans for generations to come.
- First, all of us would like Singapore to be a land of opportunity where everyone can fulfil their potential, regardless of their background. This will allow all of us to achieve our best.
- Second, all of us want to see a Singapore where we not only care for our present generation, but always strive to leave behind a better future for generations to come. In other words, enabling our best.
- Third, we all want to see a Singapore where it is a land where everyone can contribute meaningfully, regardless of where we are in life. That our identity is not defined by how much we can benefit from Singapore, but how each and everyone of us, regardless of our stages in life, can contribute to Singapore today and moving forward by giving our best.
23. Sounds like a long list of things, but in the good old Chinese way, it can be summarized: 卓越你我，成就他人，贡献社会.
24. This is the three-pronged social compact that I would like to see. Though it is simple, it can only be accomplished if every stakeholder – the Government, industry, community, families and citizens – play our part and bring out the best in others.
25. Let me share how we can do this in education. How we can mobilise everyone into action to achieve this goal.
Achieving Our Best: Everyone Will Fulfil Their Potential
26. For all of us in Singapore, education is key to achieving the first prong of this social compact – where everyone can fulfil our potential, regardless of our background. However, this means going beyond achieving good results for the first 15 years of formal schooling. Instead, our mark of success is how we enable our children to achieve success in the next 50 years, beyond the first 15 years in school.
27. A key aspect is to ensure a good start for every child. Since 10 years ago, we have shifted our focus from grassroots to agencies. We have increasing evidence how the early years set the foundation and is fundamental for the health and development of our children, and not just in the first 15 years of school life. We have invested significantly to raise the accessibility, affordability and quality of our preschools. By around 2025, 80% of preschoolers can have a place in a quality Government-supported preschool. Children from lower-income families also receive upstream support through programmes such as KidSTART, to support parents in areas such as health, social and child development. We will continue to do our utmost to support and invest in every child from young, especially those from less advantaged backgrounds, so that you can have a good start, so that you won't fall behind before primary school.
28. Beyond the preschool years, we have also made huge strides in our education system to ensure a promising pathway for every student in different tracks. We will continue to structure and broaden our definition of success beyond grades and paper qualifications, to skills and abilities. We need community support to give confidence to ensure that no single examination will define a student's life and celebrate the success of our students in different areas. We practise meritocracy that is broad-based, a meritocracy that is continuous, allowing for students to do their best across their lifetimes, and to take care of those who have not done as well.
29. To this end, we are moving away from streaming to Full Subject-Based Banding (Full SBB) in our secondary schools to customize learning for our students. For post-seconday students, you will see more varied pathways to allow students to customise their learning according to their needs and strengths. We have also adjusted post-secondary admissions to recognise students' strengths and talents beyond academic achievements, so as to provide more pathways for progression. This is through expanding Direct School Admission (DSA) at the junior college level, as well as Aptitude-Based Admissions via the Polytechnic and ITE Early Admissions Exercise (EAE).
30. Our education system will continue to evolve, to inculcate a culture of lifelong learning in our students. We will never be able to equip our students with everything they need to know. The technological finders are moving so fast that we need our children, our workers to be regularly upgraded to stay current. Our aim to ensure that every adult learner has the opportunity to pick up new skills even when they have other responsibilities like taking care of their families. We will need to redefine our system, and include help for other adults going back to school, by allowing adult learners to learn on the go, so that they can learn anything, anywhere and at anytime. And we will commit our resources to help our adult learners keep abreast of the latest technology. MOE, together with MOM, will make some announcements in the later part of this year on what we intend to do to help our adult learners stay competitive. So far, I have mentioned what we are going to do at the system level but that in itself is necessary but not sufficient in order for us to broaden the definition of success. We would need your support, and your help. As families, as community partners. When we say that we move beyond just looking at the grades, we will need your support to affirm the students to understand their strengths and weaknesses. To leverage what they are good at, and not just what we think we want them to be. Let us not impose our aspirations onto them. Instead, let us work with our children, help them understand their strengths and differences, to give them hope and confidence.
31. As students choose an educational path that is truly aligned with their interests and strengths, our families must embrace their choices, and give them the encouragement and space to grow. As a community, we ought to celebrate and reward the diversity of talent, and not pigeonhole our students according to a singular, narrow yardstick of success. We also need the support of industries to be nimble in the ways they hire, recognise and support our workers. In valuing skills and character traits, rather than falling back on early educational achievements. In recognising that people will grow, and thus emphasising continuous upskilling and reskilling to help them unleash their potential. At the end of the day, as a society, we must avoid placing importance only on what is easily measurable, and forgetting to appreciate what is more important but not so easily measurable, because we don't take the responsibility of grooming the next generation lightly.
Enabling Our Best: Towards Our Shared Future
32. Which comes to my second point about enabling our best for our shared future. We want our next generation to grow and to go further than us. But this requires us to always exercise prudence for the current generation, while exercising stewardship for the next generation.
33. When our forefathers built this country, they were disciplined and measured. They knew that they had little other than the human resources in this little island of ours. We didn't have natural resources like our neighbours, but we were determined to build up our manmade resources and our manmade competitive advantages. Even through more trying times – the 1960s British withdrawal of defence, the 1970s global oil crisis, the 1980s economic recession, the 1990s Asian Financial Crisis, the 2000 SARS and the Global Financial Crisis. Through it all, they did not just think about how to survive and how to take care of their generation. Through all the difficult times, they remained prudent and built the foundation for what we have for today. When we take a look at Tanjong Pagar, we take a look at Changi Airport, we look at all the facilities that we have, I dare say that this generation of ours did not need to pay for all those things because they have already been paid off by the last generation. This was how much our forefathers have cared for us, beyond their immediate needs.
34. So, what about our generation? We are also facing tough times now. We have the war in Ukraine, we have the situation in the Taiwan straits, we have the inflation facing us, and we need to renew the infrastructure for the next generation. So what should we do for the next generation, to enable them to achieve their best? And I will say this: we build on what our forefathers have left us. We build on it, to constantly look ahead and empower the next generation to stand taller and see further, so that this generation, will like the generations before, look beyond our own immediate needs to also remember the needs of future generations. And we will plan for the next bound of development, including intensifying land-use to build a better Singapore for us to live, work and play.
35. There will be pressures, there will be trade-offs. We will need to balance our environmental sustainability and economic development. We will need to find new sources of energy to power our economic development, and to fulfil our pledges to the sustainability cause. But all these challenges are not new, and it is not that we cannot overcome them, so long as we work together and we must make sure that while we do this, we continue to invest in the future generation. And this is the reason why we will spare no effort to make sure we continue to invest in both the hardware and software, so that the next generation will have a higher platform to scale the next higher peak.
36. In Tuas, we are building our new Tuas mega port. This will be the gift to the next generation to entrench our hard-fought status in the global supply chain. In Changi in the east, we are resuming our Terminal 5 project to make sure that once again, our next generation will have the aviation links to keep connected to the world with our development. In Punggol, we will develop our digital district. All around us, we will continue to invest in new MRT lines like the Circle line, the Cross Island Line, the Thomson-East Coast line, and we will build the North-South Corridor, an integrated transport corridor not just for cars, but for bikes, so that we can continuously uplift the quality of living for our people. And today, as we speak, we continue to invest in the new healthcare system, new polyclinics, new hospitals for the next generation as our population age. All these are what we will need to do to give our next generation so that even if they face new challenges in time to come, they can have the confidence that they will not be burdened with taking care of us, the older generation and yet at the same time, overcome the many challenges that may come their way.
37. But beyond building the hardware and infrastructure, we will also need to strengthen our core capabilities and connections. And this is where we will need to develop new connectivities on the financial side, on the data side, on building a new network of talent that we can have access to, so that we create the best opportunities for Singaporeans, not just in Singapore, but all around the world. And I've said this before: our measure of success is not how many good jobs we can create for Singaporeans only in Singapore. Our measure of success is how many good jobs we can create for Singaporeans all across the world by growing the companies in Singapore and beyond Singapore. How well we can do that will define how well our next generation can do.
38. And in order to do that, we must continue to turn all our Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) into Institutes of Continuous Learning.
39. The number of adult learners trained by our IHLs has more than doubled from around 165,000 in 2018 to 345,000 in 2020. Going forward, we will increase this number every year. And our stretched goal is that every year, every one of us will undertake a programme to learn something new, to prepare ourselves for the future. But beyond that, I will say this: yes, there are a lot of challenges – geopolitical challenges, economic challenges – that we are grappling with. But I will also say this: that amidst all the challenges, this is also the time for us to distinguish ourselves, as Singapore, as a safe harbour, as a place where people want to do business. And in fact, many of you would know, amidst all the crises, while people are struggling to rebuild their economy, so long as we continue to stay united and have a progressive rule of law, a stable government, we can continue to attract good investments to come here for the next generation.
40. The competition to create jobs for the next generation doesn't start in the future. The competition to create good jobs for fellow Singaporeans starts now. Even admidst the crises, we can distinguish ourselves as a safe harbour, we can bring in the investments that in time to come, will create even better jobs for our children. And this is the time for us to distinguish ourselves - when the world fragments, we must be the place for people to connect. When the world is unsure of the future, we must be the place to let the world have a stable platform and plan long-term. When the rest of the world quarrel, we must be the place where people can meet and work together to create new products and services. This is our opportunity. So in this fragmenting world, our opportunity is to be an oasis of stability, connecting people from all over the world.
Giving Our Best: Our Collective Effort and Responsibility
41. Now, let me move on to my third point about our collective effort while giving our best. So indeed, the world is watching us now. The world is watching us. The world is watching us as to whether Singapore will continue to be stable and how Singaporeans will rise up to the challenges once again. Amidst all the turbulence, will we tear each other apart, will we only take care of ourselves, or will we, as what we have demonstrated in the last two years, see beyond ourselves, take care of the larger community first. If we can do that, we will send a strong and powerful signal on what it means to be Singaporean. And we can rise above all these challenges. And this is why we need to strengthen and refresh our social compact. We will need to rethink how everyone of us can chip in. When we say we want to achieve something for Singapore, when we say we want to achieve something for ourselves, it is not about someone else doing it for us, it is about us all chipping in. For those with more, chip in more. For those with less, even they can have the opportunity to chip in. For example, when uplifting the vulnerable in our society, it is not just about the government policies and the help in schools, it is also about the community groups like all of you who put in your effort because you passionately feel the need to do so.
42. Many of you here tonight go beyond and over your call of duty to reach out to those in need. Many of the industries here, you offer us places where we can support people from disadvantaged backgrounds. You reengineer your places of work to allow the special needs people to join you. You did all these, not because the government told you to do so. You did all these because you believe in it – that over and beyond just paying the taxes, you will put in what you can to make Singapore that community that is more closely knitted, more caring, more heartwarming. So, thank you all of you for going above and beyond what is expected of you.
43. Going forward, such actions where everyone chip in, even those with less get a sense of dignity that they are not just taking from society, that even as a member of society who might need more today, I can be strengthened and tomorrow, I can also contribute back to society. This is the kind of human spirit, this is the kind of Singapore spirit that will put us in good stead regardless of the challenges we face. And for all of us who have benefited from the system, who have done well in the system, let us remember that we achieved all these because we have a society that allows us to achieve all these. That when we are successful, it is our responsibility to pay it forward to the rest, so that anyone who is born in Singapore can say with pride and confidence that as a Singaporean, I don't have to worry about my background, that this society will enable me to succeed because everyone who has succeed will pay it forward and give their best to allow the rest to succeed. This will be the essence of the third prong of our social compact – everyone giving our best to enable the rest to achieve our best. So residents of Tanjong Pagar GRC and Radin Mas SMC, as we celebrate our 57th National Day, there are many reasons that we can look forward in pride. There are also many challenges that we have to grapple with, but I dare say this: never mind the challenges, never mind how big those challenges are. So long as we have a stable government, we have a holistic community, we have a Singapore where we don't define success by just how we do for this generation only but how well we enable the next generation to do even better than us, I say, with all these, the rest of the world will also look at Singapore with confidence, that this is the place they will put their investment, that this is the place that they want to partner with to create a better future. So amidst the challenges and uncertainty, I say: Let's seize the opportunity, not just to survive but to pull ourselves further from the competition. And we have what it takes to do that. The last two years have shown us what we can do. So I am confident, I am not worried about the challenges, so long as we stay united, so long as we send a powerful signal to the rest of the world, what Singapore and what Singaporeans stand for, I am sure, we will continue to grow from strength to strength, not only to survive but also to succeed further.
44. Thank you very much.