SINGAPORE: On November 1, a new ministry will be setting the tone and direction for Singapore's society.
The Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) will be helmed by incoming Acting Minister Lawrence Wong.
MCCY will assume the
current roles of the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and
Sports (MCYS) in strengthening community bonds, promoting volunteerism
and philanthropy, engaging youth, and developing the sports.
It
will also assume the arts, heritage and national resilience functions of
the current Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts
(MICA).
The MCCY is building on existing plans in the arts, sports, youth and the community.
Mr Wong said his immediate task is to bring these groups together and engage the different stakeholders.
He
said: "I think we would like to support what people are doing and have a
sense of ownership and a genuine sense of engagement so that people
know that they are being listened to and the ministry is here to support
them."
Mr Wong outlined three broad priorities: inspiring people
through the arts and sports, connecting people to strengthen community
bonds and promoting a spirit of giving and service.
He stressed that the operative word is "heartware".
"With
'heartware' matters, you cannot have a top-down approach," said Mr
Wong. "The government has to listen; the government has to apply a light
touch rather than a heavy hand."
He added: "Our role would be to try and facilitate, to engage and to support wherever we can. That's what we will try to do."
Mr Wong hopes to engage youth in Singapore.
"We
also want to get the engagement beyond schools because we do see a
tapering off of participation rates after our students leave the
institutions of learning," he said.
"We would like to see how we
can engage the young, get them plugged into the community, get them
linked up into community organisations so that they can continue their
involvement even after they leave school."
To achieve this, the
MCCY will make use of all available platforms in social media, as well
as face-to-face interaction so that Singaporeans can feel involved in
the plans.
Mr Wong hopes to share the ministry's plans by the next Budget session in Parliament next year.
- CNA/xq