Regional Exposure for Young Singaporeans
Young Singaporeans looking to acquire regional work exposure to enhance their skill sets and add value to the local and regional markets can now tap on the Temasek Foundation–NTUC Workforce Programme: LIT ASEAN Careers – a new initiative co-organised by Temasek Foundation and Young NTUC, the youth wing of National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), and supported by the National Youth Council. The programme was launched at the Suntec Convention and Exhibition Centre on 5 October 2019 by Ms Grace Fu, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth. About 400 young Singaporeans and 36 young regional industry professionals, who volunteered as ASEAN Career Guides attended the event. Regional industry leaders such as Amazon Web Services, Gojek and Surbana Jurong were also present to share on the latest ASEAN economic developments and opportunities.
In a survey conducted by Young NTUC with about 1,200 youths in June this year, more than half of the respondents said they were willing to take up a two-year opportunity to be based in an ASEAN country. Key reasons cited were possibilities to boost their work prospects with overseas work experience (57%) and interest in understanding another country’s culture and work environment (82%).
Deepening and diversifying international and regional connections of young Singaporeans is also one of the recommendations from the Future Economy Council to drive the growth and transformation of Singapore’s economy for the future.
Mr Lim Hock Chuan, Chief Executive, Temasek Foundation Connects, said, “Temasek Foundation supports efforts to help young Singaporeans develop their career skills and competencies in a competitive, diverse work landscape that is fast transcending Singapore’s borders. As the economic centre of the world now pivots to Asia and the ASEAN region, this programme will focus on increasing awareness among our youth of ASEAN, and highlight the value of having diverse work experiences outside of Singapore, and empower them to venture beyond Singapore and thrive in foreign environments.”
Experienced Guides to Help in Understanding the ASEAN Job Landscape
LIT ASEAN Careers is conducted as a three-part programme: first, an ASEAN Conference highlighting key industry trends and development in ASEAN; second, an ASEAN Showcase sharing resources and information on business culture; followed by an ASEAN Mentorship.
The ASEAN Mentorship serves to connect 400 youths with ASEAN Career Guides who have had work experience in the ASEAN region. ASEAN Career Guides are experienced young Singaporeans and young professionals from ASEAN countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. Participants were also given the option to be matched to an ASEAN Career Guide for a four-month mentorship after the networking session at the event.
Mr Desmond Choo, NTUC Assistant Secretary-General and Advisor to Young NTUC, first mooted the importance of regional work experience for youths in his Budget debate speech this year. He called on harnessing the strength of Singapore’s overseas trade offices and larger Singaporean companies with regional presence to build employment networks which will help fresh graduates and young working adults tap on opportunities outside Singapore amidst the uncertain business environment.
At the event, he shared, “The ASEAN mentorship is an expanded version of Young NTUC’s Youth Career Network (YCN) programme which has been running since 2017. Over the span of three years, 400 industry professionals have mentored more than 10,000 youths. Today, 400 more youths will be getting regional mentorship by ASEAN career guides and through the process, expand their networks and inroads to ASEAN. This is significant as this means that our youths now have an added advantage to compete in the global markets. ASEAN is expected to become the fourth largest economic markets in the world by 2030, and I am confident that these new programmes will be an invaluable stepping stone for youths to explore the world, expand their networks, open more gateways for themselves and eventually bring back valuable experience.”
Mr Nicholas Dominic Lim, Assistant Manager (Video and Sound Marketing Division), Sony Electronics, a Singaporean, was one of the 36 ASEAN Career Guides present at the event. “Having benefited from career mentors who made an indelible impact on me during my time in university, it is my desire now to give back to the community. I love sharing stories – the joys, challenges and endless adventures, especially overseas stints, which will spur our next generation to find their own career answers. While it was daunting to be posted to a foreign land, I relished this once-in-a-lifetime challenge. This stint not only helped me gain maturity and cultural sensitivity, but it has also broadened my global perspectives on how to grow a business in unfamiliar territories. These are life lessons which cannot be gleaned off textbooks. I strongly encourage youths to venture out of their comfort zone and seize the opportunities that the ASEAN market presents.”
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