Mr Samuel Tsien, Chief Executive Officer of OCBC Bank
Mr Chan Tee Seng, Chief Executive Officer of NTUC First Campus
Colleagues, Friends from NTUC First Campus and OCBC
Partners and Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
Introduction - Providing a Helping Hand
A very good morning. It is with great pleasure to join you today at the launch of the OCBC-NTUC First Campus Bridging Programme. I would like to begin by thanking OCBC and its staff for their generous contribution and close partnership with NTUC First Campus. Your contribution and partnership provide more opportunities for children to have access to quality early childhood education.
At NTUC, we are driven by the 3Ws – creating better Wages, better Work Prospects and better Welfare for our workers and their families. The Labour Movement has several initiatives aimed at improving the welfare of our workers and their families, but let me just share two today.
• We have the NTUC U-Care Fund, which consolidates the Labour Movement's fundraising efforts to provide better welfare for low-income workers and their families, through various assistance programmes.
• NTUC First Campus, a social enterprise under NTUC has the Bright Horizons Fund that provides financial support to children from low-income families. It covers school uniforms, field trips, learning support programmes and more.
Education is a key enabler in improving social mobility. The recent Government announcements on increasing pre-school subsidies for the early childhood sector reaffirms the importance of pre-school education as a basic need, just like housing and education.
In line with the public sector’s efforts, I am delighted to share that the initiatives to be announced by NFC today will not only enable lower-income families easier access to this basic need of education, but also access to quality pre-school education.
I am heartened that both NFC and OCBC are proactive and quick in supporting the Government’s efforts to ensure that every child has a good start in life through this new OCBC-NFC bridging programme.
Extending the Support Rendered to Low-income Union Member Families and Children
At NTUC, we put our workers at the heart of everything we do. With our large network of 59 unions, 5 affiliated associations and other related organisations, Union members have access to protection against workplace disputes, opportunities for job placement and progression; as well as many exclusive privileges to help them stretch their dollars. The partnership with OCBC is one of the many ways we support our Union members.
OCBC and its staff will be generously contributing S$1 million to the Bright Horizons Fund over five years for the OCBC-NFC Bridging Programme. This will provide financial support to more than 2,500 low-income Union member families in childcare fees and healthcare related expenses for their children.
Beyond benefitting the children, this programme also equips the parents with financial literacy knowledge. Financial literacy is the first step in helping families understand how to manage their finances effectively. OCBC will organise financial literacy workshops for them to pick up pointers on topics such budgeting and tracking expenses. As the saying goes, "Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime."
Earlier, I chatted with Mdm Taneswary, the mother of an adorable 3-year-old Tansikaa, who is currently in the playgroup class at My First Skool. Mdm Taneswary’s family currently pays about $70 per month for school fees. With the Government’s recent announcement on the additional subsidy, they will pay $3.40 monthly next year. I’m happy to share that through this bridging programme in which they will receive $800, they will be able to enjoy free pre-school education. The family can also use the money to pay for field trips, healthcare and more. This is very important because it will ensure the child’s holistic development. Mdm Taneswary also shared with me that this additional support is very helpful for her family as they have a new baby on the way and she is also supporting her mother.
I believe that this all-rounded approach of providing families with financial aid coupled with financial knowledge will have a far-reaching impact on improving the lives of our union members.
Higher Income Ceiling to Benefit More Low-Income Families and Children
Beyond the OCBC-NFC Bridging Programme, I want to commend NFC on its move to raise its income ceiling eligibility for families to benefit from its Child Support Services. $8.6 million will be set aside for NFC’s Child Support Services, encompassing learning and developmental support as well as social support programmes. This is a significant 26% increase from 2019, which means that we will be able to touch the lives of many more families. Well done, NFC!
Besides funding the necessities such as uniforms, I understand that NFC, through financial assistance schemes like the Bright Horizons Fund, also gives children the opportunity to nurture their talents and more. For example, they get to participate in arts and dance classes and perform in events like today. This is good because it contributes to their holistic development and builds their confidence.
In addition, I am pleased to share that NFC accords priority registration to low-income families for enrolment of their children into My First Skool’s network of schools. This would mean more pre-school choices for them.
Conclusion
All the initiatives announced today build on NFC’s efforts to provide every child with a good start in life. I want to thank everyone involved in realising these new initiatives. I also want to convey my thanks again to our partner, OCBC, in making access to quality education possible for our children.
Let us continue to work together to give every child a brighter future and to keep their dreams alive! Thank you everyone for joining us here today. I wish you a good day ahead.
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