Chairman’s Message

Thank you everyone for the support to REACH!

As we moved into post-COVID normalcy this year, feedback gathering and citizen engagement by REACH Singapore returned to full swing. We continued to expand our outreach to more segments of Singaporeans in our belief that #EveryVoiceMatters in shaping Singapore’s future.

We collected Singaporeans’ feedback on significant announcements made at Budget 2023 and National Day Rally (NDR) in innovative and targeted ways – these included outdoor vernacular radio shows, podcasts, a pop-up booth at One Raffles Place to engage with Singaporeans working in the area, and partnerships with mobile apps to engage parents of young children.

We also heard from Singaporeans on how we can refresh our social compact, through the Forward Singapore (Forward SG) exercise. Over the course of the past year, we have had various follow-up conversations, Friendzone sessions, as well as an exciting Forward SG Video Challenge! Using diverse modalities of engaging with Singaporeans on Forward SG, we made sure that Forward SG remained an ongoing conversation between the public and the Government.

We are mindful that policies impact each individual differently. Hence, we work with partners to engage Singaporeans from all walks of life – especially those who are not as frequently engaged – to include their voices. This year, these included halfway house residents, rental flat residents, persons with disabilities, athletes, young families, and landed property residents.

As part of our efforts to creatively engage Singaporeans, we also expanded our engagement modalities. These included radio talk shows, in-person dialogues, digital surveys and webinars for those more at ease with digital platforms. We have also tapped on platforms like Singpass (SG Notify) to reach out to Singaporeans living abroad. Additionally, REACH’s annual flagship event Singapore Model Parliament (SMP) allowed for youths to better understand how the Government made policy – including gathering public feedback, balancing public feedback and policy considerations, as well as debating the policies at Parliament.

Of course, no engagement work is complete without our partners – this year, we forged many new partnerships, and tapped on the networks and resources provided by our Advisory Panel and Youth Advisory Panel members. Panel members are involved in REACH activities in various ways, as co-organisers, dialogue panellists, resource persons etc, and have connected REACH to their communities for wider and deeper engagement. The Panel members have been a rich source of knowledge and connections and I am very grateful to their contributions for the past year. We look forward to an even closer relationship in the coming months.

This year has proven to be a busy yet fulfilling one. We are grateful for the strong support of partners from the private and people sectors, such as Friendzone, Varsity Voices, Mendaki, Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations and Institutes of Higher Learning. I am grateful for the support of our many partners and contributors. Thank you and see you next year!