News Bites is a monthly scan covering issues and trends surfaced in various local mainstream media sources that would be of relevance to the Malay/Muslim community. It is produced by the Research and Design Department (R&D) of Yayasan MENDAKI. The key highlights for this month are: • The Government understands the financial concerns faced by Singaporeans, and is committed to using resources judiciously to help as many of them as possible. (ST, 12 Aug) • Lower- and middle-income Singaporeans aged 50 and above this year will get more help to boost their retirement savings under a new package. They will receive a yearly CPF bonus of up to $1,000 as long as they continue working. (ST, 20 Aug) • To help retrenched workers get back on their feet confidently, the Government will provide temporary financial support so that they can focus on upgrading their skills for a better long-term job. (ST, 20 Aug)

1. August 2023

2. 2
What is News Bites?
News Bites is a monthly scan covering issues and trends surfaced in various local
mainstream media sources that would be of relevance to the Malay/Muslim community. It is
produced by the Research and Design Department (R&D) of Yayasan MENDAKI.
News Bites begins with an article count across different media sources which are
categorised into these main areas: education, economy, employment and employability, social
and community, and Malay/Muslim affairs. Other salient areas for the month are also
highlighted. It then delves into emerging themes and trends observed.
We hope you find this month’s News Bites insightful and useful for your needs. We
look forward to your continued partnership and support, and welcome any suggestions you
might have. You can reach us at RD@mendaki.org.sg to feedback.
RESEARCH &
DESIGN
DEPARTMENT

3. Overall Coverage
• With a total of 262 articles, Community (69), Health (28) and Employment (26) news were
widely reported in August 2023. This reflects Singapore’s focus on helping Singaporeans with key
announcements on housing affordability, retirement for seniors and support for retrenched
workers at the National Day Rally 2023.
41
17 18
10 12
1
28
11 8 12 9
20
69
28 26 22 21 21
Community Health Employment Education Economy MMA
No. of Articles
ST BH/BM Total
3

4. Emerging Themes & Trends
4

5. Community
• Nursing homes are expanding, with at least eight new facilities
to be added in the next five years, to meet the needs of a
rapidly ageing population. (ST, 6 Aug)
– Nearly 1,000 new beds will be available by the end of
2024, with two major operators opening facilities next
year.
• Eighty-five per cent of respondents in a recent survey believe
their socio-economic situation can be improved through hard
work, even though one in two feel that Singapore has become a
more unequal society in the past decade. (ST, 15 Aug)
• From Sept 25, couples in Singapore can register their marriage
online on the enhanced Our Marriage Journey portal by the
Registry of Marriages (ROM) and the Registry of Muslim
Marriages (ROMM). (ST, 16 Aug)
• Lower- and middle-income Singaporeans aged 50 and above
this year will get more help to boost their retirement savings
under a new package. They will receive a yearly CPF bonus of
up to $1,000 as long as they continue working. (ST, 20 Aug)
Source: ST
Source: ST
5

6. Health
• A pilot for virtual wards has been expanded to include four
more public healthcare institutions, enabling more patients
with a wider range of conditions to receive hospital-type care
in their homes. (ST, 7 Aug)
• About 18 per cent of all community cases of Covid-19
detected in recent weeks are of the new EG.5 Omicron
subvariant, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said. (ST, 8 Aug)
• About 185,000 people have enrolled in Healthier SG, with an
average of about 3,000 signing up daily now, said Health
Minister Ong Ye Kung. (ST, 13 Aug)
– Three out of every four enrolled so far are above the age
of 60, while the rest are aged 40 to 59.
• Singapore is pushing for new technology and artificial
intelligence (AI) to achieve better healthcare with lower
manpower or cost. This is critical as the rapidly ageing
population will increase demand for healthcare, says
Singapore’s chief health scientist Tan Chorh Chuan. (ST, 28
Aug)
Source: ST
Source: ST
6

7. Employment
Support for Workers
• Securing employment for workers and ensuring their
employability in the future economy through training remain a
priority for the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC). (ST, 1
Aug)
• Women planning to conceive, working mothers who are
breastfeeding and workers with disabilities will have stronger
protections under Singapore’s first workplace fairness law. (ST,
4 Aug)
• Two national associations acting on behalf of platform workers
here are tying up with technology firm Grab in an effort to
improve representation for such workers. (ST, 7 Aug)
– A pact between the National Delivery Champions
Association (NDCA), National Private Hire Vehicles
Association (NPHVA) and Grab will also pave the way for
structured dialogues to deepen understanding of platform
work and the provision of training to help workers
sharpen their skills.
Source: ST
Source: ST
7

8. Employment
Support for Workers
• Deliverymen and ride-hailing drivers who use online matching
platforms such as Grab, foodpanda and Lalamove for work
could be designated as a new worker category under new laws
that are being drafted. (ST, 14 Aug)
• The National Wages Council (NWC), which issues annual
guidelines on pay and employment issues, will convene on 21
Aug to to deliberate and is seeking views from the public. (ST, 16
Aug)
• To help retrenched workers get back on their feet confidently,
the Government will provide temporary financial support so
that they can focus on upgrading their skills for a better long-
term job. (ST, 20 Aug)
– The new scheme will enable those who are laid off to
attend skills courses rather than seizing whatever jobs are
offered out of desperation.
• Human resource (HR) practitioners who wish to deepen their
skills and gain professional certification from Singapore’s
professional HR body will be able to tap their SkillsFuture
credits to cover costs from end-2023. (ST, 18 Aug)
Source: ST
Source: ST
8

9. Employment
Employment Trends
• More than 4,300 aviation jobs are expected to be filled in
the coming year as Singapore positions its air hub for post-
Covid-19 growth. (ST, 4 Aug)
• Singapore is the fastest-growing market for artificial
intelligence (AI) talent in the Asia-Pacific, according to
LinkedIn data. The share of AI talent in Singapore between
2016 and 2022 grew by 565 per cent, outpacing other
countries such as Australia, India and Japan. (ST, 5 Aug)
• All of the National University Health System’s (NUHS) 16,000
staff can receive training at a newly launched academy
which aims to better equip its workers as Singapore shifts
towards providing care in non-hospital settings and as the
sector digitally transforms. (ST, 10 Aug)
Source: ST
Source: ST
9

10. Education
Source: ST
Source: ST
10
• Primary 1, Kindergarten 1 and secondary school students in
Ministry of Education (MOE) schools will kick off the new
school year on Jan 2, 2024. Kindergarten 2 and Primary 2 to 6
pupils, meanwhile, will report to school on Jan 3, MOE said on
Monday in a release outlining the school terms and holidays for
2024. (ST, 7 Aug)
• The Institute of Higher Education (IHL) supported by
SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) will introduce nine new
SkillsFuture Work While Learning programs from October
2023. (BH, 11 Aug) Title in BH: Skim Kerja-Belajar SkillsFuture
tawar program baru, luaskan jangkauan
• Starting from August 2023, freshmen joining the National
University of Singapore (NUS) to study dentistry, medicine,
nursing and pharmacy will take a common set of modules in
their first two years, alongside their current individual
programmes. (ST, 15 Aug)
• Animated videos, online games and augmented reality will be
featured more prominently in mother tongue lessons for
Primary 1 pupils from 2024, as part of a refreshed curriculum
announced by Education Minister Chan Chun Sing. (ST, 26 Aug)

11. Economy
• Singapore Airlines (SIA) will significantly increase the frequency
of its flights to some key markets from March to October 2024,
restoring more of its services – including those to Beijing,
Shanghai, Hong Kong and Melbourne – to pre-pandemic levels.
(ST, 7 Aug)
• Prices of Housing Board resale flats edged up 0.3 per cent in
July, even as more units changed hands, a sign that home prices
are rising at a slower pace. (ST, 10 Aug)
• The Government understands the financial concerns faced by
Singaporeans, and is committed to using resources judiciously
to help as many of them as possible. (ST, 12 Aug)
• The Finance Minister will study carefully if the Assurance
Package for GST can be further enhanced, as the goods and
services tax (GST) is set to go up to 9 per cent in 2024, Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong said. (ST, 20 Aug)
Source: ST
Source: ST
11

12. Malay/Muslim Affairs
Source: BH
Source: ST
12
MENDAKI/M3
• The effort of Malay/Muslim organisations (MMOs) to support
job seekers was touched upon by the Prime Minister, Mr. Lee
Hsien Loong, in his speech in Malay at the National Day Rally
on 20 Aug. (BH, 20 Aug) Title in BH: Badan Melayu/Islam main
peranan sokong pencari kerja
– Giving an example, Mr. Lee said Yayasan MENDAKI works
closely with the M3 agency and other MMOs to approach
Malay workers.
• Around 100 youth completed MClub's third community
mentoring program. Over 60 volunteer mentors from local
IHLs and working youth were matched with approximately 100
participating secondary school mentees. (BH, 23 Aug) Title in
BH: Sekitar 100 belia selesai ikuti program bimbingan komuniti
ketiga Mclub

13. Malay/Muslim Affairs
• MMOs must continue to strive to attract talent as they are
training grounds for Malay leadership, said DPM Lawrence
Wong. (BH, 11 Aug) Title in BH: Badan Melayu/Islam mesti
terus tarik bakat muda bagi pupuk pemimpin baru
– He said MMOs provide space for individuals to come
forward and fight for issues that are close to their hearts
and make contributions to society.
• The welfare of the asatizah is one of the main agendas that
Ustaz Muhammad Tarmizi Abdul Wahid wants to address as
the new President of the Association of Islamic Scholars and
Teachers of Singapore (Pergas). (BH, 17 Aug) Title in BH:
Presiden baru Pergas ingin pertingkat kebajikan, kewibawaan
asatizah
Source: BH
Source: ST
13

14. Published by
MENDAKI Research and Design Department
(August 2023)
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