1. An Introduction

2. ACMI - Archdiocesan Commission for the
Pastoral Care of Migrants & Itinerant People
 Commissioned in 1998 by the Roman Catholic Archbishop
of Singapore
 ACMI’s aim is to respond to the pastoral needs of migrants
and itinerants in Singapore
 For more than fifteen years ACMI has:
◦ Helped over 3,500 migrants with their issues
◦ Fed nearly 140,000 migrants
◦ Trained 5,000 migrants

3. Who We Reach Out To
 All migrants in Singapore regardless of race,
language or religion
 Main beneficiaries:
◦ Foreign Domestic Workers
(FDW)
◦ Foreign Construction Workers
◦ Foreign Spouses (FS)
◦ Foreign Students
◦ Itinerants

4. Our main programmes
 Casework and Counselling – All migrants
 SkillsTraining – FDWs and Foreign Spouses
 Bread Basket – Food Rations for Foreign Construction
Workers
 Advocacy and Research
– All migrants
 Support Groups
– Foreign Spouses

5. Programme
ACMI Casework &
Counseling

6. Programme Objectives
 Provide social/legal assistance, counselling and
befriending services to migrants
 Network with Embassies,
Gov’t Offices (MOM, FSC, MSF, MHA,
NIE, NPTD, etc.), NGOs, etc to
assist migrants/itinerants
 Provide research data towards
advocacy and awareness on
migrant issues

7. Call and Casework Statistics
2012 2013
Groups Phone Call Casework Phone Call Casework
Workers 249 18 193 33
Spouses 177 38 230 39
Students 8 2 3 0
Others 78 13 52 8
512 71 478 80
2012 2013
Nationality Phone Call Casework Phone Call Casework
Filipino 237 24 174 28
Vietnamese 53 6 52 11
Thai 44 4 23 5
Myanmarese 44 5 35 3
Indonesian 32 8 61 6
Indian 30 6 17 2
Chinese 26 6 70 18
Malaysian 14 2 15 4
Sri Lankan 3 3 8 1
Others/Unknown 29 7 23 2
512 71 478 80

8. Casework Statistics - Issues
Through phone calls
Issues 2012 2013
Marital Problems/seeking divorce 86 122
Seeking custody of children 57 42
Day-off and Contract Problems 57 66
Medical Problems 50 43
Adjustment Problems 32 19
Through Direct Cases
Issues 2012 2013
Marital Problems/seeking divorce 28 32
Spousal Violence 13 10
Seeking custody of children 11 10
Seeking shelter 9 17
Seeking Funancial Help 9 16

9. Programme
ACMITraining Centre
Hougang Avenue 8.

10. Programmes
Culinary
Computer Skills
English Language
Caregiving
Plus Baking, Beauty & Wellness, Dressmaking, Hairdressing, Small Business

11. Foreign Domestic Workers
Programme Objectives
 Provide language and skills training in hope of
improving their lives in Singapore and at home
 Provide safe environment for them to
have meaningful off days, meet and
bond
 Impart to FDWs the right values and
knowledge of their employment rights
 Assist them to gain trust of employers
to secure extra off-day for them to
attend courses

12. Student
Statistics
Courses 2012 2013
Baking 65 54
Beauty & Wellness 167 136
Caregiver 40 40
Computer 135 147
Culinary 74 58
Dressmaking 52 40
English 145 144
Hairdressing 110 154
Small Business Ent. 0 25
788 798
Indonesian
37%
Filipino
30%
Myanmarese
13%
Nepalese
18%
Indian
2%
Vietnamese
0%
Sri Lankan
0% Thai
0%
Chinese
0%
Others
0%
Nationality

13. Foreign Spouses
Programme Objectives
 Provide language skills to help them integrate into
society and the family they’re married into
 Provide place for them to meet, form communities and
social network
English Class Oct
2013

14. Bread Basket Programme
• To welcome the migrants to our country
• To show appreciation for their contributions to Singapore
• To give members of donor organisations a first hand look at
actual conditions in a workers’ dormitory.
• To educate the public on migrant issues
Catholic Junior
College students
distributing food
parcels

15. Advocacy and Research (New)
 Plan, deliver, monitor and evaluate advocacy strategy to
improve migrant’s wellbeing
 Manage relationships with govt ministries, donors, parishes,
religious and int’l institutions
 Establish clear links between programmes and advocacy
aims
 Plan and coordinate
research to support
advocacy on focus
issues

16. Support Groups (New)
 Language and Culture courses to help foreign spouses
integrate into society/family
 Skills training courses to upgrade their skills
 Marriage Enrichment Course for Transnational couples
 Provide venue for FS to
meet, form communities
and social network
 Job referrals

17. THANKYOU
Q&A