Committee of Supply – Head Q (Ministry of Communications and Information)

Head Q (cont) –

Resumption of Debate on Question [5 March 2018],

"That the total sum to be allocated for Head Q of the Estimates to be reduced by $100." – [Mr Zaqy Mohamad.]

Question again proposed.

The Chairman: Order. In view of the Statement made in Parliament earlier on and the amount of time used, I will now revise the guillotine time for Head Q – Ministry of Communications and Information to 11.40 am. Hon Members will be notified of the revised conclusion times for the subsequent Heads of Expenditure. Head Q – Ministry of Communications and Information. Minister Yaacob.

The Minister for Communications and Information (Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim): Mr Chairman, first of all, I would like to thank Members for their kind comments yesterday.

Mr Chairman, with your permission, I would like to show a short video summarising the work of my Ministry over the past year, and some slides throughout our responses.

The Chairman: Alright. [A video and some slides were shown to hon Members.]

Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, digitalisation has created many exciting opportunities and improved Singaporeans’ lives. There are many examples of fellow Singaporeans embracing digital and harnessing opportunities.

One was in the video we just watched. Ms Shakila Sham owns Eatz 19, a fusion restaurant. She decided to install a mobile ordering and payment solution, which allowed her customers to review the menu and order even before arriving at the restaurant, so they can avoid the queue. This way, the customer is happy, and she was able to improve her operations with the data generated. Most importantly, the added convenience made work more enjoyable for Shakila's wheelchair-bound employee, Suzy, who can now manage the ordering platform online, from home.

Another example is Mdm Santhiya Senthil Kumar, an avid self-learner. She attends coding classes with her son in the library. This way, she can bond with her family and pick up a new skill in the process. She was able to apply her new skill to guide her son in coding his own games.

There are many more Shakilas and Santhiyas out there. Helping them do well is what drives all of us at the Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI). In this Committee of Supply (COS), we will share with Members MCI's efforts to do so. I will talk about our plans to develop our digital economy and enhance the digital readiness of Singaporeans. Senior Minister of State Janil Puthucheary will elaborate on how workers, businesses and citizens can benefit from our digital economy and digital readiness efforts. Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat will explain MCI's efforts to transform and grow the media sector. I will round up by sharing the wonderful transformation of our libraries, which should inspire us all.

Sir, let me begin with the digital economy. Digital transformation is the most important issue facing businesses today. The Singapore Business Federation’s (SBF's) recent study showed that the majority of our businessmen fully appreciate the importance of digitalisation because the payoffs are enormous. Microsoft's recent study estimated that the digital economy would contribute another US$10 billion to our gross domestic product (GDP) by 2021. This is the context for our Smart Nation initiative – good jobs and opportunities for our people.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad asked what the Government is doing to ensure that Singapore businesses and workforce can thrive in the digital future. My answer is "ABC" – Accelerate the digitalisation of existing sectors, Build up our infocomm media or infocomm media (ICM) companies, and Create future digital technology sectors. Let me explain.

Firstly, "A" – Accelerate the digitalisation of existing sectors. Digitalisation affects every sector. But not all of the sectors have responded equally quickly. Some sectors, like banking and finance, and retail, have done relatively well. During my recent visit to the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) FairPrice’s new "living lab" supermarket at SingPost Centre, I saw how FairPrice had transformed its traditional supermarket using innovative retail technologies to revolutionise the shopping experience to meet changing consumer expectations and habits in the digital age, while boosting workers’ productivity. But there are other sectors that are finding it more difficult to keep up.

Members asked how the Government can help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) benefit from digitalisation. Allow me to first share the common challenge that SMEs face in going digital. One reason why some sectors are unable to transform digitally is knowledge. Even if companies are keen to embrace digitalisation, they do not know how to, or where to start. This is particularly true for SMEs which sometimes lack the resources and scale to deploy digital solutions. That is why we launched the SMEs Go Digital Programme last year, which, for a start, focuses on key sectors where digital technologies can improve productivity significantly. This includes providing step-by-step guidance under the Industry Digital Plans (IDPs) to make digitalisation simpler for SMEs. We have since launched the Retail and Logistics IDPs last November and we aim to do more this year.

Members asked about the outcomes of our initiatives to help SMEs digitalise. Even though the programme has been operational for only less than a year, we are seeing encouraging results. More than 650 SMEs have benefited from the programme, with many more waiting in line.

A beneficiary of the pre-approved digital solution under the programme is House of Seafood, a restaurant chain and food manufacturer. It exports its products to many countries. However, each country has its own import requirements, and it was difficult to track them all efficiently. So, the company installed a digital tagging solution to automate the compliance checks for its many products. House of Seafood is now able to export its products more easily, and has grown its sales by 20% and productivity by 25%.

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Another example, Sir, is OKH Logistics. The complexity of the logistics business cannot be underestimated. So, the company adopted an intelligent vehicle monitoring system to operate its vehicles better. By analysing the data collected, it was able to significantly reduce the number of vehicle accidents by 50%. Fewer vehicle accidents mean better utilisation of assets. This led to about 10% increase in the number of deliveries handled a day.

Sir, we will continue to grow the SMEs Go Digital Programme and we aim to benefit many more SMEs. To do so, we fully agree with Mr Teo Ser Luck that we must ensure that our programmes remain relevant in a fast-changing environment. We will regularly review the IDPs and pre-approved solutions in the SMEs Go Digital Programme to ensure that they are in line with the latest industry trends and standards while meeting SMEs’ needs.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad asked what more can be done to help our SMEs seize the opportunities in digital. Ms Sun Xueling asked if we would engage influential partners to help drive digitalisation within sectors. One initiative we are pursuing is to focus not just on individual solutions for individual SMEs, but to take a cluster approach by working with influential partners to help a group of SMEs from similar sectors.

For example, in the logistics sector, the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), is working with major logistics companies, such as Bollore Logistics, Dimerco and LCH Lockton, to lead their SME clients through the digitalisation process using a cloud-based e-Cargo Consolidation Platform. This aggregates freight demands, thereby lowering freight costs for SME freight forwarders. This initiative will be launched in April and, for a start, over 100 SMEs are expected to benefit from this project. We will do more of such projects in the coming year.

Ms Sun Xueling asked what sector-level initiatives do we have to drive digitalisation on a broader scale. Last year, IMDA launched various innovative initiatives to support the digital transformation of both the logistics and retail sectors. As part of our efforts in the retail sector, we are collaborating with the Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (SPRING) Singapore, the Singapore Malay Chambers of Commerce and Industry (SMCCI), and One Kampong Glam Association to develop Kampong Glam into Singapore’s first digitally enabled retail neighbourhood. What does this mean?

We will help interested merchants in the core area of Kampong Glam, comprising about 200 merchants, adopt digital solutions to improve their business operations. This would include adopting integrated point-of-sale systems which enable cashless payments, inventory tracking and financial accounting. By automating these backend administrative processes, the merchants will have more time for their products and customers. We are working with StarHub on these business solutions for the merchants.

We are also enhancing the visitor experience by developing digital products, such as immersive walking trails, and working with Temasek Polytechnic School of Business to increase the merchants' online presence. We are partnering Grab to offer an additional cashless option and increase accessibility to the area. After all, the shops will benefit from more customers enjoying themselves in Kampong Glam.

Sir, we will launch Phase 1 of the transformation in the second quarter of 2018. Learning from the Kampong Glam project, we will explore how we could develop other projects to digitalise the retail sector. Let me also take this opportunity to thank the leadership of One Kampong Glam Association and SMCCI for their support.

Another way we are accelerating the sector's digitalisation is to put in place common infrastructure that will raise business productivity. One such project is e-invoicing. Invoices are critical functions for businesses. Without an invoice, businesses do not get paid. But invoicing can be very tedious and manual, with many inherent errors. E-invoicing can change that. It can help businesses cut costs, ensure companies are paid faster and open up new financing options. We are currently studying this with companies and will announce more details later.

Sir, I shall move on to "B" – Build up our ICM companies. This is necessary, because without a strong ICM sector to support businesses with good products, we will not go very far in our digitalisation journey. In this respect, we want to have homegrown ICM companies, along with other companies supporting this sector.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad asked about the plans to grow the ICM sector. IMDA has already launched the ICM Industry Transformation Map (ITM) last year. Under our ITM, we aim to create 13,000 new professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMET) jobs, and the industry’s value-added is expected to grow at around 6% annually. We will do this by building up our workforce and helping our companies internationalise. Most importantly, as digitalisation blurs traditional industry boundaries, we will help our companies reinvent themselves.

Several ICM companies have already done so. One example is Y3 Technologies, a software solutions provider specialising in supply chain management solutions. In recent years, Y3 has transformed itself by moving away from just supply chain management to an innovative analytics service provider. Thanks to its proprietary software, it now has 24/7 visibility of all customer orders, can handle a larger volume of orders and reduce the incidence of wrong delivery. It has also used its analytics software products to diversify into complementary areas, such as e-commerce. So, we will do more to help our companies transform themselves like Y3.

Today, IMDA runs the Accreditation@SG Digital, which helps to scale innovative Singapore-based ICM companies to build deep capabilities locally and grow internationally. Currently, Sir, we have 24 accredited companies. We will quadruple this in five years and avail more support to help them grow, including building their track record, assisting them to grow new growth capital and helping them to expand overseas. In the case of Sense Infosys, an accredited local data analytics startup, IMDA's support in securing funding and facilitating key partnerships had contributed to the company’s overseas expansion and impressive growth.

One way to build stronger ICM companies is to help them collaborate with end-users to build new and innovative solutions with potential to be scaled and exported. This might not be that easy with digitalisation blurring the lines among sectors, which creates the need to solve problems that cut across many sectors and disciplines. So, IMDA will pilot the Open Innovation Platform, which is a crowdsourcing platform to facilitate collaboration between problem owners and a community of solution providers, to co-develop digital solutions that address actual business problems.

IMDA will focus their efforts in selected sectors first, including retail and logistics, to build up a community of solution providers. IMDA will bring in expertise in technology areas, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT), to see how they can apply their technologies to business use cases.

Sir, the final thrust to build the digital economy is "C" – Create future digital technology sectors. Last year, I announced that we will invest in developing deeper capabilities in four frontier technology areas, namely, data analytics and AI, IoT, cybersecurity and immersive media. I also announced a series of AI and data analytics initiatives.

As part of our ICM ITM, IMDA launched the AI Business Partnership Programme last November to bring companies interested in AI and AI solution providers together. Although it is early days, IMDA has received promising problem statements from businesses across various sectors and is currently reviewing potential partnerships for co-funding. IMDA will share more details in the coming months. IMDA also launched the AI Apprenticeship Programme with AI Singapore to develop AI professionals through training courses. To date, the Programme has received overwhelming support and the first batch of 20 trainees will start training in May.

Mr Cedric Foo asked what Singapore is doing to prepare itself for the digital economy, including giving enterprises access to datasets for machine learning applications. Sir, the Data Innovation Programme Office (DIPO) under IMDA is trying to bring companies together to realise the value of sharing data and brokering partnerships for mutual gain. For instance, the Government has been actively improving data.gov.sg, its one-stop public portal for Government datasets, to include more useful datasets to enable businesses and citizens to co-create solutions using them. We are also reviewing the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) to keep pace with technological developments and regulatory trends to facilitate businesses’ use of personal data while safeguarding consumers' trust.

Sir, besides AI and IoT, we see great promise in cybersecurity. Cybersecurity is integral to the digital economy. As more services and transactions take place online, it becomes even more important that they are digitally secure and reliable. Cybersecurity is thus a cornerstone of trust in our Smart Nation initiative.

Ms Sun Xueling asked if there are plans to assist businesses, including SMEs, and educate the public on how to prevent and respond to cybersecurity threats. We are, indeed, doing so. For instance, the Cyber Security Agency (CSA) is partnering the Association for Information Security Professionals (AISP) to equip our SMEs with cybersecurity knowledge so that they can better respond to cybersecurity threats like the ransomware attacks last year. CSA also works with partners, such as the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC), to raise awareness of the importance of cybersecurity and personal data protection among our students, and with IMDA and the National Library Board (NLB) to provide our seniors with infocomm training, which includes cybersecurity.

Sir, I agree with Mr Zaqy Mohamad that a vibrant cybersecurity ecosystem is an important factor contributing to robust national cybersecurity. Besides undergirding the digital economy, cybersecurity is also a growth engine. Cybersecurity in Singapore is a fast-growing sector, with the potential to generate $900 million in revenue by 2020. This will create many exciting opportunities and jobs for Singaporeans.

Citi Singapore is one such company contributing to the cybersecurity ecosystem in our country. Not many Members may know this, but the bank has established one of its two global security operations centre in Singapore, the other being in New York. I visited the Singapore centre about two weeks ago. And there I met Mr Fadli Sidek, whom I had mentioned in my COS speech two years back. Back then, he had overcome the disappointment of being rejected by a polytechnic and was working towards a cybersecurity degree. Fadli is now a cyber threat intelligence analyst in Citi and he is doing well.

I was happy to see Fadli doing well and want to help more Singaporeans interested in cybersecurity to pursue their passions. CSA will work with other partners to do so. First, CSA and IMDA are supporting the development of the Innovation Cybersecurity Ecosystem (ICE) at Block 71. This initiative will be done with the National University of Singapore (NUS) and SingTel Innov8 and will help promising cybersecurity startups scale and internationalise. Second, CSA will introduce a Co-Innovation and Development Proof of Concept Funding Scheme to support the development of cybersecurity solutions for national security, critical infrastructure and classified system users. This will catalyse the commercialisation and adoption of cybersecurity solutions to address emerging needs.

In addition to cybersecurity, we will also invest to build up immersive media (IM) capability in Singapore, as we also see this as another promising area. Sir, we aim to be the Centre of Excellence in the development and use of IM-based applications in key industries, including engineering, media, retail and education. We will focus on three areas.

First, we will advocate for IM adoption by facilitating business matching and information sharing to raise awareness on IM’s potential. Second, to build innovation capacity by encouraging experimentation and development of proof of concepts. And third, to develop talent for the IM industry. Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat will share some of our efforts to build IM capabilities in his speech. We will announce more details of our plans for IM in the upcoming months. For now, we have put together an IM exhibit for Members to experience how IM can transform the way we live and work in the digital future.

Sir, to achieve these ABCs, we need several enablers. The first and most important is a strong workforce with the relevant expertise and skills. Two years ago, I launched the TechSkills Accelerator (TeSA). Since then, we have had excellent progress. As Minister Heng Swee Keat mentioned in his Budget Statement, over 27,000 training places have been taken up or committed.

One such beneficiary is Mr Muhammad Ruzaini. Ruzaini was retrenched in 2015 after eight years in the industry. As he was interested in cybersecurity, he tried to join the industry after his retrenchment. However, he did not succeed as he lacked the formal training and qualifications. Fortunately, he persisted and joined the Cybersecurity Associates and Technologists (CSAT) programme under the National Computer Systems (NCS), where he picked up new cybersecurity skills. He is now a cybersecurity professional working for NCS.

Sir, the Government will invest another $145 million to scale up TeSA over the next three years. This will create another 20,000 training places by 2020, including in new sectors like manufacturing and professional services. This will allow us to further develop our workforce for the digital economy.

Besides people, we also need to review our regulations in a fast-changing world to ensure they remain pro-business and fit for purpose. Mr Ong Teng Koon asked how IMDA will address the regulatory challenges in the converged ICM environment.

IMDA has been studying very carefully how to harmonise the approaches for the telecommunications and broadcast sectors in areas, such as competition, consumer protection and resilience. We believe that a converged competition and consumer protection code will provide clarity to industry, minimise regulatory overheads, while continuing to protect the public interest.

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One salient issue in the converged ICM space is how digital technologies and social media platforms have come together to worsen the risk of fake news. This was an area that MCI was studying in our review of the Broadcasting Act. However, as Parliament has just appointed the Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehoods to examine the issue, it would be better to study the Select Committee’s recommendations first before making further moves. MCI will thus be deferring the review of the Broadcasting Act.

Dr Teo Ho Pin asked if there are plans to introduce regulations for AI applications. Currently, we have no such plans as the field is still nascent and we want to avoid stifling innovation. But we do acknowledge public anxiety about AI. IMDA is working with sector regulators to study issues and mitigate potential risks from deploying AI.

Besides talent and regulations, another enabler for a thriving digital economy is a conducive, rules-based international environment. That is why we have advocated open data flows and facilitated cyber norms discussions in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). As ASEAN Chairman this year, we will commit to improving digital literacy in ASEAN to help our people reap the benefits of digitalisation.

Beyond ASEAN, we are also participating fully in international mechanisms to provide digital flows. Last year, I announced our intention to join the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Cross Border Privacy Rules and Privacy Recognition for Processors systems, two multilateral certification mechanisms to promote cross-border data flows.

I am pleased to announce that our application was approved on 20 February 2018. When our certification scheme is in place, certified organisations in Singapore will be able to exchange personal data with certified organisations in participating APEC economies much more seamlessly, while consumers can be assured that the cross-border transfer of their personal data will be subject to high standards of data protection.

Sir, even as we grow the digital economy pie, we must ensure that everyone gets a slice of it, and that no one is left behind. And that is the main focus of our digital readiness efforts. Ultimately, Smart Nation is not just a series of technology projects. It is a whole-of-nation movement to improve the lives of all Singaporeans in the digital age. As Minister Vivian Balakrishnan had said earlier, our approach will, therefore, be inclusive by design.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat asked about the Digital Readiness Workgroup and its proposed strategies to improve digital readiness among Singaporeans. We have set out a digital readiness blueprint to give every Singaporean digital access, which is the means to transact digitally; digital literacy – the skills, attitudes and values of a digital citizen; and digital participation – the ability to make use of technology to improve daily life. Senior Minister of State Janil Puthucheary will elaborate later on this.

Sir, the possibilities of the digital future are endless. It is up to us to seize them. Everyone will have a role to play in our broader digital transformation, and we, at MCI, will work with everyone to ensure that we all gain from this shared journey.

The Chairman: Senior Minister of State Janil Puthucheary.

The Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information and Education (Dr Janil Puthucheary): Mr Chairman, the emergence of new opportunities in the digital age is why Singapore is transforming itself into a Smart Nation. Smart Nation is about making all our lives easier. It is about building a strong society and economy with opportunities for all, and where businesses thrive. It is important that no one gets left behind as the world becomes increasingly digital.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat asked about how the Government will work with businesses and the community to help citizens with this transition. This is not the first time that Singapore is experiencing a technology-driven transformation. Since the 1980s, we have introduced information technology (IT) in schools, made broadband available to all homes, and transformed many public services using technology and the Internet.

As the pace of technological change accelerates, we will need a more comprehensive and inclusive approach to ensure that all Singaporeans can participate in and benefit from the opportunities of a digital age. To do so, we need to help citizens be digitally ready. There are three important principles that guide our approach.

Firstly, we need to design with the user in mind. The user interface of our digital services and applications must be so easy to use that almost everybody can start using it with little or no instruction.

Secondly, we have redefined digital inclusion as more than just access but also equipping people with skills. Today, we have many programmes that focus on giving people access to affordable devices and the Internet. But being digitally ready is also about having the skills to use digital technology safely and confidently. These include basic information and media literacy skills, awareness of cybersecurity and personal data protection, and several other skills as well.

Thirdly, collaboration. Digital Readiness must be a whole-of-society effort. Government, businesses and the community must work together to have a deep and wide impact for Singaporeans. This is why we established the Digital Readiness Workgroup last year, bringing together representatives from the public, people and private sectors to propose strategies to address future opportunities and challenges. We have learnt a lot from hearing about these organisations’ approaches to building literacy and giving people a chance to participate in the digital world. We will publish a Digital Readiness Blueprint later this year.

Being digitally ready means ensuring that Singaporeans have, firstly, digital access, which is the means to transact digitally; secondly, digital literacy, which is the skills, attitudes and values of a digital citizen; all of which will, ultimately, lead to digital participation.

As an example of the sort of issues we are concerned about for digital access is smartphones. A smartphone becomes a key enabler for many of the digital services that we want to provide. How can we ensure that enough Singaporeans have adequate access? Today, the total ownership of smartphones in Singapore is high, at about 150% of the population, and yet, there are Singaporeans who have no access to a smartphone.

Once we ensure there is adequate access, we need to develop a base of digital literacy. To begin with, we will articulate a set of basic digital skills, that is, skills that every one of us should have as a first step towards being able to participate in a digital society.

The focus areas of these skills will be the ability to communicate, transact and search for information through a mobile device for day-to-day living. These skills will be articulated as a curriculum that will be made available to training providers and can also be used by family and friends or community partners who are interested in helping everyone enjoy the benefits of our Smart Nation. To ensure that everyone can benefit from this, we will provide training for these basic skills in all four languages by the end of the year.

Assoc Prof Daniel Goh asked about the Government’s efforts in tackling cyberbullying. We agree with Assoc Prof Goh that it is important that we have avenues where the youths, their parents and their teachers can seek help and support from credible sources.

Help123 was initiated last year by the National Council of Social Service and various partners like Fei Yue Community Services and TOUCH Community Services. It provides services for youth cyber-wellness issues a dedicated webchat, email service and a hotline. It also provides resources of counsellors who are able to support people who need further direct intervention and help.

The Media Literacy Council also does work in this space. It makes available and will continue to produce resources to tackle cyberbullying. Examples include an anti-cyberbullying instructional video as part of the "Better Internet" campaign, informational packages with information specific for victims to counter cyberbullying, products, such as those providing guidance for parents and families to detect the symptoms of cyberbullying, and also to provide help to children. A series of workshops is being rolled out this year to help parents raise digitally resilient children.

Mr Vikram Nair asked how we can ensure that Singaporeans of all ages do not get left behind. Our approach has always been to be as inclusive as possible but recognising that some groups would find the transition difficult and providing them with targeted help. We will continue to help the elderly by expanding digital readiness initiatives for seniors.

By the end of this year, we would have organised more than 50 digital clinics for 2,000 seniors, to help them become confident in using digital mobile technology. This year, we will also work with industry and community groups to organise 48 experiential learning journeys to benefit 2,000 seniors to learn about digital technologies useful for their daily activities, such as e-payments.

Mr Yee Chia Hsing asked whether more can be done to prepare elderly residents for digital television (TV). Today, about three in 10 households are still using analogue TV signals. We have put in place the Digital TV Assistance Scheme to help households switch to Digital TV and will continue to provide targeted assistance to the elderly, including organising briefings and demonstration sessions using both English and the vernacular languages.

Just as we will help citizens become digitally ready, the Government will also help workers and businesses build strong capabilities to benefit from the opportunities in a digital economy.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat asked about the progress of TeSA and its upcoming evolution. TeSA is a key tripartite initiative to help build strong digital capabilities through training. You have heard from the Minister that outcomes have been encouraging and, since its launch in 2016, more than 27,000 training places have been taken up or committed, greatly increasing the opportunities for workers. Every individual who has gone through TeSA’s Company Led Training programmes, as well as more than 90% of job seeking trainees from the Tech Immersion and Placement Programme have been successfully placed.

We will scale up the TeSA initiatives with an additional $145 million of funding. This will provide more training places, more programmes and will address more user sectors. TeSA is a key initiative not just for the workers, but also for the businesses. One of the key issues about the development of the digital economy is going to be the provision of capabilities and skills in the workforce. So, by our focus on TeSA, we are helping workers find jobs and transition into new jobs, and we are helping businesses develop the skills and capabilities to help them grow. What are these initiatives?

First, TeSA will provide an additional 20,000 training places by 2020. This will require and build upon the strong multi-agency and tripartite approach that we have taken.

Secondly, TeSA will work closely with industry to develop more programmes in frontier technology areas, such as AI, data analytics, cybersecurity, IoT and IM. There will be more job opportunities that demand such frontier technology skills.

Up to now, a significant part of what TeSA has been doing is concentrating on the existing skills gaps, existing jobs gaps, known technologies, well-developed and mature business issues, and we need to push towards these frontier technologies to try and anticipate what would be the next steps required to grow our digital economy. I hope many more companies will work with TeSA to co-develop training programmes in these areas.

Thirdly, we will widen our approach towards more user sectors. Information and communication technology (ICT) professionals are in demand across many economic sectors, as the economy and industries rapidly digitalise. Currently, TeSA is quite focused on the ICT sector, as well as on the Finance and Healthcare sectors. Moving forward, TeSA will expand its training offering into Manufacturing and Professional Services.

In line with our commitment to develop our people, TeSA will also strengthen our support for those who might need it most, such as mid-career ICT PMETs in search of new job opportunities as the economy and the ICT job landscape evolve.

Mr Desmond Choo asked about how we can better support workers, especially mature ones, to reskill and upskill. TeSA programmes have been benefiting mid-career professionals. Since 2016, approximately 10,000 TeSA training places have been taken up by those above the age of 40. But TeSA will do more to support more mid-career ICT PMETs.

First, we will help to curate cross-sector ICT job openings. While there are ICT job openings in the public, non-profit and private sectors, as well as across different industry sectors, many mid-career ICT PMETs are unlikely to possess the networks, contacts or the sector-specific skills needed to make the transition into new sectors. They may already have skills which are relevant to either the private, public or the non-profit sector, or they may have ICT skills that are domain-specific to a given industry within the economy. What we need to help them do is make a transition across either the domain, the industry or the sector. And if we do not, this will be a missed opportunity, because there are many job opportunities that could potentially be meaningful as a next step for mid-career professionals.

IMDA is working with other Government bodies, such as the Ministry of Education (MOE) to identify jobs that ICT professionals can be placed into. We are also working with industry partners via the SMEs Go Digital programme to curate more suitable job roles.

Secondly, we will also strengthen employment facilitation for mid-career professionals. Leveraging on our integrated career services, a career support ecosystem by partners like the Singapore Computer Society (SCS), Workforce Singapore (WSG), Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) and NTUC, individuals will get more career guidance, more mentoring and better support for better job matching. The career coaches and mentors within this ecosystem will also be provided with better and more timely insights on job openings and skill needs, going forward, so that they can better assist workers.

Through TeSA's scale-up and its targeted assistance, we will build strong digital capabilities in our workforce.

Sir, MCI and our partners will help workers, businesses and citizens benefit from the opportunities of a digital Singapore. In the next few months, we will share further details on our digital economy and digital readiness efforts.

The Chairman: Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat.

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The Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information (Mr Chee Hong Tat): Mr Chairman, as we embark on our digital transformation journey, we are clear that technology is an enabler, not the end in mind. Our objective is to improve the lives of our people and create good jobs for Singaporeans by harnessing technology and cultivating a spirit of imagination, enterprise and innovation. This is the approach we adopt when we develop Singapore's media sector. Our efforts for the media sector focus on four Cs: Content, Capabilities, Channels and Collaboration.

First, on content, which is the heart of the media sector. Compelling stories are what attract audiences. Our local media companies have done well in this regard, creating quality local content appreciated by viewers around the world. For example, Netflix commissioned its first Chinese-language series, Bardo, by teaming up with IFA Media, a local production company, and Taiwan-based director Sam Quah. I am glad that a Singapore-based media company is involved in bringing its stories to a global platform.

IMDA will continue to support our local media companies and talent to create quality content as part of its plans to develop Singapore's media sector. We will announce more details later in the year.

One important area is to strengthen our partnerships with leading international media companies. For example, the collaboration with Home Box Office (HBO) Asia will open opportunities for Singaporeans to take on key production roles in HBO's upcoming productions. One of these is Folklore, a horror anthology created by local filmmaker Eric Khoo. Another is Grisse, a period drama set in 19th century Java. Both series will premiere in the second half of 2018.

For Public Service Broadcasting (PSB), locally produced PSB programmes remain an important avenue to tell our Singaporean stories and present news and entertainment from a Singaporean perspective. Mediacorp will experiment with new content concepts and production techniques through the Content Development Fund (CDF). The call-for-proposal was launched last October. One of the selected proposals is Under Our Sky, an alien-invasion thriller set in Singapore, featuring extensive computer-generated imagery and 360-degree video. The pilot will be released on Toggle early next year.

Next, on capabilities, Mr Darryl David asked how we are helping the media sector build capabilities for continued growth. This includes harnessing IM technologies like augmented reality and virtual reality (VR). Under IMDA's partnership with Discovery Networks Asia Pacific, Discovery had commissioned a series of VR titles. The first two titles will be launched later this year. Another two titles are in the works: Living on the Edge, which tells the story of child Muay Thai fighters in Thailand, and Wild Treks, which shows the life of the Bajau Laut, or Sea Gypsies, in Sabah. These titles are produced by local media companies BeVRR and iMMERSiVELY. They will work closely with Discovery to bring their productions to a global audience through Discovery's VR app.

IMDA will be working with game technology company Unity to jointly launch Unity Incubator Services at PIXEL Studios. Our companies will benefit from the business and technical workshops designed for facilitating knowledge transfer and sharing best practices in the development of IM applications and games.

IMDA will introduce more accelerator and training programmes to support our companies. I assure Mr Darryl David that smaller companies will also benefit from these programmes. An example is goGame, a Singaporean mobile game publishing company and a subsidiary of SEGA. It has partnered IMDA to launch Singapore's first game accelerator. The accelerator will train early-stage game developers in business strategy, licensing and marketing.

Another key focus is to invest in our young. With the support of IMDA, Mediacorp has invested in efforts to build a pipeline of young creative talent through apprenticeship programmes and collaborations with schools. For example, the Chinese-language web drama series, A Lonely Fish, which was released a few days ago on Toggle, was born out of a scriptwriting workshop co-organised by Mediacorp, Ngee Ann Polytechnic and NUS. Three Ngee Ann Polytechnic students, Oh Wei Ting, Tan Lipei and Ong Wenyi, participated in the workshop and came up with the idea for the series. Under the guidance of Mediacorp's scriptwriters and producers, they went through a full production cycle, learning the ropes of scriptwriting, acting and production.

Mediacorp also partnered Temasek Polytechnic, Republic Polytechnic and Ngee Ann Polytechnic on a Young Creators Project. Under this initiative, experienced mentors from Mediacorp will guide participating students in content production. Mediacorp has selected 11 student projects to commission, which will launch on Toggle later this year.

Our emphasis on nurturing our young underscores an important point. We cannot build effective capabilities without focusing on talent development. The human touch remains essential to the media sector, whose work centres on connecting with people.

This applies to our mainstream media, too. I agree with Mr Ganesh Rajaram that talent development is key to quality journalism. It is an important element in supporting the mainstream media's role to provide accurate and objective news reports as well as insightful opinion pieces and documentary programmes.

Beyond the newsroom, we are also focused on developing our local talent pool for the industry. IMDA's ongoing Talent Assistance Scheme has been a useful initiative, providing funding support for our media talent to upgrade their skills. From May this year, we will expand the scheme to support media professionals outside the media sector, such as those who are employed in the manufacturing and retail sectors. At last year's COS, we announced the Media Manpower Plan to develop a future-ready media workforce. IMDA has made good progress on the implementation of this plan.

I earlier announced that IMDA and SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) are jointly developing the Skills Framework for Media. This is expected to be launched in November 2018 and will cover about 140 media job roles in areas, such as games, broadcast and film. To date, 40 local and overseas stakeholders, including Beach House Productions, Fox Networks Group and Ubisoft, have provided inputs to the framework.

Recognising that media freelancers play an important role across the economy, IMDA launched the Tripartite Standard on Procurement of Services from Media Freelancers in November last year. Since then, 52 organisations have adopted the Standard. Starting from 1 April 2018, organisations must adopt the Tripartite Standard in order to qualify for IMDA's media grants and funding for PSB content. I look forward to more organisations coming forward to adopt the Standard over time.

Let me now touch on the need to develop effective channels to reach our viewers. I agree with Mr Vikram Nair that we should extend the reach of PSB programming to engage more Singaporeans. Besides traditional free-to-air channels, IMDA has been actively building partnerships with media players in the digital and online space.

An example is IMDA's partnership with Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) to produce and distribute short-form videos through SPH's digital content network. The pilot run last year saw the release of 118 short-form videos. Building on its success, SPH will be producing a second slate of videos comprising more than 120 short-form videos.

IMDA also partnered Viddsee, a Singapore-based online video platform specialising in short films, to deliver more engaging PSB content for the younger audiences on its platforms. This is a good example of a company which is using data analytics to drive viewership and monetisation. Viddsee will produce five new original series in collaboration with local filmmakers. The first, the short film Run Chicken Run by Ellie Ngim, was launched last month. Its heart-warming story set during the Chinese New Year period was well-received.

IMDA will also continue working with Mediacorp to better engage viewers on its digital platform, Toggle. Since its relaunch in April 2015, Toggle has seen a steady increase in viewership to more than eight million monthly video views today. This is an effort that I think we should continue.

I am glad that Mediacorp's analytics tool, RIPPLE, won three BIGGIES Awards at the global Big Data for Media Conference last year. Using RIPPLE, Mediacorp will launch 34 new Toggle Originals this year, up from 13 released last year. I believe these new titles will offer more entertainment options for our viewers.

The fourth and final "C" is collaboration. The need for collaboration applies to our mainstream media companies SPH and Mediacorp, too, as Mr Ganesh Rajaram pointed out.

After a successful two-year collaboration, SPH and StarHub recently renewed their partnership for another two years. They will continue their tie-ups in areas, such as cross-media content creation and publishing, data analytics and marketing, where SPH-produced content has been broadcast and promoted across StarHub's pay TV service. Additionally, they will collaborate in their non-media business, to encompass new areas, such as healthcare, retail and education.

Mediacorp and SPH have also explored possible areas of collaboration. They launched a joint digital advertising marketplace, Singapore Media Exchange (SMX), consolidating their data resources to unlock new advertising opportunities and provide advertisers richer targeting capabilities. Both companies are also working with IMDA on joint efforts to market the opportunities in Singapore's media sector to better develop our talent pool.

These are some examples of how, through partnerships, our media companies can position themselves for a digital age and create more value.

Mr Chairman, I thank Mr Low Thia Khiang for giving us an opportunity to update on the National Translation Committee's work since its formation in 2014. Under the three broad thrusts of Talent, Technology and Teamwork, or 3Ts, we have rolled out several initiatives. Due to time constraints, I will just highlight a few examples.

First, on talent development. We have awarded six Information Service (Translation) Scholarships since 2015 to groom young Singaporeans who have a strong interest in translation. The National Translation Committee (NTC) also launched the Translation Talent Development Scheme (TTDS) earlier this year to provide funding support for translators and interpreters in the industry to attend seminars and courses to enhance their skills and expertise.

Next, on technology. In partnership with public sector agencies, we have enhanced the Government Terms Translated Database, hosted on gov.sg, to cover more than 6,200 Government-related terms translated into Chinese, Malay and Tamil. I agree with Mr Low Thia Khiang that it is important to organise our online resources to be accessible, convenient and user-friendly. We will discuss his suggestions with the NTC members.

MCI is working with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) to develop a Customised Government Machine Translation Engine. The engine is "trained" using translations from MCI and other Government agencies, enabling it to correctly translate local terms.

Finally, on teamwork: NTC launched the Community-in-Translation (CiT) initiative in 2016 to raise awareness and interest in translation among our young. Under this initiative, NTC worked with several partners to conduct translation workshops for students in all three Mother Tongue languages and supported schools in organising translation competitions.

Mr Chairman, in our multiracial community, raising translation standards is an important focus for the Government. I am grateful for the contributions from our NTC and resource panel members from the various language communities and our industry partners.

As the Malay proverb goes, "Bukit sama didaki, lurah sama dituruni" – we overcome obstacles together and enjoy the fruits of our hard work together.

There is also a Tamil proverb, "ஒன்றுபட்டால் உண்டு வாழ்வு ", which means "unity is strength". And as I said in my COS speech in 2016, we are committed to getting our translations correct: "சரியான மொழிபெயர்ப்பே நமது கடப்பாடு ".

Mr Chairman, please allow me to conclude my speech in Mandarin.

(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] In a multicultural and multiracial society like Singapore, translation plays an important role. It helps the Government better explain our policies, thereby benefiting our people and promoting understanding amongst the races.

We are aware of the challenges we face as society and technology evolve. However, NTC, together with like-minded partners, will persevere in carrying on this meaningful and important mission, which is also of cultural significance.

The Chairman: Minister Yaacob Ibrahim.

Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, many Members have shared positive examples of Singaporeans and companies successfully transforming themselves through digitalisation. Let me share one more example – our libraries.

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Sir, our libraries are national treasures. Our earliest libraries were modest facilities, to promote reading among Singaporeans. But they have always explored new ways to promote library usage, such as our mobile libraries. Today, they have reinvented themselves by using technology to champion lifelong learning, build stronger communities and improve Singaporeans' lives.

Three years ago, in this House, I introduced the latest iteration of the libraries’ transformation – our Libraries of the Future Masterplan. Our vision was for the libraries to harness digital technology and become social touchpoints for bonding, collaboration and co-creation.

The Masterplan has delivered encouraging results. Five libraries have been revamped and reopened under the Masterplan – Bedok Public Library, Bukit Panjang Public Library, Sengkang Public Library, Tampines Regional Library and Yishun Public Library. Visitorship has doubled on average, and loans rose by over 40% at the Bukit Panjang and Sengkang libraries, compared to before the revamp. More people visited our public libraries last year compared to the year before, especially our seniors and children.

One reason why our revamped libraries are so popular is because of their specialised spaces, especially those with digital capabilities. For example, the Bukit Panjang Public Library has an Immersive Storytelling Room which brings stories to life through IM. The new Yishun Public Library has a dedicated Digital Learning Zone where users can read e-books and e-magazines to their hearts’ content. These specialised spaces are a boon to visitors seeking something different, such as Ms Audrey Leong, who visits the Bukit Panjang Public Library four times a week with her three children. Her children have fun in immersive storytelling sessions while she attends parenting workshops at the library.

Dr Teo Ho Pin mentioned that library visitorship remained the same and asked about the new initiatives that promote reading through digital technology. While the physical libraries' visitorship has held steady, our libraries' digital reach has increased significantly. Today, there are myriad digital resources on NLB's website which provides for learning anytime, anywhere.

In fact, as of 2017, e-book loans have increased by 69%; NLB's digital reach has grown more than threefold, to 34%; and the NLB mobile app has been accessed three million times since its launch in October 2016. So, for those Members who have not yet downloaded the NLB app, I strongly encourage you to do so today!

Our libraries can do much more. Mr Darryl David and Dr Teo Ho Pin asked what more our libraries can do to prepare Singaporeans for the future economy where digital skills will be in higher demand. The answer is plenty.

Our libraries have forged several partnerships, including with SSG, to build our abilities in three areas: Skills and Employability; Business Acumen and Market Knowledge; and Innovation. To promote learning for skills and employability, NLB and SSG jointly set up the LLiBrary in the Lifelong Learning Institute, which lets users use digital resources for their professional development. To help develop business acumen and market knowledge, NLB recently opened the Eye on Asia Resource Centre to give users a better understanding of regional markets through online resources, workshops and mentorship programmes. To inspire innovation, we will build another Pixel Lab at Woodlands Regional Library, so that we can translate more ideas into reality.

This will help innovators like Mr Jeremy Tan, who wanted to create an inexpensive soft-serve ice-cream machine to replace the expensive ones on the market. Through the Pixel Lab at Jurong Regional Library, Jeremy could print a working sample of his design to show potential investors and convince NUS Enterprise to fund his creation.

NLB will also collaborate with tech companies to nurture the next generation of digitally-ready Singaporeans. This will be an exciting year. We can look forward to the first NLB-Microsoft AI Hackathon that will bring students together to co-create innovative solutions using Microsoft’s AI products and data from NLB. In partnership with Microsoft, NLB will also be co-organising a National Digital Storytelling Competition this year. Open to all secondary school students, this competition will let students tell their own stories using the IM technologies at the Bukit Panjang Public Library and Microsoft tools.

Our libraries will also play an expanded role in realising our vision of digital readiness, as explained by Senior Minister of State Janil Puthucheary. To start, NLB will bring in more than 1,000 digital-readiness programmes for all ages every year.

Dr Teo Ho Pin asked about the libraries' efforts in supporting and preparing Singaporeans for active ageing. I am pleased to share that NLB will partner IMDA to develop and deliver a suite of digital readiness services and extend the reach of digital readiness training to more than 300,000 Singaporeans over five years, 85% of whom are expected to be adults and seniors. This year, seniors can look forward to TechShare, a tech showcase platform for seniors to try current and upcoming technology in a "tech playground" setting, exploring gadgets, such as robots and smart home technologies.

Sir, the upshot of these investments has been an increase in customer satisfaction. A recent survey showed that many more Singaporeans are visiting the libraries, reading books and having a good time doing so.

Children and young Singaporeans have benefited from the libraries' transformation. NLB has long supported efforts to promote early reading, especially for less privileged children, because this improves one’s ability to learn throughout life. Hence, we have programmes like KidsREAD and Early READ.

These efforts have produced encouraging results. Based on our survey of KidsREAD, four out of five children enjoy reading more. They also developed a positive self-esteem and positive attitude towards reading through attending kidsREAD sessions. Through Early READ, 99% of educators and 92% of parents observed that their children have gained an interest in reading.

Our libraries show us that it is possible to embrace digitalisation and reinvent ourselves to thrive in the future. But technology is not the only determinant of success. We must also have a deep sense of identity to root us as we navigate an uncertain and fast-changing future. This is where our libraries have also done well, thanks to their excellent work in preserving our national patrimony.

Ms Sun Xueling asked about the efforts undertaken by the National Library and Archives to preserve our heritage, and if access to archive resources is available at all our libraries. I am pleased to share that they are forerunners in using digital technology to strengthen digitisation efforts that are critical to the preservation of our memories. The digitised content is accessible through the various digital portals, such as Archives Online and NewspaperSG. In fact, many of Mediacorp’s Broadcast Archives are also viewable at the public libraries free of charge via the multimedia stations.

I had the opportunity to explore NLB’s Spatial Discovery website on my visit to the National Library last week. This website allows users to find and interact with maps and maps-related information across NLB and the National Archives of Singapore (NAS) collections.

Each map is a rich archive of information, as Members can see from the 1982 map of the Changi area overlying Changi Airport’s present-day satellite image. Today, many of us rely on Google Maps to tell us how to get somewhere. These historical maps, however, tell a different story: they show us how far we have come, from a barren site of land to four airport terminals, and possibly where we will go. The good news, Sir, is anyone can access this trove of knowledge on their Internet-enabled devices at any time, and not just at the libraries.

We will continue to do more. Later this year, we will amend the NLB Act to require publishers to deposit electronic publications free of technological protection measures so that NLB can provide access to and preserve the documents.

In preserving our national patrimony, NLB works closely with the community to preserve the rich heritage and culture that are embodied in our people. We particularly would like to thank our Citizen Archivists for helping us transcribe, describe and make sense of some 27,000 images or pages in the past year. We will continue to provide Singaporeans and friends more avenues to contribute their own captures of Singapore’s landscape and significant moments in time.

Similarly, Sir, the Archives has convened the Community Oral History Committees (COHCs) to ensure a comprehensive, representative and multifaceted oral history collection.

The COHCs have collated wonderful stories from fellow Singaporeans from all walks of life, such as Mrs Eleanor who saved her friend from being beaten up by rioters in the 1950s, Mr Noor Mohamed Marican, a lawyer involved in the Muslim Syariah Courts, and Mr Rama Kannabiran, a celebrated Tamil-language writer.

NAS will continue to preserve and make accessible our nation's at-risk collections and treasures, including microfilms and audio visual (AV) records. This year marks the NAS' Golden Jubilee. We are, therefore, revamping the NAS building at Canning Rise to enhance its archival facilities and create more public spaces so that Singaporeans can enjoy our rich repository of treasures.

You can soon browse historical documents in the comfort of a new Archives Reading Room or watch restored movies at the upgraded Oldham Theatre. But beyond hardware, the NAS will launch programmes for the public to enjoy its vast collection later this year.

Sir, over the last few years, through numerous dialogues and outreach and engagement efforts, such as Singapore 21, Our Singapore Conversation (OSC), SG50 and, most recently, SGfuture, we have heard from Singaporeans from all walks of life on their hopes and visions, and how we can shape our collective future together. In the OSC survey of 4,000 respondents, it was found that Singaporeans are generally optimistic that the next five years would be better than today, and that today was better than five years ago, despite the challenges ahead.

It is with the same spirit of optimism and zeal that my Ministry has envisioned what it means to be a truly digital Singapore. We see Singaporeans finding their niche in the digital economy, be it someone learning a new skill like 3D printing, an SME using an app to bring convenience to its clients, or communities collaborating to develop future-forward digital solutions to better the lives of fellow Singaporeans.

Sir, we will provide opportunities for inventive entrepreneurs to translate their ideas into reality, for content creators to move from storyboards to bigger screens; for established and emerging companies to become the Googles of the world. We see a future where we can browse more digital resources from wherever we are, where communities come together to learn and grow together.

Today, Sir, the future beckons to us from the Reception Hall at Parliament House. I would like to invite the House to IMDA’s IM Exhibit hosted there, where you can visualise and digitally experience large 3D building models in the construction of new urban sites, amongst other AR and VR activities.

As we can see, my Ministry and its agencies are one step closer to realising our vision. We will continue working tirelessly with all our citizens and businesses, so that we can reap the benefits on our path to a truly digital Singapore and a Smart Nation, by growing our economy, supporting our SMEs in different sectors, and creating good jobs and a better quality of life for all Singaporeans. Like the people in the video I showed at the beginning of today's speech, our ultimate goal is to deploy technology that will continue to improve the lives of Singaporeans and empower them to do more good for their families, communities and our nation.

The Chairman: Mr Zaqy Mohd.

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: Chairman, I have questions on what Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat shared earlier. What are the expected success indicators of the funding and collaboration that were announced just now with other players like Mediacorp and SPH? In the Ministry's view, how are they performing, compared to authentic influencers for readers and viewers, such as Toggle versus YouTube, Netflix; mainstream news apps versus other alternatives; or TV content providers versus cable operators?

Is the Ministry also concerned that some companies like SPH last year had to scale back and retrench? Will that impact their role in public communications?

Lastly, how does it affect our vernacular media, especially the Tamil and Malay news providers, given that they have seen declining readership and viewership in Singapore, in particular, the younger generation?

Mr Chee Hong Tat: Chairman, I thank Mr Zaqy Mohamad for his clarifications. First, we need to understand that viewership and readership of mainstream media – Mediacorp, SPH – have not been reduced. What happened is that in the case of SPH, instead of reading the hardcopy newspapers, more of their readers are now shifting online and getting their news through mobile devices, through their iPads.

This is the same for Mediacorp where we see that people are not necessarily watching television programmes in front of a TV set, but they are watching it online through Toggle. Yesterday, Mr Vikram Nair said that that is his viewing behaviour as well; he will view it on Toggle.

Toggle has an advantage in the sense that you can do catch-up. If you are not available during the time when the programme is showing, you can do a catch-up later at your own time and convenience.

The challenge that our mainstream media companies are faced with right now is that even though the overall readership, viewership numbers are there, we need to find a more effective way of monetising these online. The advertising revenues on traditional platforms through your newspapers, TV, when you compare to the advertising revenue currently online, there is still a difference. I think that is the main challenge that the mainstream media companies are facing.

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Yesterday, Mr Ganesh Rajaram spoke about New York Times and he gave a very good example of how they managed to increase their online subscriptions and they do this not just by targeting local readers, it is a global readership base. Similarly, for us, we have to think how do we find effective ways of monetising our online reach. Both SPH and Mediacorp are looking at this using data analytics, using more targeted communications and marketing, and this is still a work-in-progress.

The other points that Mr Zaqy Mohamad mentioned are all part and parcel of the challenge that we face in the modern media environment. Consumers have more options, and content is going to be king. So, to compete, we need to make sure that we have good quality content, whether it is good quality news reports, opinion pieces, documentaries, good quality entertainment. So, good quality local content which is difficult for overseas players to replicate and where we can then have an emotional resonance and connection with Singaporeans.

The Chairman: Mr Liang Eng Hwa.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa: The kidsREAD Club is an excellent programme. It has helped many kids in the neighbourhood, inculcating in them the reading habit and the love to read at the early age. So, the Minister only made a brief mention of kidsREAD. I just want to ask whether there are plans to refresh this programme, maybe scale up with some more resources and enlarge the outreach because it, indeed, helps especially the lower-income children and families. The resource support, if you can give more from NLB, how to curate the programme and so on, I think that would be very helpful.

Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, I share Mr Liang Eng Hwa's sentiment that we would like to roll out kidsREAD to every constituency, every corner of Singapore. In fact, my kidsREAD team is now engaging all the constituencies to see whether we can open up in every Residents Committee (RC) so that it will benefit the low-income families. The resources are there. We also curate some of the best practices in other kidsREAD clubs and share it with the other kidsREAD clubs. There is always a gathering of the volunteers with the NLB team to share expertise and success stories. Our team is very small, our ambitions are very large. We are relying on whatever we have at the moment. Thus far, I am quite happy. But I certainly would like to see more kidsREAD clubs rolled out.

In terms of resources, we would explore more on what we can do. At the moment, all of the kids will get a small bag, a T-shirt. The more important thing for me is training more volunteers who can then engage the children. It is not just about reading; it is about the interaction between the volunteer and the child. So, we have been recruiting a lot of volunteers. My own experience in Kolam Ayer − we are blessed with lots of young volunteers coming forward. NLB runs a training programme for them and then, they do the outreach and do the reading programme. So, we will continue to step it up and if there are any constituencies which might be interested in opening up a kidsREAD club, we are happy to assist.

The Chairman: Mr Yee Chia Hsing.

Mr Yee Chia Hsing: Chairman, my question is directed at Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat. If I heard him correctly, 30% of households are still on the analogue TV signal. It sounds like a very big number. So, it translates to a few hundred thousand households which, come next year, will not receive the TV signal. I am quite happy to mobilise our grassroots volunteers to reach out. But I, myself, struggle to translate some of the terms because "analogue TV signal", I google translate it and the Chinese word that pops up, I do not even know how to read. So, I hope MCI can help us to push out something which is very easy for us to use to share with our grassroots to then reach out to the elderly residents.

Mr Chee Hong Tat: Mr Chairman, can I first clarify with the Member whether he is asking about translation or is he asking about the package to roll out to help our residents?

Mr Yee Chia Hsing: Because 30% of households seems like a really big number and I am very worried that, next year, they cannot receive the signal. So, please help us to reach out and help us with translation of terms. Currently, terms like "analogue TV", "digital set-top box", these are very difficult words to translate and for us to explain to residents what this thing is about.

Mr Chee Hong Tat: Chairman, I thank the Member for his clarifications. Yes, I think the short answer is MCI, IMDA will work closely with the broadcaster Mediacorp. We will also work closely with the grassroots organisations, the community organisations to make sure that we have clear, simple to understand communications that we can then roll out to help all our residents to understand how they can go through this conversion. So, do not worry, we will work closely with all our partners to make sure that this is done properly.

The Chairman: I think when the Member mentions those terms, he may wish to put on his headset and listen to the translation, and he would be able to find out what the translation is. Any other clarifications? If not, would the Member wish to withdraw the amendment?

Mr Zaqy Mohamad: Chairman, I would like to thank Minister Yaacob Ibrahim, Senior Minister of State Janil Puthucheary and Senior Minister of State Chee Hong Tat as well as all Parliamentary colleagues for making this MCI COS a fruitful one, and one that will take Singapore forward in the infocomm, media and creative sectors. I also want to thank MCI and all the Statutory Boards for all their hard work behind the scenes. So, I wish the Ministry all the best in their efforts and the journey ahead and, as the Minister shared, you just need to learn the ABCs. Mr Chairman, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

The sum of $998,162,500 for Head Q ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates.

The sum of $49,158,500 for Head Q ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.