Singapore Government Partnerships Office's Plan to Build and Maintain Respectful, Age-appropriate and Ongoing Partnerships with Children and Youths Under 18
Ministry of Culture, Community and YouthSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the Singapore Government Partnerships Office’s (SGPO) strategy for building partnerships with youths under 18, as raised by Assoc Prof Razwana Begum Abdul Rahim. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua explained that while youths can submit proposals through a digital portal, agencies are advised against entering legal contracts with minors and must obtain written parental consent. He noted that SGPO gathers views through collaborations with youth-focused organizations, grassroots initiatives, and surveys to ensure meaningful consideration of young perspectives. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua also affirmed that the government will scope further mechanisms for engagement by working with parents, schools, and community groups. These measures aim to foster respectful, age-appropriate partnerships while ensuring that all risks are fully disclosed to parents or guardians.
Transcript
5 Assoc Prof Razwana Begum Abdul Rahim asked the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth how does the new Singapore Government Partnerships Office plan to build and maintain respectful, age-appropriate and on-going partnerships with children and young people under 18 years old.
The Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (Mr Eric Chua) (for the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth): Sir, citizens, including youths with Singpass access, can submit their partnerships proposals through the Partners Portal on the Singapore Government Partnerships Office's (SGPO's) website. These proposals would then be referred accordingly to Government agencies which would work in partnership with these citizens to realise their proposals.
In the case of partnerships with citizens under 18 years of age, SGPO has given guidance to Government agencies not to enter into any legal contracts with them. SGPO has also advised agencies to obtain written consent from the citizen's parent or guardian as part of the process of taking the proposal forward and to ensure that the nature and risks of the undertaking or activity are disclosed fully to the guardian or parent when obtaining consent.
Mr Speaker: Assoc Prof Razwana.
Assoc Prof Razwana Begum Abdul Rahim (Nominated Member): I thank the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for his response. I welcome the opportunity made available to young people over the age of 18. My concern here is: how are we getting inputs from our young people?
So, my supplementary questions are, if the Ministry is not in a position to engage directly with children and young people under 18 years of age, how does the Ministry tend to ensure that the views of children and young people are known and considered by the partnerships office?
My second question is: would the Ministry consider working with children and young people under 18 years of age, parents and guardians, schools and sporting and community groups to scope possible mechanisms to ensure that the views of children and young people are known and considered by the partnerships office?
Mr Eric Chua: Sir, I thank Assoc Prof Razwana for her supplementary questions. On the first supplementary question, SGPO actually collaborates with various Government as well as non-Government entities to take in the viewpoints of all stakeholders, and that includes children and young persons as well. While direct engagement may be a challenge for certain age groups, we remain committed to create avenues for representation, including partnerships with youth-focused organisations, grassroots organisations, grassroots' initiatives and through surveys, as well as other outreach mechanisms. So, like the Member, we want to ensure that there is meaningful inclusion as well as consideration of children and young persons' views and perspectives.
My answer to the second supplementary question is broadly linked to the first one and the answer is yes, we will be working to scope possible avenues to take in the views of children and young persons.