2024年7月2日，新加坡總理黃循財出席由新加坡管理大學（Singapore Management University）與新加坡政策研究所和學生組織 Varsity Voices 聯合舉辦的青年展開對話。

以下內容為新加坡眼根據國會英文資料翻譯整理：

尊敬的來賓 女士們、先生們 同學們：

我很高興能夠與大家共聚一堂參加今晚的對話會。

很高興有機會與來自我們的ITE、理工學院和大學的年輕學生們見面。同時感謝新加坡政策研究所、學生組織 Varsity Voices和SMU舉辦這個活動。

我回想起自己在你們這個年紀，也就是學生們的年齡時，那時的我並不像現在坐在前排的你們。那是90年代初期，網際網路還很新鮮，我們沒有智慧型手機，更沒有社交媒體。

那時的世界與現在截然不同，中國的經濟崛起剛剛開始形成。柏林圍牆剛剛倒塌，蘇聯解體。美國成為世界上唯一的超級大國。此後，我們享受到了和平與穩定，特別是在亞太地區，我們見證了全球化和貿易的蓬勃發展。

那時的新加坡也大不相同。我知道有時人們會傾向於美化過去；我們常常認為「過去的好日子」總是更美好。你們可能經常從父母那裡聽到這種說法。但那個時代並非一帆風順。

當時的新加坡公共運輸系統還沒有現在這麼發達。那時候，我們只有兩條地鐵線路——東西線和南北線，也就是現在的綠線和紅線。你看看現在的地鐵地圖，線路連接得如此廣泛。

那時的娛樂活動選擇並不多。事實上，新加坡曾被評論家稱為「文化沙漠」。這種批評有一定道理，因為我記得我的和朋友們通常出門都是去烏節路看電影。

在藝術和文化方面的選擇非常有限。我們沒有濱海藝術中心、濱海灣、濱海花園或體育城。

過去的30年里發生了很多變化。

這段時間裡雖然經歷了起伏不定的階段，但總體來說，新加坡的生活質量有了顯著提升。我們的居住環境得到了極大的改善——現在我們擁有美麗的組屋區，更多的綠色空間和連通的公園。此外，公共運輸系統變得更加便捷。經濟方面，新加坡變得更強大、更具多樣性，為人們提供了更多機會，包括高薪的工作。生活也變得更加充滿活力——我們現在有更多的娛樂選擇，以及豐富的體育、藝術和音樂活動。

換句話說，在我這一代人，即那些出生於70年代初期的人中，大約55%選擇繼續接受高等教育。而如今，幾乎每個人都有機會繼續接受高等教育，無論是在大學、理工學院還是ITE。在那個時候，一個年輕的大學畢業生，比如像我在90年代初期，起薪大約是3000新元或更少。現在則大約是5000新元。這些都是隨著時間推移，事物確實得到了明顯改善的例子。

毫無疑問，一路上也有不少挑戰。新加坡幾十年來經歷的變革有時會讓社會某些群體感到迷失和不安。我們也經歷了自己的一些挑戰。1997年的亞洲金融危機，2004年的SARS疫情，以及2008年的全球金融危機。但每一次，我們都團結一致，度過了風雨，變得更加堅強。

展望未來的20至30年，我們還可以期待什麼？

我認為預測未來的發展是非常困難的，沒有人能確切地知道未來會發生什麼。但我毫不懷疑，在未來的歲月和幾十年中，我們將面臨一些挑戰。

首先，新加坡將不得不在更加複雜的外部環境中運作。全球化和自由貿易的黃金時代已經結束，我們不會回到過去的狀況。現在我們處於一個新的競爭時代，特別是在主要大國，尤其是美中之間。世界變得更加危險和分裂，各國共同解決全球問題將變得更加艱難。

在應對像疫情這樣的重大問題時，我們可以看到一個問題。在疫情高峰期間，每個人都說，讓我們共同努力改善全球監測系統，這樣如果病毒再次出現，我們就能及時發現並採取適當的防範和措施。那時候是這樣說的，但是經過這麼多年的討論，遺憾的是，並沒有多少進展在加強全球監測系統以防範未來疫情方面。

談到氣候變化問題，這很可能是人類在我們這個時代需要面對的最大問題。人們談論著希望減少排放。各國做出各種承諾，但不幸的是，我們確實看到許多國家在這些承諾上出現了倒退。特別是來自大排放國家，這意味著排放量逐年上升，全球溫度繼續上升，我們正走向氣候災難。就氣候而言，情況看起來可能會在好轉之前惡化。

再來看另一個挑戰，即快速技術進步的挑戰。我認為我們正處在又一個重大技術進步和突破的邊緣。當我和你們一樣年輕時，網際網路剛剛誕生，全球網絡（World Wide Web）是一種新奇的事物。這種新奇從90年代初開始引發了跨越業務的巨大突破和轉型。在90年代初期，沒有人能預測網際網路的應用會有多廣泛。最終，它推動了電子商務、企業變革、社交媒體平台，現在又正在創造物聯網。帶來了如此多的變革。

今天，新的技術是人工智慧‍（Artificial Intelligence，簡稱AI）‍。我們正見證AI的曙光，我相信在未來的20、30年里，AI將對社會產生比我年代網際網路更大的影響。目前，我們聽到的關於AI的大多是大型語言模型（Large Language Models ，簡稱LLMs），如ChatGPT。但AI的潛在用途遠遠超出了ChatGPT。它將改變我們創新的方式，我們工作的方式，我們學習和教育的方式，以及我們如何協作和相互交流的方式。它將改變每個人的一切。而你們將在你們的一生中經歷這些變化。

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這些是塑造我們運行環境的強大力量。我們對它們沒有太多控制力，它們將不可避免地發生。有時候，從我們這個小島的視角看，這些巨大的變化可能會讓人感到不知所措。但我要說：不要害怕！我們在新加坡有能力適應和調整到新的環境中，生存並且茁壯成長，哪怕這是我們作為一個國家過去60年來一直在做的事情。而且我們可以繼續在未來做到這一點。

哪些策略來推動新加坡在這個新階段向前發展呢？讓我來分享我的想法。

首先，我們正在採取積極步驟更新我們的社會契約，增強國家的團結和一致性。

這就是我們啟動「新加坡攜手前進」（Forward Singapore）運動的原因。

擁有更新的社會契約意味著什麼？首先，政府將更多地為新加坡人在生活的每個階段提供保障。

這意味著，我們希望新加坡人能夠放心，他們可以期待到負擔得起且高質量的住房，優良的醫療系統，以及培養多元人才的教育體系等等。我們將建立更強大的安全網，幫助新加坡人從挫折中重新站起來。我們希望建立一個制度，讓每個人都不必在不確定的世界中獨自應對；相反，我們重申對彼此的承諾，保證彼此支持。

政府將採取更多措施來實現這一目標。但這項工作不能僅靠政府完成，因為個人也必須對自己和家人負責。舉例來說，政府在醫療保健方面可以做更多事情。事實上，我們正在做更多。我們希望增加在預防健康方面的支出，即所謂的「更健康新加坡」，通過積極的生活方式、飲食等方式，賦予人們更好地照顧自己健康的能力和機會。但新加坡人也必須儘自己的責任，保持積極的生活方式和健康習慣。我們不能替代你們，我們可以推廣和投資於預防保健，我們可以降低健康篩查的費用，但你們也必須承擔自己的責任。

再舉一個例子，政府可以增加在技能提升和發展上的支出，我們將會這樣做。我們將降低課程費用，使課程更加有效、更易於獲取，但新加坡人也必須自願前來接受培訓，並持續提升和改善自己的技能。

再舉一個例子，政府希望在提升低收入工人工資方面做更多工作。我們希望看到他們的福祉改善，希望看到他們能夠靠自己賺取更多收入。但工人獲得更高薪資也意味著成本必須上漲。作為新加坡人，我們都必須準備好為我們同胞提供的服務付出更多，尊重他們所從事的重要工作。

這就是為什麼我們稱之為社會契約——它關乎社會中每個人的角色和我們彼此之間的責任。我們希望達成一個公平和包容的契約，適用於社會的所有群體——這樣一個契約將增強社會資本，培養信任，使我們能夠作為一個民族共同進步。

第二，我們將為所有新加坡人提供更多機會去規劃自己的道路——追求多樣化的願望和自己對成功的定義。

你們與我和我的同齡人相比的時候，將會擁有更多的機會。

那時候，情況相對簡單，人們主要關注幾個關鍵職業，認為那些是成功的職業選擇，比如醫生、律師、會計師、教師或工程師。

如今，有更多的選擇和職業發展路徑。這反映了我們今天更為多樣化的經濟。例如，我們在航空航天、生物技術和製藥領域擁有領先的全球公司。他們在這裡設立了業務，並為新加坡人提供了優質的工作機會。在專業服務領域，你們有許多機會可以追求，在金融、信息技術、市場營銷和傳播等領域。

此外，態度和心態也在發生變化。

例如，在醫療保健領域，我們不再僅僅關注醫生。我們也認識到其他人的經驗和專長——護士、物理治療師、職業治療師、放射技師——他們都全心全意地支持每位患者的康復。

我看到越來越多的年輕人選擇成為老闆，因為創業環境變得更加活躍，新加坡也有更多的風險投資家。越來越多的人開始接受非傳統的職業路徑，比如全職運動員，甚至是數字內容創作者。

總之，現在有更多的機會和可能性供你去探索，我鼓勵你們充分利用這些機會。擁有選擇是件好事，但有時選擇過多可能會讓人感到不知所措。在我年輕的時候，情況相對簡單，我的父母會說，如果你能讀書，就儘可能多讀；如果你不能讀書，找份工作。不管是什麼工作，只要能掙錢，回家就行。這就是當時非常簡單的思維方式。

我對所有人的建議是，從內心開始。不要比較，不要問朋友在做什麼。我們每個人都有自己的能力和優勢，沒有必要與他人比較，試圖適應我們本不適合的框框。相反，跟隨自己的才能，努力發揮自己的全部潛力。

記住，你的才能並非一蹴而就，不可能一夜之間變成專家。僅僅因為你從工藝教育學院、理工學院或大學畢業，並不意味著你對所學的一切都了如指掌。

學習必須持續地進行。在這個階段，你可能甚至不確定自己的優勢在哪裡。這確實需要你獲得一些工作經驗，開始做事情。隨著時間的推移，培養和發展你的能力和優勢。這是一段旅程。

在這個過程中，你很可能會面對一些拒絕和挫折。但如果你努力培養自己的美德，並在你所做的事情上做到卓越，你將會看到突破。

這不僅僅是抽象的談論。我們在世界各地看到了這樣的實例。看看疫情期間發生了什麼。在疫情期間，我最喜歡的一個故事是關於一位科學家，在mRNA疫苗方面取得了突破。因為疫情，我們現在都知道了mRNA的情況。mRNA的先驅是一位名叫卡塔琳·考里科醫生的研究員。

但在疫情之前的20年里，她的研究並沒有得到認可。她的資金申請被拒絕。事實上，她的大學降低了她的職位，削減了她的工資，並沒有給予她終身教職。但她繼續做她的工作，因為她喜歡它，因為她對它充滿激情。她並不在乎地位或獎勵。她覺得科學很重要，她喜歡科學，她想要堅持研究。由於她對工作的奉獻，她最終在全球拯救了無數人的生命，現在是諾貝爾獎得主。

你可能認為這是個例外。但實際上，這正是我們生活中都要經歷的。在每一個成功的故事背後，通常都會有失敗。你必須為生活中的低谷和挫折做好準備。

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有時候，你會覺得自己的工作沒有得到足夠的賞識或認可。但恰恰是在這些時刻，你必須專注於做好自己的工作。你必須繼續努力工作，保持高水準的卓越表現。如果你能做到這一點，你將會學到更多，變得更加優秀，並最終你的才能將會被認可，新的機會將會出現，讓你找到蓬勃發展和成功的新可能性。

因此，我鼓勵你們所有人都擁抱這種學習和追求卓越的態度——不僅僅是在我們上學時，也不僅僅是在畢業後，而是貫穿我們的一生。

政府將會做更多來支持你們。這就是為什麼我們在技能創前程上投入了大量資源，為你們提供更多機會來提升技能，讓你們在所從事的工作中保持新鮮感並變得更加優秀。當你們年紀漸長，甚至到了40多歲或者像我這樣50多歲時，你們依然可以獲得新的技能注入，學到一些實質性的東西，也很可能在職業生涯中迎來第二春。

第三，我們都必須儘自己的一份力，為建設一個更美好的社會做出貢獻。

我們不希望有一個每個人只顧自己、適者生存、弱者苦難的社會。事實上，我們所有人都不希望在新加坡看到這種情況發生。在「新加坡攜手前進」運動期間，許多人告訴我們，他們希望新加坡是一個包容的社會，每個人都有歸屬感，福利能夠與所有人分享，而不僅僅是少數人獨享。令人振奮的是，許多人都願意儘自己的一份力，為這個更美好的新加坡做出貢獻。

在疫情期間，我們確實看到了這一點。我們看到許多新加坡人自發地站出來提供幫助，無論是收集必需品幫助有需要的家庭，還是關心孤立的老年人。最近，在新加坡發生油污事件時，許多志願者也站了出來，參與海灘巡邏和清理工作。

政府將會為你們創造更多機會，讓你們為共同利益貢獻力量，塑造我們社會的品格和氛圍。我們今年早些時候成立了新加坡政府合作辦公室，旨在讓新加坡人更容易與政府合作。

我們正在建立更多平台，彙集公民、社區團體和企業，共同開發和實施解決當今重要問題的方案，無論是提升低薪工人待遇，還是增強新加坡的食品安全能力。最近，我們設立了青年小組，討論年輕人關心的議題。我們建立了四個這樣的小組，涵蓋財務安全和可持續性等問題。這些青年小組的成員投入了大量時間和精力來了解問題，並將有機會在八月的首屆青年政策論壇上提出改進建議。也許你沒有參與這一輪青年小組，但將來會有更多機會，我們歡迎更多年輕人加入進來。

結論：

總結起來，我開始談論世界的變化，以及我們如何像過去新加坡所做的那樣適應並蓬勃發展。在過去的六十年里，我們確實走了很長的路。但新加坡始終是劣勢群體。我們永遠是一個小紅點，沒有後路和天然資源。如果新加坡出現問題，沒有人會來拯救我們。最終，決定一切的還是我們，新加坡人，取決於我們自己的智慧和創造力，為自己的未來奮鬥，並決定我們自己的命運。

因此，無論我們之間有何不同，我們必須始終團結一致作為一個民族。這正是我們共同度過疫情的方式。我們需要的正是這種精神——勇敢思考，放眼遠方，為我們的前進道路制定計劃。

你們每一個人都是新加坡故事下一章的作者。我相信我們的美好時光在前方等待著我們。讓我們一同憧憬新的可能性，共同開闢新的道路，引領新加坡走向更加光明的未來。

謝謝大家。

以下是英文質詢內容：

Distinguished guests

Ladies and gentlemen

Students

I am very happy to join all of you for this evening’s dialogue session.

It is very good to have the chance to meet with young students from our ITEs, polytechnics and universities.

And I thank IPS, Varsity Voices, and SMU for making this event happen.

I am about 30 years older than most of you. I may not look it but I am. I reflected on what life was like when I was around your age, meaning the students』 age, not the ones seated in the front row. Life in the early 90s, at that time – the internet was still very new, we did not have smart phones, we certainly did not have social media.

It was a different world. China’s economic rise was only beginning to take shape at that time. The Berlin Wall had just fallen, and the Soviet Union had dissolved. America had emerged as the sole super-power of the world. And thereafter, we enjoyed peace and stability, especially in the Asia Pacific, we saw the flourishing of globalisation and trade.

Singapore was also very different at that time. I know sometimes there is a tendency to romanticise the past; we think that the 「good old days」 are always better. You probably hear it a lot from your parents. But things were not all that rosy back then either.

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At that time in Singapore, our public transport system, for example, was not as connected as it is now. We only had two MRT lines – East-West and North-South, what we now call the green and red lines. And you look at our MRT map, it is so interconnected now.

There was not so much to do for recreation back then. In fact, Singapore was called a 「cultural desert」 by critics. There is something to be said about the criticism because all I can remember about going out with friends was to Orchard Road, to watch a movie, pretty much that.

Our arts and cultural offerings were very limited. We did not have the Esplanade, Marina Bay, Gardens by the Bay, or the Sports Hub.

Much has changed in the last 30 years.

There have been ups and downs along the way. But on the whole, our lives have gotten better in Singapore. Our living environment has improved significantly – we have beautiful HDB estates, we have more green spaces and park connectors, we have a much connected and convenient public transport system. Our economy is stronger, it is more diversified and there are many more opportunities including more good-paying jobs for Singaporeans. Life in Singapore has become more vibrant – we now have more recreational options, as well as sports, arts, and music events.

Put another way, in my cohort – those of us born in the early 70s – about 55% of us went on to post-secondary education. Nowadays, almost everyone in the cohort has the chance to pursue their post-secondary education – be it at university, polytechnic or ITE. A young university graduate at that time; someone like me in the early 90s would have started out earning around $3,000 or less. Now it is about $5,000. These are how things have concretely improved over time.

No doubt there were challenges along the way. The changes that Singapore went through over the decades were sometimes disorientating and disruptive to certain segments of society. We also went through our share of challenges. We had the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997, SARS in 2004, and the global financial crisis of 2008. But each time, we rallied together, we weathered through the storms and emerged stronger.

What can we expect now – looking ahead, over the next 20-30 years? I think it is impossible to predict what will happen. No one can tell you this will certainly take place. But I have no doubt that we will face our share of challenges in the years and decades ahead. For one, Singapore will have to operate in a more difficult external environment. The previous era of globalisation and free trade is over. We are not going to go back to that again. We now see a new era of competition, especially between the major powers and between US and China. The world is becoming more dangerous and fragmented. It will be increasingly difficult for countries to come together to solve global problems.

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Take the problem of tackling a big issue like the pandemic. During the height of the pandemic, everyone said – let us work together to improve global surveillance systems so that if a virus were to start up again, we would know and we would get better at detecting it quickly and we can take appropriate safeguards and measures. That was at that time, now after so many years of talking and discussing, unfortunately, not much progress has been in strengthening the global surveillance system to guard against a future pandemic.

Take the problem of climate change, which is likely to be the biggest problem humanity has to confront in our time. People talk about wanting to cut back emissions. Countries make all sorts of commitments but unfortunately, we do see a backsliding in many of these commitments around the world. Particularly from the large emitters, which means, year-by-year emissions continuing to rise, global temperatures continuing to rise, and we are all headed towards a climate disaster. On the climate, it looks like things might very well get worse before it gets better.

Take another challenge, which is that of rapid technological advancement. I think we are on the cusp of yet another major wave of technological advancements and breakthroughs. When I was your age, the big thing was the internet that had just come into being. The World Wide Web, it was a novelty. That novelty that started in the early 90s led to huge breakthroughs and transformations across businesses. No one could have predicted in the early 90s what the internet could be used for. In the end, it led to e-commerce, business transformation, social media platforms and it is now creating the Internet of Things. So many transformations.

Today, what is new – AI. We are seeing the dawn of AI which I am sure in the next 20-30 years, will have an even bigger impact compared to the internet during my time. For now, everything we hear about AI is Large Language Models (LLMs), ChatGPT. But the potential use cases for AI goes well beyond ChatGPT. It will change how we innovate, how we work, how we learn and teach, how we collaborate and interact with one another. It will change everything for everyone. And you will experience these changes in your lifetime.

These are big and powerful forces shaping our operating environment. We do not have much control over them, they will happen. And sometimes, looking from our perspective in this tiny island: it can be easy to get overwhelmed by these big changes. But I say: never fear! We in Singapore have the ability to adapt and adjust to a new environment, and to survive and thrive in this dangerous world. In fact, this is what we have been doing this last 60 years as a nation. And we can continue to do so going forward.

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What are some of our strategies to take Singapore Forward in this new phase? Let me share some of my thoughts.

First, we are taking active steps to refresh our social compact, and to strengthen our sense of solidarity and unity as a country.

That is why we embarked on the Forward Singapore exercise.

What does it mean to have a refreshed social compact? For one, the Government will do more to provide assurances for Singaporeans at every stage of life.

Which means, we want Singaporeans to feel assured that they can look forward to affordable and quality homes, a good healthcare system, and an education system that nurtures diverse talents, amongst others. We will have stronger safety nets to help Singaporeans bounce back from setbacks. And we want to have in place a system where no one feels that they have to fend for themselves in an uncertain world; instead, we reaffirm our commitment to one another, and that we will always have each other’s backs.

The Government will do more to achieve this. But this work cannot be done by the Government alone because individuals must also take responsibility for themselves and their families. To illustrate, the Government can do more on healthcare. In fact, we are doing more. We want to spend more on preventive health, which is called Healthier SG to give people the power and ability to take better care of their own health through active lifestyle, diets and so on. But Singaporeans must do your part too, to stay active and maintain healthy lifestyles. We cannot do that for you, we can promote, invest in preventive care, we can make health screenings cheaper but you have to do your part as well.

Another example, the Government can spend more on skills upgrading and development, and we will. We will make courses cheaper, we will make courses more effective, more easy to access but Singaporeans must also step forward to go for training and to continually pick up and improve your skills.

Another example, the Government will want to do more to uplift the wages of lower-income workers. We want to see them improving their wellbeing, we want to see them earning more in their own right. But higher pay for workers means cost must also go up. All of us must, as Singaporeans, must also be prepared to pay more for the services delivered by our fellow citizens, and respect them for the essential work that they do.

That is why we call this a social compact – it is about the roles all of us in society play, and the responsibilities we owe to each other. We want a compact that is fair and inclusive for all segments of society – one which will strengthen social capital and foster trust, and enable us to progress together as one people.

Second, we will provide more opportunities for all Singaporeans to chart your own paths – to pursue your diverse aspirations, and your own definitions of success.

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All of you will have access to far more opportunities than my peers and I had when we were your age.

Back then, it was quite simple, people just focussed on a few key professions, as what they deemed to be successful careers. You be a doctor, lawyer, accountant, teacher or engineer.

These days there are many more options, and career pathways. And that reflects our more diversified economy today. For example, we have leading global companies in aerospace, biotech and pharmaceuticals. They have set up shop here and offer good jobs for Singaporeans. In professional services, there are many opportunities for you to pursue, in Finance, IT, marketing and communications, amongst others.

Moreover, attitudes and mindsets are shifting.

For example, in healthcare, we no longer focus solely on the doctors. We also recognise the experience and expertise of many others – nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, radiographers – all who put in their hearts and souls in supporting every patient's recovery.

I see many more young people becoming their own bosses because the start-up scene has become more vibrant and there is a wider range of venture capitalists based here in Singapore. More and more are embracing less conventional paths, like being full-time athletes, or even digital content creators.

The bottom line is that there are many more opportunities and possibilities for you to explore and I will encourage you to make full use of them. It is good to have options but sometimes too much choice can be overwhelming. It was quite simple during my time, my parents would say if you can study, go as far as you can, if you cannot study, find a job. I do not care what the job is, just get to work and bring some money back home. That was the very simple mindset.

Nowadays, you have many more opportunities, and you start worrying if you are making the right choice. You start comparing with your what your friends are doing, and it may lead to a certain paralysis and a certain level of stress and anxiety. How do you decide what path to take?

My suggestion for all of you, is to start from within. Do not compare, do not ask what your friends are doing. We all have our own abilities and strengths, there is no need to compare with others to squeeze into boxes we were not meant to fit. Instead, follow your own talents and strive to reach your own full potential.

Remember that your talents do not exist fully formed. You cannot possibly become an instant expert. Just because you graduate from ITE, polytechnic or university, does not make you knowledgeable about whatever you studied.

Learning must continue. At this stage, you may not even be sure what your strengths are. It really requires you to gain some work experience, start doing things. And over time, cultivate and nurture your abilities and strengths. It is a journey.

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Along the way, you will very likely face some rejections and setbacks. But if you work hard to cultivate our own virtues and excel at what you do, you will see breakthroughs.

This is not just talking in abstract. We see real-life examples of this around the world. Look at what happened during COVID. One of my favourite stories during COVID was about this scientist who had made a breakthrough in mRNA vaccines. We know all about mRNA because of COVID. The pioneer of mRNA is a researcher called Dr Katalin Kariko.

But for 20 years prior to Covid, her research was not recognised. Her funding applications were rejected. In fact, her university demoted her, cut her pay, and did not grant her tenure. But she continued doing her work because she enjoyed it, because she had passion in it. She cared little about status or rewards. She felt the science was good, she enjoyed the science and she wanted to persevere in her research. Because of her dedication to her work, she ended up saving countless lives globally and she now a Nobel Prize Laureate.

You may think this is an exception. But this is really what all of us have to go through in life. Behind every success story, there will often by failures. You have to be prepared for dry spells and setbacks in your lives.

Sometimes, maybe even many times, it will feel like the work you do is not being appreciated or recognised sufficiently. But it is precisely in those moments that you must focus on doing your work well. You must keep on working hard and maintaining high standards of excellence. If you do that, you will only learn and get better at what you do, and eventually your talents will be recognised, other doors will open, and you find new possibilities to flourish and thrive.

So I encourage all of you to embrace this attitude of learning and excelling at whatever you do – not just when we are in school, not just after we graduate, but throughout our lives.

The Government will do more to support you. That is why we are investing significantly in SkillsFuture, in providing you more opportunities to upgrade your skills to be fresh and get better at what you are doing. As you get older, and even when you are in your 40s or around my age in your 50s, you will be able to get a fresh injection of skills, learn something solid and you might very well get a second wind in your careers.

Third, we must all do our part to contribute to a better society.

We do not want a society where everyone is for themselves, where the fittest survives and the weak suffer what they must. Indeed, all of us do not want that to happen in Singapore. During the Forward Singapore exercise, many told us that they want a Singapore that is inclusive, where everyone belongs, where benefits are shared with all, and not just held by a few. What is heartening to see is that many of us do want to do our part to contribute to this better Singapore.

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We certainly saw this during Covid. We saw so many Singaporeans stepping forward, to help on their own accord – be it to collect essential supplies to help families in need, or to reach out to isolated seniors. More recently, when the oil spill happened in Singapore – many volunteers came forward, and helped out with the beach patrols and clean ups.

As far as the Government is concerned, we will create more opportunities for you to contribute to the common good, and to shape the character and tone of our society. We set up the Singapore Government Partnerships Office earlier this year, to make it easier for Singaporeans to partner with the Government.

We are creating more platforms that bring together citizens, community groups and businesses to develop and implement solutions on significant issues of the day, be it uplifting lower wage workers, or making Singapore more food resilient. More recently, we have setup youth panels to deliberate over issues of concern to young people. We have setup four such panels, that cover issues like financial security and sustainability. The youths on the panels that come together put in tremendous time and effort to understand the issues, and they will be given a chance to present their recommendations for improvements at an inaugural Youth Policy Forum in August. You may not have had the chance to participate in this round of Youth Panels, but there will be subsequent editions, and we welcome more of you to join in.

Conclusion

To conclude, I started by talking about how the world is changing, and how we have to adapt and thrive, as we have done many times before in the past in Singapore. We have certainly come a long way in these last 60 years. But Singapore has been and will always be the underdog. We will always be a little red dot, with no hinterland and no natural resources. If Singapore falters, there is no one coming to our rescue. In the end, it is really up to us, Singaporeans, it is up to our own wits and ingenuity, to fend for ourselves and determine our own fate and to chart our own future.

That is why, whatever our differences, we must always stand together as one people. That is how we saw through the Covid pandemic together. That is the same spirit we need – to think boldly, to think far, and to chart our way forward.

All of you are the authors of the next chapter of our Singapore Story. I am confident that our best days are ahead of us. Let us imagine the exciting new possibilities for our next bound. Let us work together to blaze new paths and take Singapore forward into a brighter future.

Thank you.

KS丨編輯

AY、HQ丨編審

新加坡總理公署丨來源