Launch of Forward Singapore: Partnering Singaporeans To Refresh Our Social Compact

1. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong launched Forward Singapore at a Labour Movement Conversation organised by the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) earlier today. Forward Singapore is a collective effort led by DPM Wong and his 4G leadership team, working in partnership with Singaporeans, to review and refresh Singapore’s social compact and set out a roadmap for the next decade and beyond. 

Our Social Compact

2. Singapore’s social compact is a shared understanding of how we relate to each other. It is an expression of our shared values and norms, and determines the roles and responsibilities of the Government, the community, businesses, and individuals in society. A social compact that all of society accepts as fair strengthens social capital, fosters trust, and enables us to progress together to build a better future.

3. The world around us and our own society are changing, presenting new challenges and opportunities. External developments such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war have altered the geopolitical reality that we live in. Domestically, we must manage the impact of trends such as an ageing population and slowing social mobility. These circumstances make it timely for us to re-examine our social compact and so guide our next phase of nation-building.  

Forward Singapore Exercise

4. Through Forward Singapore, the 4G leadership will partner Singaporeans to explore how we can ensure greater opportunities for all; provide better assurance and care for Singaporeans in a volatile world; steward our shared resources; and foster a greater sense of shared ownership and responsibility across society. The exercise will be organised along six pillars, each headed by 4G leaders*:

a. Empower: Economy and Jobs
b. Equip: Education and Lifelong Learning
c. Care: Health and Social Support
d. Build: Home and Living Environment
e. Steward: Environmental and Fiscal Sustainability
f. Unite: Singapore Identity

*Details on the pillars and the 4G leaders overseeing them can be found in Annex A.

5. The pillar leads will engage Singaporeans to understand their concerns, listen to their feedback, and explore the trade-offs involved in various policy shifts. In the process, they will review and update policies, and establish new partnerships with stakeholders to implement changes. 

6. Forward Singapore will build on the ideas gathered and partnerships built across various engagements in recent years, including the Singapore Together Emerging Stronger Conversations, the Conversations on Women’s Development, and the Long-Term Plan Review, among others. 

7. The Forward Singapore exercise will span a year and conclude with the publication of a report in mid-2023. This report will set out policy recommendations to underpin our refreshed social compact, and highlight how different segments of society can be more involved in contributing towards our shared goals.  

8. We encourage all Singaporeans to step forward to offer your views and ideas, and work with the Government and the rest of society to turn our shared vision into reality. By partnering one another through Forward Singapore, we will build a fairer and more inclusive society, with opportunities for all. To view details of upcoming engagements, please visit www.forwardsingapore.sg.