Phua Kai Hong

Adjunct Senior Fellow (1988 – 2000)

Dr Phua Kai Hong was approached by Professor Chan Heng Chee to take up the position of the first adjunct fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS). He conducted research, organised closed-door discussions, and supported Director Jon Quah on the administrative front. He had earlier participated actively at a session at IPS chaired by IPS Chairman Yong Pung How on the privatisation of government services, as an expert on health services.

His first project led to IPS’ Occasional Paper No.5 “Privatisation & Restructuring of Health Services in Singapore” (1991), which was controversial because it critiqued the government’s privatisation of healthcare. (The Privatisation Taskforce chaired by then Minister Tony Tan had recommended that Singapore privatise its services. The government had set up NUH Ptd Ltd, the teaching hospital of NUS.)

He discussed the importance of IPS in bringing together people from different sectors to discuss policy issues, and how these inputs were channelled to government and made an impact. He also discussed the staffing challenges faced by IPS and its position within the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, and the impact of its funding arrangement on its work.

Moving forward, he thought that IPS should involve and bring together young people who feel that they have a role to play in contributing to Singapore, while being close but not too close to the government. 


This interview was conducted on 2 Aug 2019. Click here to listen to the full interview.