In the Spotlight
IPS-Nathan Lectures: Ho Kwon Ping on Society and Identity
Around 560 people attended the fifth and final lecture by the 2014/15 S R Nathan Fellow for the Study of Singapore, Ho Kwon Ping. Mr Ho outlined his vision of a “cohesive diversity” which could underpin the Singapore identity, measures to improve social mobility, and his wish to see more information exchanged between the government and civil society. At the end of the lecture, IPS Director Janadas Devan announced that Mr Bilahari Kausikan, Ambassador-at-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will be the 2015/16 S R Nathan Fellow.
Features
Changing Wage Structure, Financial Distress and Asset Dynamics in the US
Professor Frank Stafford, a research consultant of IPS Social Lab, recently delivered a lecture on the impact of the protracted recession in the US on American families. Different factors had contributed to the poor getting poorer, he said, and in some cases, economic uncertainty had led individuals to delay marriage and family formation.
Discussing Poverty in Singapore
IPS Senior Research Fellow Gillian Koh took part in a panel discussion at the launch of a handbook on poverty in Singapore by the Lien Centre for Social Innovation. Panellists agreed that more research in Singapore is necessary to understand and tackle the deeper and long-term issues of poverty. In addition, besides the government, civil society has a part to play given its “soft currency” of moral suasion and active service to society.
Discussing Families in Singapore
There have been calls for Singapore to take a more inclusive approach in its family policies, and the NUS Students’ Political Association recently organised a forum to discuss families in Singapore. IPS Senior Research Fellow Mathew Mathews moderated the discussion.
Social Service Research Network 2015: Mobilising Assets to Meet Social Needs
Co-organised by IPS and the National Council of Social Service, the SSRN 2015 examined how various individuals and groups could be mobilised to address the social needs of Singaporeans. Different groups bring distinctive skill sets, expertise and value in addressing complex social problems that cannot be solved by any single provider.
Views
Tommy Koh: Reining in the Tribal Instinct
The racial and religious harmony that Singapore enjoys did not happen by chance; just a year before Independence, the country was beset by two violent racial riots. National Service and a meritocratic system are among the important steps taken to promote inter-racial understanding and ensure members of a minority are not discriminated.
Mathew Mathews: Traditional View of Family Likely to Persist in Singapore
While there has been much debate and concern over alternative family forms, most children here grow up in households with their fathers and mothers. This is due to the force of social policy — traditional notions of the family have been accorded a special status by the government, which views it as the building block of society.
Loh Soon How: Getting Fathers more Involved in Raising Children
A traditional division of labour still exists within the family, with child-rearing and household chores being regarded as the domain of women. Yet, childcare is too important to be left to one parent. Policy tweaks could be made to the maternity and paternity leave benefits scheme to encourage shared responsibility in child-rearing.
Manu Bhaskaran: An Architect of the Singapore Miracle
The late former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew’s contributions to Singapore’s economic development were as much as his political ones. It was Mr Lee who provided the basic guiding framework and uncanny foresight that resulted in breakthrough economic policies for Singapore. While there are areas where policies could have been better formulated, his overall contributions benefited Singapore immensely.
Upcoming
Corporate Associates Lunch with Mr Eddie Teo
Date: 21 April 2015
Singapore’s national problems are growing more complex as society becomes more diverse. In a lunch dialogue with IPS Corporate Associates, Mr Eddie Teo, Chairman of the Public Service Commission, will discuss the need for public servants to respond to changing times and needs.
Singapore at 50: What Lies Ahead?
Date: 2 July 2015
Singapore turns 50 in 2015. The SG50+ conference organised by IPS and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy will be an important opportunity to reflect on how Singapore has succeeded in the half-century since Independence, and how the city-state might continue to survive and thrive in the next 50 years.
IPS in the News
IPS Researchers comment on the passing of Singapore’s former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, the findings of MSF’s survey of marriages in Singapore, and tackling poverty in Singapore. To read their comments, click here
For media coverage of IPS seminars and lectures, click here
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