Youth Seminar Series [Follow-Up Conversations on Singapore Women’s Development]

Long series of talks and discussions with community groups finally leads up to the release of the White Paper on Singapore Women’s Development on 28^th March 2022. Action plans of the White Paper are geared towards the goal of gender equality and at the same time, encourage women to freely pursue goals and careers while developing their potential. The White Paper mainly focuses on five key areas: Equal opportunities in the workplace, recognition and support for caregivers, protection against violence and harm, other support measures for women, and mindset shifts. In support of this initiative, SFCCA and Singapore Government’s feedback unit REACH organised a Youth Seminar Series: Follow-Up Conversation on Singapore Women’s Development held at the SFCCA Multi-Purpose Hall @Level 2.

Gracing the session as Guest-of-Honour was Minister of State (MOS) for Education, and Social and Family Development Ms Sun Xueling, who also attended the Conversations on Singapore Women’s Development in March last year. During the session, topics such as equality in workplace, family, and society were highlighted.

(Left to right) SFCCA Youth Committee Chairman Dr Zhou Zhaocheng, MOS Ms Sun Xueling (Photo by REACH)

SFCCA President Mr Thomas Chua, who was also present, mentioned in his speech that, “Society today promotes gender equality and to respect women should be one of our core values…. Nevertheless, there are still room of improvement in topics such as equality in workplace, family, society as well as protecting women against violence and harm.”

SFCCA President Mr Thomas Chua giving his speech (Photo by REACH)

During the sharing session, participants expressed that, men are still paid more than women today and in relation to this issue, how women can continue to improve themselves in this competitive environment. Some participants also mentioned that women hold many responsibilities in the family and the society, and the recent pandemic has aggravated problems on mental health. As such, participants were concerned about the country’s plans to address these issues.

A participant expressing her views (Photo by REACH)

Through this session, participants gained a better understanding of the issues and challenges faced by women in the society today.

Follow-Up Conversations on Singapore Women’s Development ended on a high note! (Photo by REACH)