Speech by Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing at Care Corner Singapore’s Uplift for Life 2026 at Flower Field Hall, Gardens by the Bay on 12 November 2026

A very good evening to all of you. Thank you for joining us this evening, and more importantly, thank you for all the good work that you have done and supported Care Corner Singapore through all these 45 years.

45 years ago, Care Corner started from humble beginnings, but with a bold vision: to bring care to every corner of Singapore, especially to those who need it most. It was a simple idea – but simple does not mean easy. For 45 years, generations of staff, volunteers, donors, and partners have given their time, talent, and treasures to make this vision real. It does not mean that we are there yet. We are better than yesterday. We have achieved much, but we know there is much more that we need to do, and much further that we want to go.

So tonight, first and foremost, I want to say a big thank you to all of you. Thank you for caring. Thank you for serving. And thank you for showing, year after year, that in Singapore, nobody should have to face life’s difficulties alone.

The Challenges Ahead

As we look ahead, our challenges are increasingly difficult, both in terms of scale and complexity. For example, our population is ageing. Families are getting smaller. More families are facing their own diverse challenges, and the needs of our children and younger generations are becoming much more diverse and complex.

So we must ask ourselves, as we come together: what does success really look like for us in Care Corner, and in Singapore? Our key performance indicator – or KPI – cannot simply be how many people we have helped. Our goal instead must be how many people no longer need our help, especially as they grow up from very challenging backgrounds. Because ultimately, the best form of help is to enable someone to stand on his or her own feet, and one day perhaps to be able to help someone else.

Three Commitments We Must Keep

To get there, I think we must remember three things.

First, let us grow the vulnerable into the able. Our job is not just to solve today’s problem or challenge. It is to help our people gain or regain the confidence, skills, and support to solve tomorrow’s problems themselves. It is one thing to solve someone else’s problem. It is another thing entirely to enable them to have the confidence to solve future challenges on their own. When we achieve that, we have truly succeeded – and the person who needs help today can become someone who helps others tomorrow. That is yet another mark of success, and this is how we multiply the impact of every act of care.

Second, given the complexity and diversity of needs, we need to mobilise the able to help the less able, and the less able to help the least able. This is especially important for the aged care sector. We will never have enough professional caregivers to look after a rapidly growing number of seniors if we do not evolve our model of care. I remember we discussed this at one of the planning sessions during the Care Corner annual retreat. I remember Christian sharing with us how many seniors we need to take care of now, and how many we will need to take care of in the years to come. Even a back-of-envelope calculation reveals that, based on the existing model, we will not be able to achieve the ratios we desire – and as the number of seniors grows and the number of younger people shrinks, that ratio will tilt even further. Then we ask ourselves: how can we resolve this challenge, or how can we better meet this challenge?

This is where we can take a leaf from the Japanese experience. In Japan, the “young old” help care for the “old old” while they are still active and healthy, and the “old old” continue to be integrated as valued contributors to society, so that they are not merely care receivers. Even the “old old” can be care providers. Everyone can contribute something. Care is not just something we receive – it is something every one of us can give.

Third, we need to adopt a holistic approach to the complex problems that we are facing as a society. The challenges our families face today seldom fit neatly into one category. A financial problem may also be a health problem. A problem faced by a child may be connected to the pressures faced by the parents, grandparents, or even the extended family. And we have to be honest with ourselves that no single person, organisation, or government agency can have every capability and every speciality under one roof – nor should we try to.

Instead, each agency, organisation, and individual has its own respective strengths and competitive advantages. The real question is: how do we join up our strengths, work across agencies and organisations, and bring together the right help at the right time? We have always wanted to bring different specialisations together to provide a one-stop service to a family or individual in need, and over the years we have kept striving to achieve that model. For it to work, every agency must recognise that we do not have all the capabilities on our own, and that we need to come together.

This remains the vision we want to realise – town by town, region by region – sharing resources and pooling our strengths to deliver help to the families and individuals who need it most, as an integrated, holistic package, rather than having those who need help run from pillar to post. That in itself is a challenge for many. We are committed to furthering this vision by ensuring that Social Service Offices (SSOs) and Social Service Agencies (SSAs) work more closely together, town by town and region by region, to bring this integrated model of care to those most in need in Singapore. Because alone, none of us can reach every corner – but together, we can leave no corner untouched and no one unserved.

That, to me, is the spirit behind Care Corner.

The Next 45 Years

45 years ago, you began with a bold vision to bring care to every corner. As we begin the next 45 years, may we go one step further – not just bringing care to every corner, but building a Singapore where every corner cares for one another.

So once again, I want to say a big thank you to all the staff, volunteers, donors, partners, and friends of Care Corner for 45 years of service, heart, and hope.

And I hope that today, as we come together, the backdrop around us will also inspire us on the way forward. I invite all of you to look at the background. What do you see? And what does it have to do with Care Corner, with the social service sector, or with Singapore in general?

45 years ago, we would not be standing here. Even if you were standing in this position on a boat, you would not see what lies behind us today – because 45 years ago, the shoreline was right there. But look at what we have done in these 45 years. We dared to dream. We built a new downtown – a new canvas for the next generation to keep painting their dreams on. This is what in Singapore we are committed to doing for every generation. That is why we are able to be here today, enjoying this facility and this view.

But that is only the first part of what we promised ourselves 45 years ago. We continue to promise ourselves that every generation will have that canvas to paint their dreams on.

Beyond the hard infrastructure, this is a place that every Singaporean is proud to show their foreign friends. But it is not an exclusive place accessible only to the rich, as is the case in some countries where the nicest places are the preserve of the wealthy and the famous. We made a commitment that even the nicest places in Singapore – the best that Singapore has to offer – will always be made accessible to everyone, from every background. That is why the work of Care Corner and the social service sector is so important. We are determined not to leave anyone behind. I am not saying that we are there yet. I am saying that we are committed to that for every generation – that the best Singapore has to offer, whether in education, healthcare, or even a green space like this, must be accessible to everyone.

Conclusion

Last but not least, as the evening draws in and the backdrop grows darker, I hope you will look at the reflection in the glass – because that reflection will show the people who made all of this possible. And that is you.

Without the community, the hard infrastructure will not come alive. Without the promise to allow the next generation to paint a better dream for themselves, Singapore will not come alive. Without the promise that we will give our best to each and every one, regardless of background, Singapore will not be what it is, and will not be the land that we are proud of. And without all your effort together as a team, we will not be where we are, and we will not be able to go where we want to be.

On that note, I thank you all for your service to our community, to Singapore, and especially to those in need – so that we can truly, as Care Corner, as a community, and as a social service sector, reach every corner of Singapore, and leave no corner untouched by our care. Thank you very much.