Speech for Minister for Education and Second Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen at the SAF Continuing Education Awards Ceremony

Chief of Navy
Distinguished Guests,Ladies and Gentlemen of the Warrant Officer and Specialist Corps,Good evening.

It gives me great pleasure to be here today at the Continuing Education (or CE) Awards Ceremony. I would like to congratulate all our award recipients. This award is a recognition of your hard efforts in improving yourselves by building new capabilities. I am glad that family members are also here to share in your success, which would not have been possible without their support.

The 3rd Generation transformation for the SAF leverages on Singapore’s most precious asset - our people - the human resource. We believe in the power of one. An individual who is wholly committed and trained fully can have a decisive impact on outcomes. This is especially relevant in view of the wide spectrum of operations that the SAF has to undertake today. Over the past decade, SAF personnel have been employed in a multitude of air, land and sea operations in emergency disaster relief, provincial reconstruction teams and support personnel in Afghanistan. Apart from the difference in terrain, the SAF is challenged to manage sophisticated technologies and varied operational systems and platforms to fulfill its mission. It is not possible, given these complex scenarios to try to teach our serviceman everything.

We can impart the basics but once on the ground, initiative and resourcefulness are required. Our servicemen must on their own, want to upgrade their existing skill sets and technical expertise to keep up with the changes in the SAF and its operational environment. The SAF will always need capable men and women who possess the right attitudes and motivation towards self improvement. These challenges for serviceman play to our strengths, as educational levels have risen within our general population. The rising trend of increasingly qualified serviceman enabled us to restructure certain jobs within the SAF to create a new Military Domain Experts Scheme (or MDES), and further enhanced the existing career schemes for Officers and Warrant Officers. MINDEF and the SAF will provide more opportunities and invest in developing our people to their fullest potential. For example, for Warrant Officers and Specialists, the Continuous Learning Academic Study Scheme, or CLASS, was introduced in 2001 to sponsor deserving WOSpecs for certificate, diploma and advanced diploma courses in their relevant fields of study. In 2007, the scheme was expanded to include degree level courses.

Last year, CLASS was further revised to allow high-potential Specialists to pursue an undergraduate education as early as the end of their second year of service, where previously, they could only be sponsored from their sixth year of service onwards. MINDEF and the SAF will continue to expand these opportunities for self-development. A comprehensive Continuing Education framework is being formulated for our Military Experts in the new Military Domain Experts Scheme. While these schemes exist, it is up to indivduals to make full use of them. I am heartened that some of you have. Let me highlight a few examples of outstanding individuals who have benefited from CLASS.

In 2005, at the age of 30, Aircrew Specialist Flight Leader 2WO Vijaikumar was first offered a CLASS Diploma Award to pursue a diploma in Mechanical Engineering. Vijaikumar eventually graduated with a GPA of 4.0 - a perfect score - and earned himself a place on Ngee Ann Polytechnic Dean's list. Last year, Vijaikumar did the SAF proud again when he became the first overseas candidate to top the US Non-Commissioned Officers course in Hawaii. Today, at age 35, he has received a CLASS Degree Award to pursue a full-time degree course in the later part of the year. MSG Tay Thiam Kate, a Naval Combat Systems Specialist, is another excellent example of a CLASS Degree Award recipient. In 2002, he took up a CLASS Diploma Sponsorship. Subsequently, he pursued a diploma in Mechatronics at Nanyang Polytechnic and emerged as the top student of his cohort with a total of 19 distinctions.

Come August, he will be pursuing a full-time degree in Engineering at a local university of his choice. Higher qualifications and skill sets do translate to enhanced operational outcomes. For example, 2WO Lim Lek Chew, a recipient of the CLASS Degree award and Regimental Sergeant Major of a Signals Battalion, has been working to revise the operational doctrine and terms of reference for the various Signal Specialist roles so that his junior Specialists will be able to perform their tasks more effectively. By tapping on his knowledge and rich experience to improve the system and teach others, 2WO Lim is exemplary of the culture of learning and education that we are trying to perpetuate in MINDEF and the SAF.

I am pleased that a total of 74 CLASS Degree Awards were given out this year. This is more than the total number of degrees sponsorships that have been awarded since 2007. The number and quality of award recipients at today's ceremony reflects the success of our efforts to cultivate an environment for continual learning, skills upgrading and self-improvement. This is a positive sign. We look forward to extending these opportunities to many more deserving Warrant Officers and Specialists in the years to come. We believe that by developing and grooming our people, they will be better equipped to contribute to building a strong and credible SAF.

Once again, let me extend my warmest congratulations to all award recipients and your families. I wish you all the best in your future endeavours.Thank you.

More Resources

Warrant Officers and Specialists Receive Sponsorship to Further Studies