The Digital for Life (DfL) movement aims to galvanise the community to help citizens of all ages and walks of life to embrace digital learning as a lifelong pursuit and to enrich the lives of others with digital technology. The movement promotes good digital habits as our society engages in the digital domain. With the combined effort of corporates, community groups, government and individuals, more Singaporeans will be able to enjoy a better quality of life through technology.
Recently, the President of Singapore, Halimah Yacob has announced that The Digital for Life Fund will set aside $4.8m to support 21 new ground-up community projects to bring the benefits of digital technology to 100,000 people. This year’s President’s Challenge 2021 theme is ‘Building a Digitally Inclusive Society’. With DfL movement, the President hopes to ensure that no one is left behind in the digital transformation journey.
I am glad that $4.8 million has been set aside by the DfL Fund to support a diversity of ground-up community projects ranging from educating children or youths on the importance of digital wellness, cybersecurity and digital tech skills, to empowering seniors to navigate and embrace digital as a lifestyle. With the support from our 3P partners, we can work together to bridge the digital divide, help Singaporeans embrace technology and enrich lives.
– Halimah Yacob, President, Singapore
Since the launch of the (DfL) movement that was supported by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), the Digital Ambassadors from the SG Digital Office (SDO) have been walking the ground to support those who might need a bit more hands-on help, to benefit from going digital. Today, the DfL movement continues to gather momentum in its breadth and depth.
To expand its reach to more seniors, SG Digital Office (SDO) recently announced the setting up of more than 200 roving community counters islandwide to bring its services closer to seniors, on top of the existing 47 community hubs.
The DfL Fund, which has raised $7.6m so far, serves as a channel for corporate and community contributions. All donations received go towards helping Singaporeans embrace Digital for Life, in areas such as digital wellness, tech adoption and digital inclusion. Donations also go towards providing last-mile assistance for needy beneficiaries under IMDA’s digital access schemes.
The first call for proposals attracted applications by non-profit organisations keen to drive community projects. 21 ground-up projects, ranging from educating children or youths on the importance of digital wellness, cybersecurity, and digital tech skills, to empowering seniors to navigate and embrace digital as a lifestyle, have been selected to receive funding support amounting to $4.8m in. The projects are expected to benefit at least 100,000 beneficiaries to participate in the digital future and embrace digital for life.
Singapore has been creating projects to provide digital skills, including people without a tech background. As reported by OpenGov Asia, the Minister for Communication and Information and the Minister-in-charge of Smart Nation and Cybersecurity launched the second edition of SkillsFuture Month X Smart Nation (SFM X SN). The programme aims to encourage more Singaporeans, particularly those without a tech background, to consider a career in the growing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector.
At the roadshows, visitors will be able to find out what are the in-demand digital and tech skills, get help to develop personalised training plans, and sign up for tech-related webinars after speaking with the skills and training ambassadors. The 19 webinars curated for this event offer tech skills upgrading courses for those who want a more general introduction to tech topics, as well as those looking to improve their skills in a particular area of expertise.