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What Forward Singapore means for you as a Person with Disabilities
Since the first Enabling Masterplan in 2007, Singapore has come a long way in building a caring and inclusive society for Person with Disabilities (PwDs). As a society, we have made much progress in ensuring that PwDs are well supported in areas such as their education, participation in sports, the use of assistive technology, as well as the design of our built environment to help them live, work and play more easily.
In our refreshed social compact, we want to empower PwDs across all stages of life. In 2022, the Government and partners in the private and people sectors came together to set out Enabling Masterplan 2030 (EMP2030). Our vision is to make Singapore a more inclusive society by strengthening lifelong learning for PwDs, and creating more inclusive environments where they can participate and live independently.
We will:
Help PwDs make full use of the opportunities available to them to grow, learn, and work alongside their peers, during and beyond schooling years.
Help PwDs to actively participate in community life and achieve gainful employment.
Design our physical and social environments to be more inclusive so that PwDs can participate fully in our community programmes and activities.
Update on Enabling Masterplan 2030
Launched in August 2022, the EMP2030 sets out the vision for Singapore to be an inclusive society in 2030, where PwDs are enabled to participate and contribute fully to our society. The Government will work towards this goal by partnering the people and private sectors to implement all recommendations of the EMP2030.
We have made progress across the EMP2030’s three Strategic Themes:
1) Strengthening support for PwDs’ lifelong learning in a fast-changing economy
The first Enabling Business Hub (EBH) will be launched by end 2023. The EBH will help more PwDs join the workforce by collaborating with employers and industry associations to showcase inclusive hiring practices and help businesses implement these practices. The EBH will also bring jobs closer to where PwDs live and match them to suitable employers in the region based on the PwDs’ skills.
2) Enabling more PwDs to live independently
The first Enabling Services Hub (ESH) was launched in August 2023. The ESH will develop a stronger ecosystem of support for PwDs in the community with its befriending services, social recreational activities, and courses. Through collaborations with community partners, such as People’s Association, SG Cares Volunteer Centres, and CaringSG Limited, PwDs and others in the community will be able to participate in activities together, nurturing a more inclusive culture in the neighbourhood.
3) Creating physical and social environments that are more inclusive to PwDs
Plans are on track to install 24/7 on-demand audible traffic signals at 325 pedestrian crossings by end 2024. These will be in 10 town centres that have higher proportions of residents with visual impairment. The enhanced crossings will enable persons with visual impairment to navigate their journeys independently.
Building legislation amendments were introduced in June 2023 to accelerate accessibility upgrading in buildings. Owners of commercial and institution buildings that lack barrier-free access will have to provide basic accessibility features whenever additional alteration works are carried out in the buildings.
The Government has collaborated with the College of Family Physicians Singapore to offer a Family Practice Skills Course for general practitioners, which equips them in caring for persons with intellectual disabilities. A Community Integrated Health Team has also been piloted in partnership with a social service agency and a specialist outreach team from the Institute of Mental Health. These multi-disciplinary teams offer home- or community-based care for persons with intellectual disabilities who have complex health needs, as well as their caregivers.
Find out more about the support for persons with disabilities at the Together, for Better website
Download reports
Download Forward SG Summary Booklet [PDF, 4.6 MB]
(In English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil)