By Asia Samachar | Singapore |
Sikh Welfare Council (SIWEC) confronts funding and manpower challenges amid a bleak economic environment even as the social service agency strives to provide services to a growing pool of beneficiaries.
These are the immediate priorities identified by the newly appointed management committee (MC) after its annual general meeting in July. The MC led by Manmohan Singh will serve for a two-year period until 2025.
As a comparatively small social service agency in Singapore, SIWEC’s operating annual budget will increase significantly, impacted by rising inflation and cost of living.
“There are three aspects to how we view our challenges. On one hand there are more charities being set up in Singapore, all competing to attract increasingly scarce charity dollars,” Manmohan told Asia Samachar.
“Each of these agencies are competing to attract the limited pool of qualified and experienced social workers, counsellors, therapists and support staff to join them. Consequently, we need to redouble our fund-raising efforts. My team will co-opt talented volunteers with appropriate skill-sets to bolster our fund-raising drives in creative ways.”
Singapore’s GDP growth is projected to moderate significantly this year, in line with the global downturn. The resulting domestic economic slowdown could be deeper than anticipated, according to a recent statement by the Singapore Monetary Authority (MAS).
Manmohan, a long time volunteer with SIWEC, was its vice chairman over the last eight years. He takes over from Harmit Singh, also a long-serving volunteer who had served as chairman since 2021. Harmit continues to serve in the present committee as member in charge of bereavement support.
Launched in 1995, SIWEC is one of the key Sikh institutions in Singapore.
Over the past two and a half decades, it has evolved from providing basic assistance to needy Sikh families to offering a wide range of social, financial, educational and mental health support services, to assist the wider Singapore community as well.
Manmohan said that SIWEC needs to continue to match social-service sector salaries in order to attract and retain qualified staff to join and to serve with the council.
“In parallel, our standards of governance and programme delivery will need to be continually strengthened,” he added.
In 2022, SIWEC saw a two-fold increase in the total number of supported families in 2021 – with a total amount of S$205,850 disbursed, according to its 2022 annual report.
Manmohan added, “In mid-2023, SIWEC is assisting even more families with financial assistance and family support than we did at the same point in 2022. We are providing more funds monthly to each family in view of the increased costs of living. Hence, we feel the urgency to increase our donor outreach and raise more funds to ensure that our support to affected families can be sustained without disruption.“
SIWEC MC FOR 2023-25:
Manmohan Singh (Chairman)
Sharanjit Kaur (Vice Chairman, Ops)
Inderpal Singh (Vice Chairman, Admin)
Jaspreet Kaur (Secretary)
Jaspal Singh Grewal (Treasurer)
Rashminder Singh Chohan (Assistant Secretary)
Amarbir Singh (Assistant Treasurer)
Members: Dr Melvinder Singh, Sukhbeer Singh, Harbahjan Singh Ghosal, Harmit Singh, Assoc Prof Iqbal Singh Sevea
SNAPSHOT OF SIWEC SERVICES
Education Support: Reflecting its belief that that education is key to progress in life for youth, SIWEC provides educational support in the form of subsidised books, tuition, bursaries and scholarships. They seek to empower young minds from vulnerable families to motivate them to strive to achieve their fullest potential.
Active Ageing & Healthcare: One of the best subscribed programmes in SIWEC are the centre-based activities for active seniors, to ensure their holistic mental and physical well-being.
For the less mobile and active seniors, fortnightly befriending visits are organised to engage those residing at home or in long-term care institutions.
Social Support Programs: A range of programs including financial assistance, family mediation, counselling and psycho-social / mental health support, information and referral – all reflect how the diverse needs of individuals and families facing challenging circumstances are met.
SIWEC operates a one stop drop-in centre and a 24/7 hotline to provide timely assistance to help-seekers, including referring clients to appropriate specialised services and agencies, whilst providing logistics, grief support and advice during Sikh family bereavements.
Community Engagement Initiatives: SIWEC organises outreach activities to bring people from different walks of life and backgrounds closer, nurturing a spirit of unity and inclusive support for the less fortunate.
Two such initiatives are the highly successful Ride2Serve fund-raising annual rides from Malaysia to Singapore.
The other is a movement called Theek Thak which promotes awareness and support to seek help for those experiencing mental health issues.
RELATED STORY:
Retired businessman set to steer Singapore’s largest Sikh welfare outfit (Asia Samachar, 24 Sept 2021)
Ride 2 Serve: Singapore cycling group gathering steam for fund raising tour of Malaysia. (Asia Samachar, 23 Ja 2023)
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