Mr Eric Lee, Chairman of the Dyslexia Association of Singapore,

Distinguished guests,

Good evening.

Students with dyslexia form the biggest group with special educational needs in Singapore. Over the years, I have had the opportunity to meet many different groups of children with dyslexia during my community visits. Every occasion has left me with an indelible impression – not of the challenges faced by these children – but of their resilience and talents that enable them to excel in many different fields.

The inaugural picnic held on the Istana lawn in 2017 as part of my aim to make the Istana grounds more accessible to Singaporeans was for the DAS students. I had the opportunity to interact with many students who were proud to show me their beautiful pieces of artwork - a testament to the artistic talents of people with dyslexia.

In November 2020, DAS invited me to Rex House, where one of their learning centres and their training arm, the DAS Academy, are located. I learned about the comprehensive range of programmes and services provided by DAS to address educational, social, psychological and emotional needs of children with dyslexia.

During the visit, I met Ho Wei Rui, an outstanding student who was selected as the winner of the 2020 DAS Young Achiever Award, in recognition of his remarkable academic accomplishments after leaving DAS. Wei Rui used to get single-digit scores in primary school but with a never-give-up spirit, his parents’ support and interventional support by DAS, he emerged as the top student for two consecutive years at the School of Engineering at the Singapore Polytechnic. I am delighted to hear that he has earned a placement at the Singapore University of Technology and Design to pursue engineering studies after completing his National Service.

More recently in March 2022, I attended the opening of the DAS Henderson Learning Centre, set up to cater to the increasing demand for essential specialist services for students with dyslexia in the Bukit Merah vicinity. I met Maxx Ng, a confident DAS alumnus who was the master of ceremony for the event; and added finishing touches to a painting created by another DAS alumnus, Nuh Syazwan bin Muhammad Zulkarnaen. The painting will be one of the auction items tonight.

Whether it is Wei Rui, Maxx or Syazwan, it is clear that with good educational intervention, a supportive environment and an inclusive community, students with dyslexia are able to spread their wings, fly high and make meaningful contributions to the society. But they will not be able to rise above their learning challenges without our support.

This is especially so for children with dyslexia who come from lower-income families. It is crucial for DAS to get all the support they need in order to help more children with dyslexia from lower-income families access necessary programmes and services.

To advance the good cause of DAS, the President’s Challenge has selected DAS as one of the benefitting organisations to support and raise funds for. I had earlier designated the focus of President’s Challenge 2022 to be ‘Supporting Lower-Income Families’ to encourage community efforts and partnerships to accelerate the advancement of lower-income families - including those with children with dyslexia.

Many organisations and individuals have also donated generously to the DAS over the years. This has been instrumental in providing financial aid to students with dyslexia who are from low-income families. While there is MOE sponsorship for the DAS Main Literacy Programme, DAS wants to make its other programmes such as Preschool, Chinese, Maths, Science, Speech and Language Therapy, Speech and Drama and Arts accessible to low-income families and therefore seeks to raise over $2 million per year. Each of us must continue to do our part to ensure that these students could access specialised interventional support.

We have made significant advancements as a nation when it comes to empowering individuals with dyslexia. However, a lot more can be done to break new grounds. I encourage all of you to lend your support to DAS and to this worthwhile cause by donating generously tonight and beyond. Together, let us embrace dyslexia and uplift the lives of people with dyslexia.

Thank you.