President Halimah Yacob Launches "Volunteer Gardeners@Istana" Programme to Invite the Gardening Community to Beautify the Istana Grounds Together With Her

President Halimah Yacob launched a new initiative at the Istana today: the Volunteer Gardeners@Istana.

2          The Volunteer Gardeners@Istana programme will provide opportunities to the gardening community to come together and share their skills and knowledge in the maintenance of the greenery and landscapes in the Istana domain. The programme is part of President’s effort to make the Istana more accessible to the community.

3          About 50 volunteers have signed up as the first batch of Volunteer Gardeners@Istana. They come from a wide range of background, from students, to working adults, to retirees. Most of them are more than 50 years old, but the youngest volunteer (Ms Tia Backliwah) is only 9 years old. The oldest volunteer (Angie Ng) is a retired teacher who is 79 years old. 

4          A collaboration between the President’s Office and National Parks Board (NParks) (Curator’s Office), the Volunteer Gardeners@Istana programme will involve volunteers in hands-on gardening activities such as planting, pruning, harvesting of fruits, manuring, re-potting, weeding, and watering. Volunteers can expect to be involved in these gardening activities in the Istana for up to three hours per month for a start.

5          The President’s Office and NParks (Curator’s Office) welcome all gardening enthusiasts to join the Volunteer Gardeners @ Istana. Those interested can send in your enquiries to the Volunteer Coordinators for this programme:  nparks_public_affairs@nparks.gov.sg.