Speech by President Halimah Yacob at Mission:Unite Youth Hackathon

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good evening. I am delighted to join you today at the finale of Mission:Unite youth hackathon. Today’s event is a meaningful one, as it is the first hackathon organised to rally and empower youths to strengthen social harmony in Singapore.

Social cohesion is the bedrock of Singapore’s peace and harmony. Since independence, we believe in harnessing the strength of our diversity, instead of letting it divide us. We knew that a nation cannot prosper without a united people. We recognised early on that everyone has an important role to play in safeguarding and promoting social cohesion. As a multi-racial and multi-religious society, Singapore makes a conscious effort in building bridges between the different communities – from legislation and national policies, to practices and activities on the ground.

As individuals, we all play a part too in building social cohesion.  The experience of living in a multi-racial and multi-religious society with friends, neighbours and colleagues from different communities, have helped us develop a better understanding and appreciation of each other that has enabled us to live peacefully together.  This is an essential component of social cohesion – not just state legislated laws and policies - but how norms developed by society itself shape the speech, conduct and actions that individuals adopt in their engagement with each other that contribute to the common good.

In the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has once again reminded us of how a cohesive society can help us overcome challenges together. We hear of many inspiring stories of different community groups stepping forth to help others, regardless of race, religion or nationality. Not only has this helped us better manage the crisis, but it has also strengthened the mutual trust that anchors our society. It shows that we have built a strong foundation for social cohesion in Singapore amidst this challenging time.

Youths can also take the lead in making a positive impact on our society. Today’s hackathon is a timely one in bringing youths together to discuss ideas and develop community projects, to foster social harmony and strengthen our bonds as one people. It encourages all participants to draw from your diverse social networks and bring together different perspectives to solve key challenges faced by our communities. 

I am glad that the first Mission:Unite hackathon has attracted more than 200 youths. Your enthusiasm and creativity give me confidence that our youths are committed to forging a cohesive society. Your wide range of projects can help to strengthen friendships across people of diverse backgrounds, promote understanding of each other’s cultural and religious practices, and create safe spaces for people to engage in civic discourse. I hope you can continue the good work and be an inspiration to other like-minded participants by sharing your ideas and experiences with one another beyond this hackathon. This will inspire you to look at issues that affect you on a daily basis.

Today’s hackathon is one of many ways to encourage and support ideas that strengthen social cohesion. It builds on our collective desire of common good, and leverages our diversity to build a shared future together. We can only do that if we stay united as one people. There is much we can learn from each other’s experiences and perspectives, not only here in Singapore but also around the world. This is a common goal across countries in wanting to build more cohesive societies.

These were the same objectives of the inaugural International Conference on Cohesive Societies (ICCS), which Singapore hosted last year. The ICCS provided opportunities for diverse perspectives to be heard and shared, and networks to be forged across communities. We are glad to have seen an overwhelming support for the inaugural Conference, which was well-attended by close to 1,000 delegates from nearly 40 countries.

In this regard, I am pleased to announce that Singapore will be organising the second edition of ICCS in two years’ time. The next ICCS will focus on gathering best practices as well as supporting participants with the tools and networks to advance social cohesion. We want to continue using this platform to bring together religious and community leaders from around the world, as well as practitioners and policymakers to foster discussions on building stronger and more cohesive societies. Strength from diversity can only grow from dialogue and mutual understanding. So let us continue to share more ideas, inspiration and partnerships, so that when we meet at the ICCS in two years’ time, we can exchange ideas and experiences with participants from other countries.

Let me end by congratulating all the winners and finalists of this year’s hackathon. I would also like to thank the various partners including National Youth Council, OnePeople.SG, Inter-Religious Organisation, Singapore International Foundation, and *SCAPE for supporting this initiative.

I hope our youths have gained valuable learning experiences from the hackathon, and I look forward to seeing your ideas being put into action.  Thank you.