Speech by President Halimah Yacob at the Women Forum Global Meeting 2020

Distinguished guests, 

Ladies and gentlemen, 

I am pleased to join you today at the first virtual Women’s Forum Global Meeting 2020. I am glad that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, technology has enabled us to gather virtually today for the Forum. 

Singapore is honoured to have hosted the Women’s Forum Singapore in 2018 and the Women’s Forum Asia last year. The Women’s Forum is a useful platform for us to discuss topics on fostering women’s leadership in society and the economy, and ways on how we can work towards building a more diverse and inclusive society. 

In Asia-Pacific, women spend 4 to 11 times more time on housework than men do daily. According to the UN Women Asia and the Pacific, such work could count for at least US$10.8 trillion a year of the global economy. However, the effort spent on this work is often unrecognised and undervalued.

Asian economies are sitting on a powerful and underutilised engine of growth. Advancing gender equality in Asia Pacific could mean an extra US$4.5 trillion or 12 per cent of the collective annual GDP.  In the same vein, this could also bring in an additional S$26 billion to Singapore’s annual GDP over the next 10 years.  Promoting women empowerment is therefore not just an ideal of fairness, but also one that makes economic sense.

The world is a very different place today. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly  affected all social and economic activities around the world. But the silver lining is that it is an opportunity for us to explore alternate development pathways for our economic recovery.

In this time of uncertainty, it is even more important that we recognise the strength of diversity. Women can play an important part in building a resilient, sustainable and inclusive recovery in the post-COVID-19 world. In this regard, I would like to highlight three areas which Singapore is focusing on for our economic recovery, and the critical role that women can play in this journey.

First, Singapore plans to accelerate our economic transformation through Industry 4.0 pathways. We have been stepping up the use of digitalisation, automation, and artificial intelligence (AI) to make lives “easier, safer and smarter” for businesses and citizens. In order to reap the full rewards of technological advancement, we must continue to strengthen women’s participation in leadership, and in the implementation of such strategies. We need to move away from traditional mindsets that females do not prefer STEM subjects in schools and not do well in related jobs.  We should ensure that women can benefit from these same opportunities and technological tools. 

Second, we aim to help those who are working in the ailing industries transition to other industries, by upgrading and acquiring new skills, for example through the TechSkills Accelerator programme.  The COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated the inextricable link between human capital and organisational success. By encouraging our workers to reskill and upskill, our companies can continue to stay relevant and competitive.  And in so doing, it also offers us an opportunity to level the playing field between men and women in the workplace. 

Third, we need to strengthen partnerships and diversity.  This includes cooperation between the private and public sectors, as well as from across the different talent pools. We must continue to embrace diversity in women’s leadership and highlight women’s voices and perspectives. 

In this regard, the recently launched Conversations on Singapore Women’s Development is an important platform to spearhead an inclusive approach towards co-creating and co-implementing solutions on issues affecting women in Singapore. Through this initiative, the Government has been holding a series of conversations with Singaporeans from all walks of life and across various groups, including youths, men and employers. 

It provides an opportunity for all stakeholders to share their views and deepen understanding on how we can further empower Singapore women. We are also working with partners from the people and private sectors to review the recommendations and feedback from the conversations, and co-create solutions together. 

The journey towards diversity and promoting women’s leadership in organisations and the wider community is an ongoing one. I am glad that the Women’s Forum enables us to highlight these opportunities and spotlight issues to create meaningful change for women in Asia and beyond. 

In closing, let me thank the Women’s Forum for facilitating these continued conversations on women’s voices and perspectives. I hope the Forum will generate good ideas to empower women in society and the economy, and build a more inclusive and resilient future. 

I wish everyone a fruitful conference. Thank you.