SINGAPORE - Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has launched a year-long exercise that will review and refresh Singapore's social compact Known as Forward Singapore. The exercise will be led by Mr Wong and the fourth generation, or 4 G, leadership team. In April, Mr Wong was appointed the head of the 4 G leadership team, paving the way for him to become the country's next prime minister.
The Government said in a separate press release that the exercise will set out a roadmap for the next decade and beyond.
A social compact is a shared understanding of how all of us in society relate to one another. It's about the respective roles and responsibilities of different groups, said Mr Wong, who is also Finance Minister.
What should the government, employers and the community do for workers and individuals? What are our obligations as individuals to one another and society at large? He added.
A social compact that is deemed fair by all segments of society will strengthen social capital and foster trust, and this is what allows us to progress together as a nation.
It is important to update our social compact to keep up with the changing context and circumstances, which is why it is so important to refresh and update our social compact. Through the Forward Singapore exercise, the 4 G leadership will partner with Singaporeans to explore how to make greater opportunities for all, as well as provide better assurance and care for Singaporeans, according to the press release.
It will look at ways to steward shared resources and foster a sense of shared ownership and responsibility across society, as well as to steward shared resources, it added.
The exercise will build on ideas gathered from other engagements in recent years, like the Conversations on Women's Development and the Singapore Together Emerging Stronger Conversations.
Singapore Together Emerging Stronger Conversations were launched by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat in June 2020 to collect ideas from Singapore residents about taking the country forward in the wake of the COVID 19 epidemic.
Heng was expected to become the next prime minister but announced in April last year that he was leaving as the leader of the 4 G team.
It will be organized along six pillars -- economy and jobs, education and lifelong learning, health and social support, home and living environment, environmental and fiscal sustainability, and the Singapore identity -- each led by 4 G leaders.