Singapore, 16 February, 2019 —
Mr Baey Yam Keng, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Culture, Community and Youth,
Mr Ng Yew Kang, President of Genealogy Society Singapore
Friends from Genealogy Society of Singapore,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
A very Happy Chinese New Year to everyone! Thank you for coming to the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre on the last weekend of the Chinese New Year.
新年新气象, and I am delighted to embark on a collaboration with the Genealogy Society Singapore this new year.
Here at the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre, we always look for innovative ways to increase public appreciation of our local Chinese culture, in order to create a greater sense of belonging amongst young Singaporeans.
Our identity starts from the very heart of our homes, and our families. A deeply rooted understanding of our forefathers, who they were and where they came from, provides the necessary foundation to better understand who we are today.
Hence, we are delighted to find synergies with the Genealogy Society Singapore. GSS has plans to compile the Singapore Chapter of the family trees for Singaporeans. Their strong networks with clans, cultural and civic associations within and outside of Singapore are especially useful in achieving this. They also have the right domain expertise to conduct genealogical research, and identify experts to assist in this topic.
SCCC aims to be a complementary partner to the Society’s endeavours. We have the facilities to host public talks, seminars, workshops and competitions on this topic, so that the public can find out how to go about compiling their family trees. We also hope to work with the Society to showcase the outcome of their Singapore Chapter, and share the materials with a larger public.
The compilation of the Singapore Chapter marks the start of our collaboration. As part of the Memorandum of Understanding that we are signing today, SCCC and GSS will meet regularly to explore new ideas and meaningful projects that we can do together.
I look forward to this fruitful partnership with GSS.
Thank you.
