Singapore's Minister for Social and Family Development and Second Minister for Health, Ma Sien Koh, speaks in Parliament on the affairs of the Malay Muslim community on March 6, 2024.
The following is a translation of the Singapore Eye based on Parliamentary sources:
Mr. Ma Shangao:
Chairman, our Malay/Muslim community has made remarkable progress since independence, thanks to the joint efforts of the entire community. In the Singapore Together Dialogue, we found that people show love and dedication regardless of race, language or religion. This is essential to strengthen Singapore's social contract.
The vision for success of Singapore's Malay/Muslim community is based on the "Three Cs": Character, Competence and Citizenship. This vision is supported by the "M3" programme, which brings together the strengths and resources of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS), the Islamic Council for Social Development (MENDAKI) and the People's Association Activities Executive Committee (MESRA) to better meet the needs and aspirations of the community.
The "M3" program has been in existence for five years. Through the Bersamamu project (editor's note: a link in the process of Muslim marriage in Singapore), more than 26,000 couples have been assisted in their marriages by Muslim wedding celebrants. The community's progress is reflected in the reduction in the number of arrests of new Malay drug users from 513 in 2013 to 351 in 2023. The two-year recidivism rate for Malay offenders has also dropped from 34.7 per cent in 2011 to 26 per cent in 2021 over the past decade. These achievements have been made possible by the efforts of the government and "M3" community projects such as FITRAH.
Although "M3" has been around for five years, it is too early to celebrate its success. We will continue to review the impact of our plans and provide updates in due course.
It is clear that M3 provides important support in fostering a culture of contribution within the community. Volunteering, including through the "M3" program, is part of our national culture. We have mobilized 11 M3@Towns volunteers who are able to make a greater impact at the grassroots level and support services at the forefront. With more than 850 volunteers, M3@Towns is able to address some of the key issues facing the community.
How do we take successful communities to the next level? I believe it depends on continuing to maintain the spirit of citizenship and supporting each other to create a brighter future for our community and Singapore. My colleagues and I will discuss this in detail.
First, I will share three strategies to strengthen our successful communities: first, encourage a culture of giving back and build strong community institutions; second, to develop confident religious and community leaders who will be able to meet today's challenges; Third, to set an example of citizenship on the world stage.
(in Malay): First and foremost, our religious institutions provide the moral foundation for the community to thrive in the economic sphere, and we must continue to ensure that the religious institutions have a strong foundation.
In response to a question from Dr. Saeed Harun about how the Islamic Council of Singapore can continue to support the future needs of our community, the Islamic Council of Singapore has established the Wahafu (Editor's note: Wahafu is an inalienable religious donation under Islamic law) management system to provide a sustainable source of funding to support the community's future religious needs, including mosques, the training of religious teachers and other community projects.
Mr. Shahrier and Mr. Chow asked about plans to establish a principal fund for the Wahfu management system. Under the Masjid Waqf Investment Plan, the mosque invests its reserve funds in Shariah-compliant investment products to generate higher returns. To date, the 14 mosques in the West District have collectively invested more than S$2.7 million. The Muslim Council (MUIS) will extend this program to all mosques in other areas so that they can increase their funding and expand their impact on their communities.
While gotong-royong has always been in the DNA of our community, we need to work more organically and focused to encourage long-term giving in our community. I would like to thank Mr. Zhou Kainian for his suggestion to encourage more people to establish and contribute to Wahfu. We will work with relevant agencies to study these proposals. In response to Mr. Shahril and Mr. Chow Kai Nien's questions, the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (ISA) has launched a series of public education activities to provide communities with financial planning knowledge and tools to help them plan for their personal and family needs. These activities will help them plan and contribute their surplus income and wealth to the Waghaf management system for the greater good and eternal rewards in the afterlife.
Since last year, in addition to the mosque's investment, the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore has received more than S$3.6 million in commitments for the Wahafu Management System. The positive response from the community is heartening, and I encourage more people to participate in the contribution or commitment of the WHAB management system.
In response to Mr. Mohamer Fraser's question about the MBMF (a fund for the construction of mosques in each new town), the MBMF is used for all development of mosques, including building upgrades and maintenance, and the allocation of funds depends on the specific needs of each mosque. For all new mosques, land and construction costs are funded by MBMF. MBMF also supports up to 75% of the approval cost for mosque upgrades.
I hope that contributions to Waghaf will help foster a stronger culture of giving back within our community. Senior Minister of State, Mr. Zajiha, will detail how we are empowering our communities through the initiatives of the Council of Islam and that through our success, we can contribute more positively. Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ms. Rahayumazan, will share how we are harnessing the opportunities of the M3 community to be an educated and talented community.
Second, our religious and community leaders must continue to have the knowledge, skills, and experience so that they can competently guide our communities through the challenges of the future. This includes nurturing our madrasas who will become our future community leaders, as mentioned earlier by Dr. Saeed Haarlan.
In recent years, our religious teachers have guided the community through issues such as the wearing of the hijab and the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code.
Ms. Nadia asked how we plan to empower our religious teachers to guide the community in dealing with contemporary issues.
As a minority Muslim community, we face different challenges than in Muslim-majority countries. In this regard, I agree with Dr. Saeed Harun that the Singapore Islamic Religious Council and our religious teachers must provide clear leadership and guidance to our minority Muslim communities in this contemporary context.
The Council of Islam has taken conscious steps to develop a body of knowledge, with a recent initiative being the Fatwa in Contemporary Societies Conference held last month. Distinguished religious scholars from both local and international discussed the importance of fatwa institutions and religious teachers in providing robust solutions to complex contemporary challenges. Although Singapore is a small country with a minority Muslim community, internationally renowned Islamic institutions such as the Egyptian Shariah Commission recognize our country's contribution in building a system of religious knowledge. This helps to promote minority Muslims around the world to thrive in their respective environments.
In fact, it also fosters active citizenship in their respective societies. This is in line with the view of Egypt's Grand Mufti at the Fatwa Conference that ethnic Muslim communities should demonstrate a spirit of active citizenship.
At the same time, we must also empower our community leaders to effectively support families and communities.
Mr. Valmy asked how we can strengthen the capacity of our Kadi, Naib Kadi (editor's note: religious officials) and female religious teachers in "Bersamamu". More than 90% have been trained to better guide couples in conversations about marital financial preparation. This helps them to be more confident and compassionate when guiding couples. We will further develop their capacity in other areas so that they can provide more effective support to couples.
今年年底时候,我们将庆祝"With you"成立五周年。 "With You"的成功离不开我们志愿Kadi、Naib Kadi和女宗教教师的不懈努力。
Chairman, as a successful community, we don't just make a positive contribution to society. We can also demonstrate active citizenship on the world stage, taking pride in our minority Muslim community and Singapore.
Last year, Singapore signed the first Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Saudi Arabia on the mutual recognition of halal certificates. This MoU not only allows halal-certified products from other countries to enter Singapore, but also allows Singaporean companies to export their halal-certified products overseas.
Mr. Zhou also asked about the significance of the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with Saudi Arabia for our minority Muslim community. This is the first time that Saudi Arabia has signed a memorandum of understanding with a country where Muslims are not the majority. This shows that they have a high level of trust and confidence in our halal standards. This not only expands the business prospects, but also allows Singapore's minority Muslim community to stand higher on the global stage.
I am excited to explore opportunities in Saudi Arabia in January with some Singaporean business leaders. One of them is Mr. Su, managing director of Growers Agribusiness, a company that exports rice and noodles. He told me that the memo was a business opportunity for his company.
The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore has not only signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabia for halal certification, but has also established similar cooperation agreements with the United Arab Emirates and Jordan. We are exploring similar cooperation opportunities with other countries to further strengthen our efforts for halal cooperation.
Not only that, but our minority Muslim community has demonstrated unique value on the global stage. Our religious leaders and institutions are internationally recognized for their thought leadership. For example, our Dr. Nazruddin was recently appointed as a member of the Forum for the Study of the Fatwa of Muslim Minorities (established by the Fataka in Egypt), a group of world-renowned Islamic scholars. The Grand Mufti of Egypt personally headed the organization.
Dr. Nazrudin's appointment is a global demonstration of Singapore's leadership in minority Muslims. We hope that through this effort, we will be able to inspire other communities and promote global peace and harmony.
Chairman, these are just a few examples of how we can continue to support Singapore's Malay/Muslim community to thrive at home and abroad. As I said at the beginning, we must ensure that our community's culture of contribution to society is fostered for greater success. Let's join hands and work together to build a brighter future for our communities and Singapore.
The following is the content of the question in English:
: Minister Masagos Zulkifli.
The Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs (Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M): Chairman, our Malay/Muslim community has made significant strides since Independence and over the decades. This is a result of the collective and steadfast effort of everyone in the community. As our Forward SG conversations have highlighted, this sense of care and contribution by everyone, regardless of race, language or religion, is key to strengthening Singapore’s social compact.
The Singapore Malay/Muslim Community’s vision of a Community of Success is underpinned by 3Cs: Character, Competency and Citizenry. This is supported by M3, which marshals the strengths and resources of three institutions – MUIS, MENDAKI and PA MESRA – and our community assets to better serve the needs and aspirations of our community.
It has been about five years since M3 was set up. Mr Saktiandi Supaat, Dr Syed Harun and Mr Faisal Manap asked about the progress and outcomes of M3. Through a more culturally nuanced approach that complements national efforts, we have been able to provide impactful programmes in the community. For example, through the Bersamamu programme, more than 26,000 couples have been supported by the Kadi and Naib Kadi or Muslim solemnisers to build stronger marriages. To Dr Syed Harun’s query, the number of new Malay drug abusers arrested has fallen from 513 in 2013, to 351 in 2023. The two-year recidivism rate for Malay offenders has also improved over the past decade from 34.7% for the 2011 release cohort, to 26% for the 2021 release cohort. The improvements have been made possible through complementary efforts by the Government and M3 community programmes like FITRAH to preventing re-offending.
While it has been five years of M3, it would be too early to celebrate its success even as there are early and good indicators of it. We are continuing to review the impact of our programmes and will provide updates in due course.
What is clear is that M3 has importantly provided the structure to nurture a culture of contribution within the community. Volunteering, including through M3, is part of our national culture that is being celebrated by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) this year. To Mr Fahmi Aliman’s and Dr Wan Rizal’s queries, we have mobilised volunteers across the 11 M3@Towns to deliver greater impact on the ground and support last mile delivery. With a dedicated pool of over 850 volunteers at the M3@Towns, M3 has been able to tackle some of the key issues faced by our community.
How can we take our Community of Success to greater heights? I believe this lies in a continued spirit of Citizenry, where we support one another to create a brighter future for our community and for Singapore, which my colleagues and I will speak more about today.
I will first share three strategies to fortify our Community of Success: first, encouraging a culture of giving back to build strong community institutions; second, empowering confident religious and community leaders to face contemporary challenges; and third, exemplifying citizenry on the world stage. Chairman, in Malay, please.
(In Malay): First, we must continue to ensure strong foundations for our religious institutions. In turn, our religious institutions provide the moral foundation for our community to thrive in the economy.
Dr Syed Harun asked how MUIS can continue to support our community’s future needs. MUIS established the WMS to generate a sustainable funding stream to support the future religious needs of the community, for the current and future generation. These include our mosques, developing our asatizah and other community programmes.
Mr Sharael Taha and Mr Zhulkarnain asked about the plans to build the corpus or principal fund for WMS. Under the Mosque Wakaf Investment Plan, mosques invest their reserves in Shariah Compliant Investment Products to generate better returns. Thus far, 14 mosques from District West have collectively invested more than $2.7 million. MUIS will expand this initiative to all mosques in other districts, so that they can grow their funds and amplify their impact on the community.
While the spirit of gotong-royong has been part of our community’s DNA, we need to be more organised and focused in multiplying efforts to encourage our community to contribute for the long term. I would like to thank Mr Zhulkarnain for his suggestion on encouraging more to create and contribute to wakaf. We will work with the relevant agencies to study these proposals. To Mr Sharael Taha’s and Mr Zhulkarnain’s queries, MUIS has embarked on a series of public education initiatives to equip the community with financial planning knowledge and tools to plan for their personal and family needs. They can thus plan and contribute their excess income and wealth to WMS for the greater good, and reap perpetual rewards in the afterlife. God-willing.
Since last year, MUIS has received WMS pledges amounting over $3.6 million from individuals, besides the investment of mosques. I am heartened by the community’s response so far and I encourage more to contribute or pledge to WMS.
Mr Faisal Manap asked about the MBMF. The MBMF provides for the development of all mosques including building upgrading and maintenance, where the allocation of funds are subject to each mosque’s specific needs. For all new mosques, all land and building cost are funded by the MBMF. The MBMF also supports up to 75% of the approved cost for mosque upgrading.
I hope that contributions to WMS will help to foster a stronger culture of giving back within our community. Senior Minister of State Zaqy will elaborate on how we can empower our community through MENDAKI’s initiatives, and with the success that we achieved, we can contribute more actively. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Rahayu will share ways we can leverage opportunities for contribution through M3 as a community that has become an educated and talented community.
Second, it is critical for our religious and community leaders to continue to have the knowledge, skills and experience, so that they are competent in guiding our community navigate the challenges ahead. This includes developing our madrasah students who will be our future community leaders, as Dr Syed Harun mentioned earlier.
As a matter of fact, in recent years, our asatizah have guided the community through difficult issues, such as the wearing of the tudung and the repeal of section 377A of the Penal Code.
Ms Nadia Samdin asked about our plans to empower our asatizah to guide the community through contemporary issues.
As a minority Muslim community, we face a different set of challenges compared to Muslim majority countries. In this regard, I agree with Dr Syed Harun that MUIS and our asatizah must provide clear leadership and guidance for our minority Muslim community living in such a contemporary context.
MUIS has taken concerted efforts to grow bodies of knowledge, and one recent initiative is the Fatwa in Contemporary Societies Conference held last month. Eminent religious scholars from here and around the world discussed the importance of the fatwa institution and asatizah in providing robust solutions in the face of complex contemporary challenges. Although Singapore is a small state with a minority Muslim community, internationally renowned Islamic institutions like Egypt’s Darul Ifta’ recognised our country’s contributions in building bodies of religious knowledge. This help to facilitate minority Muslims around the world to thrive in their respective contexts.
In fact, it also nurtures active citizenry in the respective societies. This is in line with the words of wisdom by the Grand Mufti of Egypt at the Fatwa Conference that minority Muslim communities should exemplify the spirit of active citizenry.
To further drive the development of our religious leaders and contextualised bodies of knowledge, MUIS will convene the second edition of the International Conference on Communities of Success (ICCOS) this October. This Conference will focus on how citizenry and community leadership are underpinned by religious values, and add to the body of knowledge of how minority Muslim communities can thrive in plural societies.
At the same time, we must also raise the capabilities of our community leaders to offer effective support to families and the community.
Mr Fahmi Aliman asked about our efforts to strengthen the competencies of our Kadi, Naib Kadi and female asatizah on the Bersamamu programme. More than 90% of them have undergone training to better guide couples in conversations on financial preparedness for marriage. This helped them be more confident and empathetic in guiding couples. We will further develop their competencies in other areas, so that they can provide more effective support to couples.
We will be commemorating the fifth anniversary of Bersamamu later this year. The success of Bersamamu would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of our volunteer Kadi, Naib Kadi and female asatizah.
(In English): Mr Chairman, as a Community of Success, we take pride not only in actively contributing to society. We also can demonstrate active citizenry on the world stage and bring distinction to our minority Muslim community and to Singapore.
Last year, Singapore signed our first MOU to mutually recognise halal certificates with Saudi Arabia. Such MOUs not only allow for halal-certified products from other countries to enter Singapore, but for Singapore companies to bring their halal-certified products overseas.
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To Mr Zhulkarnain’s query, MUIS works with our economic agencies to do so. MUIS will also explore opportunities for our asatizah to be involved in halal-related industries.
Mr Zhulkarnain also asked about the significance of this MOU for our minority Muslim community. The MOU with Saudi Arabia is the first MOU they have signed with a country where Muslims are not the majority. This reflects the strong trust and confidence in our halal standards. More than just expanding business prospects, the MOU has enabled Singapore’s minority Muslim community to stand tall in the world.
I was glad to join some Singapore business leaders to explore opportunities in Saudi Arabia in January. One of them was Mr Jimmy Soh, Managing Director of Growers Agri which exports rice and noodles, who shared with me that the MOU was a valuable commitment in promoting Singapore brands to the world.
Beyond the MOU with Saudi Arabia, MUIS has signed similar MOUs with the United Arab Emirates and Jordan; and are looking to do the same with other countries.
Beyond efforts to strengthen halal cooperation, our minority Muslim community also contributes at the global stage, with how our religious leaders and institutions are internationally recognised for their thought leadership. Our Mufti Dr Nazirudin was recently appointed to the Forum for Research and Studies on Fatwas for Muslim Minorities, a world-renowned body of Islamic scholars founded by Egypt’s Darul Ifta’, led by the Grand Mufti of Egypt. The Congress plans to showcase Singapore’s exemplary model for Muslim minorities to a global audience. We hope that our model of thriving Muslim minorities in a modern, plural society will inspire other communities and pave the way for fostering peace and harmony globally.
Mr Chairman, as a community that has done well, it is our mutual responsibility to contribute both within our community and to wider society as well as beyond our shores. It is when every one of us does our part as active citizens that we can advance and scale greater heights and together, be a Community of Success for the future. [Applause.]
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