Ong Ye Kung urges better outreach to engage seniors

Health Minister wants active ageing centres to work with other groups as S’pore ages

- Judith Tan

When Health Minister Ong Ye Kung invites elderly residents in his ward to visit active ageing centres, "I will emphasise to them that everything is free and we will belanja (treat) them".

"Their faces, without fail, will always light up. Perhaps at their age, and living alone, very few people invite them anywhere," said Mr Ong on May 3, as he shared with community care workers how he engages with seniors living alone during his weekly home visits in Sembawang Central.

"I believe that food has a great ability to bring people together," he added. "I have been nagging our resident committees (RCS) to work with active ageing centres (AACS) to implement weekly communal dining at the void decks or RC centres." 

Speaking at the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) Community Care Work Plan Seminar 2024, he stressed the need for AACs to have better outreach, more interesting activities and stronger partnerships with community care groups to "take good care of our seniors" and keep them healthy and active.

Singapore is rapidly ageing, with one in four people set to be 65 and above by 2030.

But by 2026 the island will be "super-aged", which is when the proportion of the population aged 65 years and older reaches 21 per cent. In fact, seven of the island's 24 regions are already there: Jurong East/Boon Lay, Clementi, Bukit Merah, Ang Mo Kio, Serangoon, Toa Payoh and Geylang.