More training for volunteers helping families of inmates

Online portal will give volunteers centralised platform to access info, record case notes

- Esther Loi

Mr Mohamathu Abdul Kader rushed to the home of a woman who was so ill she could not get food herself.

Mr Kader, 54, who is a volunteer with the Yellow Ribbon Community Project (YRCP), which helps the families of prison inmates, was shocked to see the woman in her mid-60s looking very pale.

Her son was in prison and she was living alone, so Mr Kader bought dinner for her.

He also arranged for a non-governmental organisation (NGO) to deliver cooked food to her until she recovered.

To help more than 1,100 grassroots volunteers like Mr Kader, training enhancements for the YRCP were announced on Nov 16, at its annual appreciation and awards lunch at the Max Atria @ Singapore Expo.

Transport Minister and Second Finance Minister Chee Hong Tat, who made the announcements, said a new skills training scheme will be set up in the first half of 2025 to help volunteers support families in need.

The Singapore Prison Service (SPS), which started the YRCP in 2010, said the training will be conducted via e-learning and workshops.