SINGAPORE
Singapore’s Public Servants are to be given more training to develop a broader range of skills to be able to absorb new ideas from the private sector, Parliament has been told.
Speaking in the Budget debate, Minister in Charge of the Public Service, Chan Chun Sing (pictured) outlined what he called “a new kind of Public Servant”.
“They will be able to deliver the services of multiple Agencies, having had the benefit of training and rotating through different domains in a more porous Public Service,” Mr Chan said.
He said Public Servants today were expected not just to set policies, but also to translate them smoothly into operations, and be able to communicate them to the public while being aware of things happening beyond the Public Service.
“With the change in public expectations, with the change in the job scopes, we will certainly need to change the skill sets of our Public Service officers,” Mr Chan said.
Responding to questions from various MPs, Mr Chan said the Public Service would structure training so officers received a boost in skills “every few years”.
“When we ask our Public Service officers to be agile, it can’t be at the age of 40 or 50, it must be done systematically from the age of 20 and above,” he said.
The Minister said another change would see Public Servants being rotated more regularly across and within domains, so they had a greater understanding of how things were done in different places, making them more responsive and agile.
“Public Service officers, especially those in leadership positions, will also have regular stints in the private sector, to expose themselves to the challenges faced there and to bring back good ideas,” Mr Chan said.
“To aid businesses, the Public Service will shift from simply ensuring businesses comply with the regulatory framework, to helping them develop and grow, which is a very different mindset shift.”
Singapore, 1 March 2020
