Emergency Relief Fund to support Singaporean Tertiary students during COVID-19

In early 2020, The Ngee Ann Kongsi launched an Emergency Relief Fund, pledging up to $1 million to support Singaporean tertiary students who had lost their part-time jobs or whose parents lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic. As of November 2020, the Kongsi distributed about $842,000 to help 637 students.

The Fund was disbursed as food allowance to eligible students, through nine Tertiary Institutions which the Kongsi partnered with. The Kongsi seeks to help families mitigate the financial challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, and allow students to remain undeterred in their educational pursuits.

Over the last 13 years, the Kongsi has expanded and strengthened its philanthropic support for the education scene in Singapore, donating $165 million to more than 70 schools and tertiary institutions (as of August 2020), to nurture and enable students to pursue their passions and aspirations.

One such recipient of the Emergency Relief Fund is Crystal Tan, a student from Republic Polytechnic. Crystal and a few of her immediate family members lost their part-time jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic and had to tap into their savings in order to make ends meet. In an interview with Lianhe Zaobao, she shared how she no longer has to skip meals in order to save on expenses, and is also less worried after receiving financial support provided by the Fund. The Kongsi hopes to support more students like Crystal through their philanthropic contributions.