Seniors aged 50 and above will soon have greater accessibility and opportunities to learn infocomm technology (IT) skills to lead better connected and enriched lives, as a result of two new partnerships.
Date: 10 September 2016
Announced by Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for Communications and Information, the guest-of-honour at the Silver IT Fest 10th Anniversary Bash, the new partnership between Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and People’s Association (PA) Senior Academy will increase the number of training locations threefold from 10 to 30 locations island-wide. Through this collaboration, 20 more Community Clubs will offer IT courses in addition to the existing 10 Silver Infocomm Junctions (SIJs), increasing the current annual number of SIJ classes from about 800 to over 2,000 IT classes, providing seniors with more resources such as the use of mobile devices, from October 2016.
IDA is also partnering with the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) and Lifelong Learning Council (LLC) to bring seniors the “Learn and Live I.T.” project, which taps on the Learn SG Seed Fund [1] to encourage groups of individuals, schools, organisations and community groups to lead and grow learning ideas and initiatives for the community. The project has two components: the first is “a B.I.T – a B.I.T” which runs 45-minute to 1-hour tutorials for seniors to try new social apps and government e-services. The second component is the “Touch & Click Kakis” – a project to encourage the formation of informal special interest groups where seniors learn from their peers. These 3-hour “Touch & Click Kakis” sessions will be organised by SIJs and facilitated by volunteers to allow seniors to share and improve their IT skills.
Minister Yaacob also announced the launch of a volunteer programme to help seniors go digital. Known as the Friends of Silver Infocomm (FSI), the programme is aimed at promoting active volunteerism among individuals who have a passion to help seniors learn and adopt IT, including organisations from the private and public sectors to come on-board to help seniors go digital. The new FSI framework will cultivate greater awareness among working adults and students and provide opportunities to help seniors at the various SII activities held throughout the year.
Seniors who are tech-savvy and have made a positive impact to their peers through technology are also recognised for their contributions through the Silver Infocomm Wellness Ambassador (SIWA) programme. This year, 31 SIWAs are newly appointed and will join the community of over 100 SIWAs who are role models and real life inspirations to their fellow peers.
“The new collaborations with our community partners – PA, WDA and LLC – allow us to leverage each other’s domain expertise, reach out to seniors at more locations, and curate a variety of learning activities to match their comfort levels. Coupled with the new developments of the Silver IT Fest, we hope to build and foster a strong community of seniors who embrace technology adoption and lifelong learning,” said Mr Leong Keng Thai, Deputy Chief Executive, IDA.
A fun IT weekend carnival open to people of all ages, the Silver IT Fest is an annual event organised by IDA together with Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), industry and community partners, aimed at sharing the latest in infocomm trends and happenings to seniors – through a wide range of activities from seminars, workshops, tutorials@learning islands and an exhibition of tech tips and deals.
The Silver Infocomm Initiative is part of the Digital Inclusion programme by IDA, which aims to bridge the digital divide and to promote IT awareness and literacy among seniors so that they too can lead enriched lives and remain connected to their family and friends.
For more details for the Silver IT Fest, other SII programmes and new partnerships & developments, please refer to the Annex.
[1] The Learn SG Seed Fund is a $3 million fund established by the LLC with the support of WDA. SIJs participating in “Learn & Live I.T.” project are eligible to receive funding support for up to 90% of project cost (capped at $50,000 when delivering one of the components). RSVP Singapore is the first SIJ that has been approved for the “a B.I.T – a B.I.T” and “Touch & Click Kakis” projects.
ISSUED BY CORPORATE AND MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION
INFOCOMM DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF SINGAPORE
Related Resources:
Annex 1: Factsheet for the Silver Infocomm Initiative (405.92KB)
About the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA)
The mission of the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) is to develop information technology and telecommunications within Singapore with a view to serve citizens of all ages and companies of all sizes. IDA does this by actively supporting the growth of innovative technology companies and start-ups in Singapore, working with leading global IT companies as well as developing excellent information technology and telecommunications infrastructure, policies and capabilities for Singapore. For more news and information, visit www.ida.gov.sg.
For media enquiries, please contact:
Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore
Candy Pok (Ms)
Corporate & Marketing Communications Division
Tel: +65 6211 1706
Email: candy_pok@ida.gov.sg
Malini Nathan (Ms)
Corporate & Marketing Communications Division
Tel: +65 6211 0660
Email: malini_nathan@ida.gov.sg
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