Refreshed President's Challenge to nurture arts and sporting talents

Talents in the arts and sports, which President Tharman Shanmugaratnam described as areas in which success "depends greatly on chances and even surprises", will get a leg-up under a refreshed President's Challenge.

- Shermaine Ang

Charities will also be getting up to five years' funding at a time from the President's Challenge, instead of the current one year's worth, to help them make a bigger impact. This is part of a move to focus on longer-term rather than one-off funding.

Launching the refreshed President's Challenge on Sept 4 at Delta Sport Centre, Mr Tharman said the funding changes will give charities time to build their capabilities and scale up social innovations. They will get mentoring and guidance to do this, he added.

"Its basic aim, going beyond immediate needs, will be to achieve sustained social impact: by uplifting aspirations and potential, especially amongst those who start with greater odds," he said of the refreshed movement.

On nurturing potential in the arts and sports, Mr Tharman spoke of how many of Singapore's best talents "first stumbled upon something by chance, discovered they could be good at it and got some joy out of it, and then spent years developing themselves in the art or sport".