Citi charity golf tournament raises S$550,000 for ChildAid

EDUCATION minister Chan Chun Sing delivered a moving speech at Citi & Partners Charity Golf tournament last Friday (Nov 11) , which raised more than S$550,000 for children from disadvantaged families. Citing his own experience as a child of a single-parent family, he said that he would not have succeeded in life without the “whole-of-community support system in our education landscape... (and) the many people before me who have paid it forward and contributed back to society”. 

“Having walked through this journey, as a beneficiary of the system – as the former minister in charge of social and family development, and now the minister in charge of education – I will say that in every society, it is very easy for us to contribute our ‘treasures’. 

“But I hope we can mobilise Singaporeans, friends of Singapore and fans of Singapore to also contribute not just their treasures, but their time and talent. The most valuable gift that we can give our children goes beyond the money that you have contributed. The most important gift that you have given them is hope.” 

More than 170 Citi staff and business partners teed off at the 18th annual Citi & Partners Charity Golf tournament, to raise money for ChildAid, an end-of-the-year charity concert which aids The Business Times Budding Artists Fund (BT BAF) and The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund (ST SPMF). BT BAF helps artistically talented children from underprivileged homes pursue their artistic dreams, while ST SPMF helps similarly disadvantaged kids pay for lunch and transport fares to and from school.

Since Citi Singapore started supporting ST SPMF in 2002 and BT BAF in 2005, the bank has raised more than S$7.93 million in support of the two charities. This year alone, over S$832,000 was raised in total through several fund-raising efforts, making it a record amount for the bank in a single year.  The ChildAid concert 2022 will be staged on Dec 13 at University Cultural Centre with a cast of over 100 talented kids. It will also be streamed online.

Amol Gupte, Citi head of South Asia and Asean, reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to serving the community: “Citi’s mission and value proposition is to enable growth and progress for the communities where we live and work. In Singapore, we have been an avid supporter of ChildAid since its inception in 2005. We are pleased that our business partners have joined us to support this worthy cause as we mark our 120 years of presence in Singapore. Together, we can be a strong collective force for good.”