Mr Gan Kim Yong
Minister for Manpower

Date: 4 September 2009 (Friday)
Time: 8.30 am – 10.00 am (Registeration begins at 8.15 am)
Venue: Intercontinental Hotel 
Dress Code: Business Attire

With the International Labour Office predicting that an estimated 50 million people globally are likely to join the ranks of the unemployed, working poor and those in vulnerable employment this year, what is the Singapore Government's take on the jobs crisis facing the Singapore workforce? Amidst these challenges, how can income security be provided for a fast ageing population with increasing life expectancies? Can Singapore tackle these challenges to be a Global City & Home, for local and foreign talent?

Mr Gan started his career with the Administrative Service and worked at the Ministry of Trade & Industry and Ministry of Home Affairs. In 1989, Mr Gan left the Administrative Service for the private sector and joined NatSteel Ltd as a manager for Corporate Planning. He was promoted to Executive Vice President of NatSteel and CEO of NatSteel Resorts International and NatSteel Properties in 1996. He became the CEO and President of NatSteel in 2005.

In 2001, Mr Gan became a Member of Parliament for Holland-Bukit Panjang GRC. During the 2006 General Elections, he stood in Chua Chu Kang SMC and won. He has served as a member of the Remaking Singapore Committee and a member of the Public Accounts Committee in 2002. He was also the Chairman for the Government Parliamentary Committee for Education in 2005.
Mr Gan was appointed Minister of State for Education and Minister of State for Manpower concurrently in 2005. He was promoted to Acting Minister for Manpower in April 2008, and took on his role as full Minister in April 2009.

Mr Gan has been instrumental in overseeing and developing manpower policies to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing business environment in Singapore, These include the introduction of CPF LIFE, re-employment legislation which will take effect by 2012 and the Skills Programme for Upgrading and Resilience (SPUR) together with the tripartite partners. Under his leadership, MOM has seen a drop in workplace fatality over the years, and under its Workplace Safety & Health (WSH) Vision 2018, Singapore aims to cut the workplace fatality rate to 1.8 per every 100,000 workers. Together with tripartite partners, Mr Gan is leading MOM to build a first class Continuing Education and Training (CET) system for a globally competitive Singapore workforce.

Mr Gan also leads national committees such as the Tripartite Committee on Employability of Older Workers and the Tripartite Panel on Community Engagement at Workplaces. Mr Gan also serves as Advisor of the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices and is a member of the Economic Strategies Committee.

Mr Gan was awarded the Overseas Merit Scholarship to read Engineering in Cambridge University and graduated with a Bachelor degree (Honours) in 1981. Mr Gan subsequently obtained his Master’s Degree in Engineering from Cambridge University in 1985. 

IPS Corporate Associates Breakfast “Looking Beyond the Jobs Crisis” By Gan Kim Yong, Minister for Manpower.  

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