The workshops helped some 250 seniors received one-on-one guidance on core digital banking topics.

 

Some 250 seniors took part in digital literacy workshops held across 12 locations islandwide recently, as the DBS Foundation and the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IMDA) kicked off their joint efforts to drive digital inclusivity in the community.

During the hour-long workshops, participating seniors received one-on-one guidance on core digital banking topics such as how to make cashless payments and spot potential scams. With Lunar New Year festivities just round the corner, seniors were also introduced to alternative gifting methods such as the DBS QR gift cards (QR angbaos).

Shared 70-year-old Christine Chua, who took part in the one of the workshop: “Being a senior, I think this was a good place to learn, and it has benefitted me very much. I learnt things such as how to use DBS PayLah! and PayNow. I think it’ll be more convenient when I’m buying things in future, or when I go to hawker centres or restaurants, since I won’t have to use cash anymore. I can just use digital payments now.”

Facilitated by volunteers from DBS and SG Digital Office (SDO), the series of workshops are the first of some 800 digital literacy workshops to be held over the next two years to drive digital inclusivity in Singapore, where gaps still exist among different age and income groups, as well as those with special needs. For seniors, according to an IMDA survey, slightly more than half of the residents above 60 years old are Internet users. Furthermore, while one in four seniors are interested in digital banking, many resist going digital because they require assurance (42 percent) on the security and reliability (33 percent) of digital banking transactions.

These workshops are part of DBS Foundation’s broad-based support for the national Digital for Life (DfL) movement – announced last November, the strategic collaboration between DBS Foundation and IMDA also includes a S$1 million donation, inclusive of dollar-for-dollar Government matching, to the DfL Fund to support digital inclusion projects, co-developing the digital literacy curriculum, and unlocking new communication channels and partner platforms to boost digital awareness and adoption.

The joint effort aims to reach out to some 100,000 Singaporeans and residents by end 2024, and help them to embrace digital learning. These beneficiaries include seniors, youths, hawkers and those with special needs.

Monica Datta, head of the Community Impact Chapter, DBS Foundation, said: “At DBS Foundation, we’re committed to paving the way for a more equitable society where the underserved are well-equipped to face the future with confidence and resilience. This includes being armed with the necessary digital know-how and skills, especially as technology continues to evolve and pervade more aspects of our daily lives. By working with like-minded partners such as IMDA, we hope to create a digitally inclusive Singapore where no one is left behind. We’re encouraged by the robust turnout for today’s community outreach event, and look forward to reaching out to more beneficiaries moving forward.”

This partnership is the latest in a series of initiatives by DBS to bolster digital readiness in Singapore, underscoring the importance of private-public collaboration to support the community’s needs. For instance, the bank launched the DBS Adopt-A-Hawker Centre initiative in 2021 with the aim of safeguarding hawkers’ livelihoods amid the pandemic. The bank rallied community partners including IMDA and various grassroot leaders to help sustain these businesses by organising group buys; boosting discoverability via social media and other platforms including DBS PayLah!; and equipping hawkers with the tools and know-how to digitalise their business. To date, stallholders from 10 hawker centres islandwide have benefited from this initiative.

 

** To find out about the upcoming workshops, go to: www.dbs.com/foundation/community-impact/forging-digital-inclusion-with-digital-for-life-movement.