Speech by Minister Desmond Lee at the Women in Sustainability & Environment (WISE) Event: Real Estate & Sustainability

Thursday, 2 June 2022

A very good afternoon to everyone. Thank you for inviting me for today’s event. This is an important occasion which brings women across professions in the built environment together, to continue our conversation on how we can achieve a more sustainable Singapore.

When we talk about development, we usually associate it with construction, buildings, urbanisation; when we talk about national development, it is about balancing conservation and development within what is a very precious City in Nature. Like many countries around the world, Singapore is already experiencing the effects of climate change. Temperatures in Singapore reached a record 36.8 degrees Celsius on 1 April this year – the second-highest temperature ever recorded in Singapore. In recent years there have also been torrential downpours that have caused floods in parts of Singapore. Such events are happening around the world. And they reinforce the need for all of us to take urgent collective action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Singapore is doing our part. Last year, we launched the Singapore Green Plan 2030, a whole-of-nation movement to pursue sustainable development. We announced in February this year that we intend to raise our climate ambition to achieve net zero by or around mid-century. We are having earnest conversations across the board with industry partners, NGOs, ground-up groups, and communities, so that we all know what this goal means in tangible terms – what changes we have to make, what innovations we have to adopt, and what sacrifices we have to work together on. And we continue to work with the international community as well to strengthen our sustainability efforts, through global partnerships such as the Greening Government Initiative.

Today, I will focus on how we plan to improve the sustainability of our urban infrastructure – our buildings, towns, and neighbourhoods – and how we hope to work together with our community, and support women in the fields of sustainability and the built environment, as we pursue our net-zero ambitions.

Green buildings

Buildings account for over 20% of Singapore’s emissions. Hence, greening our buildings plays an important role in achieving our net zero aspirations. Last year, we launched the latest version of the Singapore Green Building Masterplan (SGBMP). We set ourselves three key targets – “80-80-80 in 2030”.

First, we will green 80% of our buildings by Gross Floor Area by 2030. We have pushed the boundaries for new buildings, and the challenge will be with existing buildings – retrofitting older buildings to make them sustainable. Second, we aim for 80% of new buildings to be Super Low Energy buildings from 2030. These buildings will use much less energy than conventional buildings. And third, we will ramp up research and innovation, so that by 2030, our best-in-class buildings will achieve 80% improvement in energy efficiency, compared to when we first started the green journey in 2005.

These are ambitious targets. To achieve them, we will need the support of industry players throughout the building life cycle. For new buildings, we will continue to incentivise developers to achieve the highest possible sustainability standards. For instance, through the Built Environment Transformation Gross Floor Area Incentive Scheme, new developments can receive bonus GFA, if they meet Green Mark (GM) Platinum Super Low Energy standards, among other requirements. For existing developments, we recognise that many of them may not have been designed initially with sustainability in mind, or the design concepts, technologies available, construction methods back then cannot achieve the goals we have set for ourselves today. We will provide financial support to help building owners reduce the cost of greening their buildings, via the Green Mark Incentive Scheme for Existing Buildings 2.0.

In conjunction, we will push the boundaries of energy efficiency through research and innovation. We have enhanced funding for the Green Buildings Innovation Cluster programme, to put new technologies within the industry’s reach – including alternative cooling technologies, smart building systems and next-generation ventilation systems. We encourage our partners across the entire value chain to tap on these opportunities as we push to decarbonise our built environment together. And we welcome your ideas and active participation, to help us develop more innovative solutions.

Women in the Built Environment Sector – Community Partnerships and Support

Today, women comprise more than 30% of our local Built Environment workforce. Many hold key roles and are making significant contributions to the sector.

Ms Ong Yan Xiang is one such example. As an electrical engineer, she has constantly pushed the boundaries of technological innovation. Early in her career, she joined the team behind the Tahir Foundation Building in NUS, which was awarded the Green Mark Platinum certification. She was actively involved in the contract administration and electrical works for the building, which saves enough energy to power over 800 5-room HDB units a year. Even as Yan Xiang took on more responsibilities as a senior principal engineer, she continued to learn and grow as a professional. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, she quickly picked up new skills in epidemic-resilient building designs and worked with her fellow engineers to keep her projects on track. Now, as a Vice-President in the Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Division of CPG Consultants, she oversees the development and management of electrical systems in key infrastructural projects.

We hope to encourage more women professionals like Yan Xiang to join the Built Environment sector, and we will continue to support a more inclusive and diverse workforce in the years to come. 

The recent White Paper on Women’s Development aims to address common challenges that women face, including in the workplace. It drew on the experiences of diverse groups across society – young people, working mothers, homemakers, and industry and community leaders, including both men and women. Their suggestions and ideas led to useful recommendations to improve equity and inclusivity for women, many of which are relevant to the Built Environment sector too. For example, flexible work arrangements can empower workers – both men and women – to better balance their work, family and personal responsibilities. The Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices has developed standards for flexible work arrangements, and we encourage employers to adopt these standards. This would also encourage more diversity in leadership roles, which can benefit an organisation’s growth.

I am delighted to know that WISE is also embarking on its own mentorship programme to guide young women who are interested in careers in sustainability and the environment. This will help to attract and support women professionals in the sector.

Beyond these efforts, we will also strive to help our workforce to transform, so that we can work together towards a more advanced, resilient, and sustainable Built Environment sector. We encourage our companies to re-design or create new job roles to take full advantage of new technological advancements. At the same time, we hope that our workforce will sharpen and update their skills to meet the sector’s evolving needs.

The Government will work with the industry in this journey. For example, we have mapped out existing and emerging skill requirements under our Built Environment Skills Framework. The Framework provides information on the key job roles in the construction and facilities management industries, including career progression pathways, wage bands and skills requirements. This will empower our workforce with the information they need to prepare and upskill in the face of broader industry transformation.

The Workforce Singapore’s (WSG) Career Conversion Programmes (CCP) will also help mid-career professionals as they transition into new job roles, such as Building Information Modelling (BIM) Professionals and Facilities Management Specialists. For employees who take on new sustainability-related jobs within the same company, the Government will provide substantial support for employers as their employees receive the necessary on-the-job training. This support extends to new hires, who can receive industry-recognised training to get relevant skills and take up roles that offer opportunities for progression. 

Let me conclude. To create a more sustainable city, collaboration between the people, public and private sectors is critical. The Government is committed to supporting firms and workers in this green transition, and we invite everyone to come on board.

All of us here can also embark on our own transformation journey by turning our ideas into action, tapping on the resources available to us, and supporting others where we can. Together, we can shape the future of the green movement. 

I wish you a wonderful session ahead. Thank you.