The Singapore government has pledged up to S$30m (US$23.4m) to support a 10-year Transformation Roadmap for the Singapore co-operative movement, marking a major effort to strengthen the sector after it celebrated its centenary last year.
Announced during Singapore’s annual committee of supply debate by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, the funding will support programmes and initiatives from 2026 to 2036 aimed at renewing leadership, strengthening governance and expanding the movement’s reach in society.
The roadmap, developed by the Singapore National Co-operative Federation (SNCF) and the Registry of Co-operative Societies (RCS), is built around four strategic pillars: talent and leadership; governance and stewardship; operational excellence and scale-up; and community outreach and impact.
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The investment comes at a moment when co-operatives in Singapore, many of which were founded to address social and economic needs such as access to affordable goods, credit and services, are seeking new ways to remain relevant amid a more competitive and rapidly evolving economy.
“Our co-ops are facing growing challenges to renew their talent pipeline and to attract young members in a more competitive landscape,” said the minister for community, culture and youth, Dinesh Vasu Dash.
“We will help co-ops stay relevant as they develop new capabilities to address emerging needs and transform for the future. Co-ops will receive support to invest in talent development, governance, and operational efficiency.”
Ang Hin Kee, chief executive of SNCF, welcomed the announcement. “We are excited by this news,” he said. “As the landscape becomes more competitive, we know we must continue evolving to serve communities well.”
Co-operatives have played a major role in Singapore’s development for over a century. The country has a population of 5.9 million; today, there are 1,000,000 co-operative members across 73 organisations operating in areas ranging from consumer services and finance to social services and community support.
The new roadmap aims to prepare the sector for the next phase of its development by investing in leadership and institutional capability.
Early concrete initiatives announced fall under the first pillar: talent and leadership.
One programme launched this year is the Co-operative Leaders Programme (CLP), offering established leaders with three to 10 years of experience international co-operative exchanges and development opportunities to strengthen the strategic direction of their organisations.
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Tasneem Faiyaaz Basrai, vice-chair of Silver Caregivers Co-operative, said: “The Co-operative Leaders Programme provided useful insights into the challenges co-operatives face, particularly around change management. At this stage, as our co-operative goes through a leadership transition, it has helped me think more clearly about how to manage change and plan for the long term.”
Basrai, who is also a caregiver to her ageing parents, said she was drawn to the co-operative after seeing how it supports others in similar situations. The caregiver co-operative focuses on training and supporting caregivers, a group she described as often overlooked despite the critical role they play.
A second programme, the Emerging Leaders Programme (ELP), focuses on co-operative professionals with one to three years of co-operative experience. Established in 2023, ELP supports participants in building leadership capabilities, strengthening problem solving skills, and deepening their understanding of the co-op movement. As of 2026, 60 emerging leaders from various organisations have participated.
Initiatives addressing the remaining pillars will be rolled out progressively, but SNCF plans to explore initiatives that will make co-operatives more visible to the public and attract greater youth participation.
“We must bring new generations into the fold as volunteers, members, leaders and even founders of new co-operatives,” said Ang. “For co-operatives to serve communities meaningfully, we need younger Singaporeans to not just understand the co-operative model, but to also play a part in shaping its future.”
Raena Leang, strategic operations officer at GP+ Co-operative, added: “Co-operatives can feel abstract to young people today. But when linked to real problems they care about, the model becomes much more compelling.”
She also noted that youth could benefit from mentorship, guidance, and opportunities to grow or find like-minded folks within the co-operative ecosystem: “Co-ops feel more relevant to young people when they are presented as practical ways to solve real-life challenges, instead of abstract organisational models.”
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Observers say the roadmap signals a broader effort to ensure co-operatives remain relevant as economic and social conditions change.
Justin Lee, senior research fellow and head of policy lab at the Institute of Policy Studies, believes it marks a significant but overdue recognition of the co-operative sector.
“Few Singaporeans are fully aware of what co-operatives are and the kind of social impact they can make,” he said, adding that for the movement to grow, nurturing a new generation of leaders is vital.
“These would be the young people who understand not just how to engage their own members but see that co-operatives have a larger social purpose when designed and governed well. In other words, not just co-operating to do well for their own members but to contribute to social good and the larger commons.”
In Singapore, co-operatives operate in a landscape that increasingly includes private enterprises, social enterprises and multinational corporations competing for talent and market share. Yet supporters like Lee argue that the co-operative model continues to offer an alternative, viable, resilient way of organising businesses and services.
“Given the climate crises and rising inequality, co-ops matter even more today,” he said. “The model ensures democratic control and robust governance so the values of multiple stakeholders, such as workers, producers, consumers, or the community, are safeguarded instead of just those of private shareholders.”
As minister Dash said: “Co-operatives bring a unique strength in their community ownership and flexibility, allowing them to respond to evolving needs while complementing the wider ecosystem of support in Singapore.”
One example is Silver Horizon Travel Co-operative, which organises travel experiences for seniors, making travel safer, more accessible and socially meaningful for an ageing population.
Another is Polwel Co-operative, , which supports members of the Singapore Police Force and other Home Team departments through financial services, professional development and career transition programmes.
For Leang, one of the most exciting aspects of the roadmap is the community outreach and impact pillar, particularly the incubation space. “While the plans are still being developed, this pillar already includes several core elements which are essential to allowing co-ops to live out their full potential in Singapore,” she said.
“If implemented well, this could enable co-operatives to become a meaningful force in strengthening Singapore’s socio-economic fabric, and move us closer towards a more collaborative, ‘we-first’ society.”
Over the next decade, the roadmap will test whether co-operatives can evolve into a more visible and active force in Singapore’s social and economic landscape, and in doing so, renew a sense of shared purpose in how communities come together.
Main photo: ELP participants at the Annual Co-operative Leaders Conference 2025 in ShenZhen, China
