Twitter is announcing today a comprehensive suite of initiatives with the Government of Singapore to support the nation's growth ambitions towards digitalisation since the COVID-19 outbreak.
The initiatives are part of the very first year-long partnership between Twitter and the Singapore Government which began in the second quarter of 2021 and will carry on through the remainder of 2021. The comprehensive partnership covers three key pillars:
- Enhancing and upskilling Singapore’s workforce;
- Promoting and strengthening Internet safety and digital literacy among Singaporeans; and
- Supporting the Government’s COVID-19 communications on Twitter.
The partnership marks Twitter’s latest commitment to Singapore, where its Asia Pacific headquarters are located, since the office opened in 2015. Last February, Twitter established its first APAC Engineering Centre in Singapore as part of its efforts to bring engineering capabilities closer to fast-growing audience markets in the Asia Pacific region, and later appointed home-grown talent, Silvanus Lee, as Director of the Centre. It has since expanded rapidly towards its 65 technical talent hiring goal, with teams of engineers and data scientists working on Twitter’s core product experience and global expansion.
Upskilling Singapore’s Workforce
To build upon Singapore’s existing technical competencies and the nation state’s growing demand for a skilled digital workforce, Twitter will be working with Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), as well as a number of government agencies, to develop a series of virtual immersion programmes to introduce current students, recent graduates and mid-career individuals to a range of digital skills and career opportunities in technology.
While Singapore has experienced digital acceleration since the COVID-19 outbreak, there is a need to continue closing the digital divide that has widened in many communities over the past year. To that end, Twitter is offering all Singaporeans free access to Twitter Flight School, a comprehensive digital marketing education programme which equips everyone - regardless of background - with “Twitter marketing essentials” from insights analysis, creative design to digital campaign management.
The programme has been soft launched in Q2 2021 via six IHLs and three government agencies in Singapore, and Twitter is committed to offering an unlimited number of slots in partnership with IHLs and relevant institutions for students and professionals wanting to boost their digital competitiveness.
Beyond the public education programme, Twitter is also launching specific career development opportunities tailored to women and mid-career professionals looking to break into the technology sector. These include the following two programmes over the coming months:
- #DevelopHER: a two-day virtual immersion programme introducing around 40 female computer science or engineering students to Twitter’s engineering work in the region. Participants will be divided into small groups to work on coding challenges, attend technical workshops and mentorship sessions with Twitter’s engineers.
- Twitter Career Roadshow: held in tandem with the SkillsFuture Month, Twitter will invite 200 individuals to connect directly with Twitter employees to network and seek technical advice on how to transition into the technology sector. The programme is co-designed by Twitter and SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) to address the jobs and skills needs shared by participants, and share information on the relevant SkillsFuture initiatives and support that they can tap on.
Improving Digital Literacy and Internet Safety
With the prevalence of misinformation online, as well as the permeation of digital across all aspects of life, Twitter has been working with the Singapore Government and civil society stakeholders to promote literacy and Internet safety about issues such as mental health and combating violent extremism. As of June 2021, nearly 7,000 Singaporean youths have learned about digital literacy best practices and online safety tips via Twitter’s partnerships with IHLs and local non-profit organisations.
Twitter is also committed to supporting the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA)’s Digital for Life movement via informational toolkits and community outreach sessions to share digital literacy best practices and safety tips for people on Twitter.
