Engaging with young entrepreneurs

Mr Thomas Chua, President of SCCCI

Ms Annie Gan, Chairperson, SCCCI YEN

Council members of SCCCI and friends

1. Please allow me to say a few words in Chinese, then I will continue with English after that. 

   各位先生、女士们，大家晚上好！ 

   今晚，我很荣幸受邀出席新加坡中华总商会青年企业家联系网的十年庆。

   青企网是一个由年轻人为年轻一代的商人和专业人士发起的一个交流平台。至今，青企网的成绩是大家有目共睹的。

   我相信在座有不少嘉宾都就是因为拥有梦想、有创业的理念，所以才会成为今天的企业家。所谓一份耕耘，一份收获。你们今天的成就都是靠你们的努力及奋斗换回来的。恭喜你们！

   大家都知道，要做为一名企业家，是需要有勇于梦想、敢于探索，并承担风险的精神。我们的建国一代，何尝不是拥有这种不屈不挠的精神和永不言败的态度。他们的努力，他们的牺牲，我们才有今天的新加坡。

   因此，我希望年轻一代的企业家可以延续建国一代所拥有的奋斗精神，再接再厉。我有信心我们年轻的朋友们也可以成为下一代商界的领袖。最后，祝大家身体健康，万事如意。谢谢！ 

2. It’s very good to join all of you for the 10th anniversary of the SCCCI’s Young Entrepreneurs Network, or YEN in short.

3. I understand that YEN was started in 2004, ten years ago. Over the years, the network has continued to grow and develop. You have many young professionals, entrepreneurs in your midst. Your mission is an admirable one – to nurture the next generation of entrepreneurs in Singapore, and to promote local enterprises. 

4. The results that you have achieved over the last 10 years speak for themselves. Today, you have an extensive network of successful young entrepreneurs, aged not more than 45 years old. You have a very promising network of entrepreneur running some of Singapore’s most promising companies, trading across Asia and the rest of the world. So let me congratulate all of you at the YEN, congratulations to the Chairman and committee for the good work that you’ve done. I think we should give them all a big round of applause.

5. Singapore is a very small country but we do have a long and proud history of entrepreneurship and that tradition dates back to our early immigrants. Many of us would be familiar with the prominent high profile names, people like Mr Lee Kong Chian, Mr Tan Kah Kee and Mr Tan Lark Sye. They were people in the early days, who came here and became very successful businessmen and then gave back to society. 

6. But besides these prominent success stories, there were many ordinary Singaporeans who were entrepreneurs in their own right. Many of our forefathers were entrepreneurs. They may not be prominent successful businessmen but they took risks, they worked hard, they were innovative and enterprising and they created a better life for themselves and their families.

7. Take the example of my family. My paternal grandfather came from Hainan Island after the Second World War. He came with his two children, my dad and my uncle, empty-handed, came to Malaysia. At that time, the Hainanese happened to be the last of the dialect groups to come to Southeast Asia. That’s why there were no jobs already. All the other jobs were dominated by all the other dialect groups. That’s why the Hainanese are so good at cooking, because the only job left is to cook. It’s a true story. That is why you have Hainanese Chicken Rice, Hainanese Kopitiam. All the jobs were done by Hainanese because we were the last to come to Southeast Asia. So it was the case of my grandfather. There were no more jobs and he became a chef, he cooked in a British Club, and did many other odd-jobs. He was able to make enough money to get an education for my father, who eventually got a job as a teacher in Malaysia and then after that, came to Singapore to work for a company. So that was my grandfather’s story on my dad’s side.

8. On my mum’s side, he was born in Singapore, he grew up in a Malay kampong in Singapore. He survived the Japanese occupation, and made a living as a fisherman. He always went out to the kelongs, fishing in his boat and he would sell the fishes in the market. Not a lot of money, but it was enough for him to raise a family of 7 children. He also did odd jobs as well. There were 7 children, including my mother, he sent quite a number of them to school. Eventually the rest of the family managed to do well.

9. So this is my story. I’m sure all of you, we have many young people here, if you ask your parents or grandparents, there would be interesting stories as well. They may not be successful, high profiled businessmen but I’m sure all of them started out without very much and in their own enterprising ways, made a living and created a better life for themselves and now for all of you.

10. So I think this reflects on the spirit of our pioneers in Singapore. It’s a spirit of enterprise and resilience; it's a never-say-die, never-give-up attitude. It is a spirit which I hope we can continue to uphold and I hope that YEN will uphold this spirit in our young entrepreneurs today.

11. Equally important is this sense that we have a duty to give back to society, contribute to the larger good, and make a difference in the lives of other people. The journey to success is seldom made alone. Just as others have helped us along the way, I think it is important that we find ways in which we can give back and help others.

12. So I’m glad that the YEN has been emphasising this importance passing on Chinese moral values and business ethics. This was a point which Annie mentioned in the video just now, so as to nurture a new generation of socially responsible entrepreneurs and business leaders in Singapore. I understand that some of our established business leaders are already involved in mentoring young professionals. I think it is useful to have more mentoring network, so that our young entrepreneurs, businessmen and women pick up useful business tips, but also inculcate the core values that will guide them through the rest of their lives. 

13. I’m also glad to hear that YEN has also been involved in many initiatives to give back to the community. For example organising many community outreach activities, including visits to Bright Vision Hospital, and organised outings for children and parents from the HELP Family Service Centre. These are wonderful initiatives and I want to thank all of you for actively playing a role in helping to uplift the community!

14. Finally, I congratulate once again the SCCCI and YEN on this special occasion. It is a special occasion for two reasons. It is your 10th anniversary but it is also the 50th anniversary for Singapore. So it is 10 and 50, our Golden Jubilee this year. So there are many things you can do to celebrate. The Chambers has some plans which the SCCCI President has highlighted. I hope all of you young entrepreneurs will also come up with your own initiative to celebrate our Golden Jubilee.

15. Together, let us build a vibrant business network in Singapore that not only drives the economy, but also help us build a strong community. Thank you and I wish you a very pleasant evening ahead.