Merchant Participation in CDC Vouchers Scheme

233. Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) whether the Ministry considers the availability of halal options when soliciting merchant participation in the CDC Vouchers scheme; and (b) if not, how does it avoid disadvantaging Muslim households.

Response:

1. Mr Edwin Tong Chun Fai: Mr Speaker, I am answering in my capacity as the Minister charged with the responsibility for the People’s Association. The CDC Vouchers Scheme aims to help Singaporeans households cope with the cost of living and support hawkers and heartland merchants.

2. Since October 2021, CDCs have been engaging hawkers, both halal and non halal, as well as merchants in the heartlands and onboarding them onto the Scheme. CDCs also work closely with associations like the Federation of Merchants' Association, Singapore and Heartland Enterprise Centre Singapore as well as various merchant and hawker associations, to reach out to the merchants and hawkers.

3. To date, we have onboarded over 23,000 hawkers and heartland merchants on the CDC Voucher scheme.  The CDCs will continue to reach out to a broad spectrum of heartland merchants and hawkers so that Singaporean households can benefit from more options to spend their CDC Vouchers.