DBS Foundation will contribute $1.5 million to the national Digital for Life (DfL) Fund to support digital projects that address ageing-related needs. With the government’s dollar-for-dollar matching, the donation totals up to $3 million — making it the largest corporate donor to the DfL fund, which provides grants to individuals and non-profit organisations driving digital inclusion projects.
In addition, DBS Foundation will work with the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) to develop a new Generative AI (GenAI) curriculum and roll out 1,000 workshops islandwide with the support of the bank’s employees.
According to an Aug 4 announcement, these workshops seek to equip participants with the tools, skills and confidence to embrace digital learning and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.
DBS Foundation and IMDA aim to collectively reach out to 250,000 individuals — including senior citizens, youth, and individuals with special needs — over three years.
The renewed commitment builds on an earlier partnership between DBS Foundation and IMDA to bridge a “digital divide” in the community.
In 2022, DBS Foundation contributed $1 million to the DfL movement, inclusive of the government’s matched funding, and mobilised the bank’s employees to organise 680 digital literacy workshops over two years, which benefitted more than 150,000 people.
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DBS Singapore country head Lim Him Chuan says: “As Singapore prepares to transition to a super-aged society, we want to ensure that everyone is empowered to embrace digitalisation and participate meaningfully in the evolving digital world. Besides widening access to technology, we are enabling beneficiaries to understand what GenAI is and how it works, as well as to boost their confidence to navigate it well. More importantly, through the hands-on learning experiences facilitated by our colleagues in the bank, we hope to create opportunities for everyone across generations to collectively shape an AI-integrated world that they can thrive in.”
Doreen Tan, IMDA’s assistant CEO of strategic planning and digital readiness, says seniors have grown confident in using e-payments and master digital skills, including using AI for daily living tasks. “This is what the DfL movement is about — rallying like-minded partners to make sure every Singaporean can thrive in our digital future.”
The donation is the latest in a series of efforts under the bank’s $1 billion commitment over 10 years to uplift lives and livelihoods of vulnerable segments and create enduring change. Under the 2024 commitment, DBS also pledged to contribute 1.5 million employee volunteer hours over the decade.
Earlier this year, DBS Foundation launched a $7.3 million programme aimed at tackling issues of social isolation and poor nutrition among vulnerable seniors by providing deep, comprehensive and sustained support. The 6,000 participating seniors enjoy twice-weekly nutritious communal meals, monthly social and enrichment activities, as well as quarterly grocery shopping outings, among others.
