Previously, digital readiness efforts were primarily led by the government with some corporate volunteerism support and ad-hoc ground up efforts. However, since COVID-19, many organisations have stepped forward on the digital inclusion front. Through MCI/IMDA’s Emerging Stronger Conversation on Digital Readiness, which engaged a wide range of stakeholders across the community and industry, many organisations have expressed keen interest to work together to further the digital inclusion cause. The Digital for Life (DfL) movement aims to mobilise the Public-Private-People sector network as a unified effort and galvanise the community to help all Singaporeans embrace digital as a lifelong pursuit and enrich their lives using digital.

Further, to uplift digital tools, skills and habit of all Singaporeans in a rapidly changing digital landscape and help build a digitally inclusive society, the DfL movement was established to support projects and activities that promote:

a) Digital Technology and Inclusion – building digital resilience, and exciting different segments of society on how new digital technologies can enrich their daily lives,
b) Digital Literacy and Wellness – promoting good digital habits as society engages in the digital domain, including in the areas of cyber safety, media literacy and mitigating the risks of online harms.

To grow the DfL ecosystem, supporting platforms, resources and funding are provided to support programme development and execution. Potential 3P entities requiring funding support to scale their projects can tap on the DfL Fund, established to support community projects and activities aligned to the two pillars of DfL.

Since its launch in Feb 2021 the number of participating organisations has grown to more than 100 partners and projects which have benefitted more than 50,000 people across various segments ranging from youths, seniors, disadvantaged groups, families, women, persons with disabilities to hawkers.

https://www.imda.gov.sg/digitalforlife

• Singapore

• Youth
• Older persons
• Women
• People with disabilities
• The unemployed
• The poor

In replicating the project, there are a few key areas that should be taken into consideration to start such a movement –

1. Area of Needs in Digital Inclusion that are specific to country’s needs.
• A clear area of needs and gaps needs to be articulated to partners so that they can complement government efforts and lend support in areas that are lacking

2. Marketing & Publicity
• Awareness of the movement is key when the movement is still in its nascent stage, as such, marketing through social media, mass public events etc. would be necessary to spread awareness of the movement and gain traction

3. Benefits to the participating organisations
• Depending on resources available, one of the key “benefits” to the partner could be seed funding to offset some operating costs and publicity as a key partner of the movement.

4. Areas of contribution by participating organisations
• To determine areas of contribution that partners/organisations can play a part in, specific to the needs and interest of the overarching goal of the movement. Eg. volunteering, donating, helping to publicise

5. Goal of achieving a broader base of partners, followed by quality partnerships
• To spread the movement, it would be important to create a low barrier of entry to participate in the movement, so that more partners would be more willing to join the movement
• Thereafter, partnerships could be sieved out and further cultivated to help to groom quality partnerships or “top tier” partners who could help to proliferate the movement and be the ambassador.

The Digital for Life movement adopts a framework for partners to be able to contribute/play a part in, specifically in these areas –
a. Start a Project
b. Volunteer
c. Content Partner
d. Channel Partner
e. Publicity Partner
f. Donate
g. Apply for DfL Fund
h. Lend your expertise

It is a self-sustainable ecosystem as the movement aims to reach out to both “demand” and “supply” partners, with “demand” partners referring to partners who has specific needs eg. charities or non-profit organisations who need volunteers to teach seniors basic digital skills, and “supply” partners referring to partners who are able to provide resources eg. corporate staff volunteers who are willing to teach digital skills, and donation of funds as part of CSR. With the movement being the middleground and a platform for both demand/supply partners to meet each other, it allows for partners to meet other likeminded partners, collaborate and close the gaps.

The DfL movement aims to promote the WSIS values of equality, solidarity and shared responsibility. The movement is designed to engage the corporates, community groups, government and individuals to pay it forward and help more Singaporeans enjoy better quality of life through technology. This is especially so in light of the COVID-19 pandemic which has hastened Singapore’s digitalisation efforts, but also the potential to widen the digital divide. Going digital has become a way of life, as a live in a digital universe filled with many wonders. From education, finance and medica, to music, games and shopping, the digital life connects us to these and more, enriching our lives. Ensuring that everyone embraces digital as a lifelong pursuit to enrich their lives so that no one is left behind in Singapore’s journey into the digital future, is a national effort. IMDA reaches out to a broad network of partners from corporates, community organisations to individuals to share the responsibility of providing help to vulnerable segments of the population so that Singapore can be a digitally inclusive society. With the robust conversations and connections made in the DfL ecosystem, IMDA hopes to establish more 3P partnerships in empowering Singaporeans, regardless of race or language, have equal access to confidently and competently adopt digital technology for life, work and play.