Release Date : 23 Apr 2011
Mr Lim Hng Kiang
Minister for Trade and Industry, and Advisor to Telok Blangah Grassroots Organisations
Mr S Iswaran
Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry, and Ministry of Education,
and Advisor to Ayer Rajah-West Coast Grassroots Organisations
Mr Arthur Fong
Advisor to Clementi Grassroots Organisations
Mdm Ho Geok Choo
Advisor to Boon Lay Grassroots Organisations
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
1. Good morning, it is my great pleasure to welcome you to the official opening of the Clementi Public Library.
2. Just last month, the Serangoon Public Library opened its door to the public and I am happy to share that we have since welcomed more than183,000 visitors and loaned out more than 173,000 items. With the opening of the Clementi Public Library, Singaporeans now have 24 public libraries across Singapore.
3. Reading is a fundamental skill that opens the windows to new worlds. It also benefits intellectual growth. The results of the Programme for International Student Assessment 2009 (PISA) showed that students who enjoyed reading were also the same ones who scored the highest in reading assessments and performed significantly better in reading literacy tests.
4. With many schools in this area, we have stocked the Clementi Public Library with a wide variety of books for the Young People's and Children's Collections. We have 67,000 children's books, including baby books, picture books and Children's Fiction. There are also 83,000 fiction and non-fiction books in the Adults' and Young People's Collections, and over 400 magazine titles to choose from. Altogether, Clementi Public Library has 150,000 books, magazines and audio-visual materials.
5. Clementi Public Library will offer two unique and innovative services. The first is the Mystery Brown Bag service. This is targeted at the lunchtime crowd. Books will be pre-packed by our librarians according to popular subjects and themes such as health & fitness, information technology, romance and movie tie-ins for those who want to read but have little time to spare for extended browsing.
6. The other service is the Interactive Digital Storytelling Kiosk which is a first to be introduced at our public libraries. Using the touchscreen or keyboard, children will be able to interactively read and listen to a variety of books. Through this, we hope to delight our younger users in stories from an early age.
7. We have worked closely with various partners such as the National Heritage Board to develop library services and programmes relevant to our users. One example is the “Heritage Games Gallery” by the National Heritage Board which showcases nine popular yesteryear recreational games, such as Hopscotch, Marbles, and Five Stones, amongst others. Through traditional game-play, we hope our children will experience and gain a better understanding of Singapore's heritage and culture. A series of communitybased programmes have also been lined up for the next six months. These include storytelling sessions for children and Yummy Trail @ Clementi, where participants can learn more about the origin and history of popular food in Clementi.
8. Finally, I would like to thank Minister Lim for gracing this opening. I would also like to extend my deep appreciation to all the Grassroots Advisors and leaders, residents, partners and our staff for their strong support in bringing the Clementi Public Library to fruition.
9. Thank you.