Publications from ODSW Social Insights: Letters by DSW (Vol 2) | Page 157

Special Editions
‘the invisible hand of the market has often relied on the visible hand of
government.’ Singapore’s experience is that market principles are necessary
to help the government to work better, and a good government is necessary
to help markets work better. This is not to suggest that Singapore has got
the balance right; far from it (Menon, 2010). The reality is that we are a
nation-state, and we need to constantly experiment to see what works best.
The role of the government is to work with the market and the many helping
hands. In order to effectively do this, the responsibilities of the government
may have to expand to include enabling, regulating, stabilising and
legitimising markets so that they can work better. Getting the balance right
between markets, the many helping hands and government will be the key
to improving the standard of living and the welfare of Singaporean citizens.
Social development must build human capacities and afford opportunities
to enable citizens, regardless of their background and social identity, to fulfil
their potentials and enable full participation.
Yet for social services to further develop, four key things need to be done:
1) Individuals must continue participating and facilitating mutual support
and building the community
2) Service providers need to offer alternative and innovate and improve
services
3) Public servants need to continuously ensure that the just-in-time services
provided are appropriate and relevant to the needs of the people
4) The government needs to communicate with diversity of constituents in
mind to ensure that information and help are understood by users.
Only when each sector does what it needs and works together to provide
for the needs of our vulnerable communities can Singapore continue to
keep the social safety net in good working condition.

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