14 New Members Appointed to the National Productivity and Continuing Education Council (NPCEC)

1. The National Productivity and Continuing Education Council (NPCEC) announced today, a new two-year term of office (1 April 2012 to 31 March 2014) for 25 members. Fourteen of them are newly appointed while 11 existing members have been re-appointed for continuity. New members on the Council include a business consultant and an academic.
2. Chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, the NPCEC oversees and drives the national effort to boost productivity. The Council comprises members from the unions, and the private and public sectors. (Please refer to Annex A for the full list of Council Members.)
3. Since the formation of the NPCEC in April 2010, the Council has developed a sector-based strategy to improve national productivity by 2 to 3 per cent per annum over the next 10 years. Following the initial identification of 12 priority sectors, the Council has since completed 11 productivity roadmaps.
4. Early this year, the Council also identified 4 new sectors of interest, namely, process construction & maintenance, financial services, accountancy and social services. This brings the total number of sectors identified by NPCEC to 16, covering about 55% of Singapore’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 60% of employment. (Please refer to Annex B for the list of 16 sectors.) The NPCEC has also mounted the nation-wide public outreach effort Way To Go, Singapore! to bring home to workers and companies the benefits of productivity enhancements in the workplace.
5. DPM Tharman said, “Since its formation, the NPCEC has been working closely with the Private, Public and People sectors to drive this national effort to raise productivity as the basis for sustainable growth of incomes and inclusive growth. For the new term, we have brought more members into the NPCEC, to add diverse perspectives, including from SMEs and the services sector. I would like to express my strong appreciation to the out-going members for their invaluable contributions in helping to drive the national productivity effort over the last two years.”