SINGAPORE - More underprivileged families with school-going children and youth will be able to get support through a new fund launched on Jan 3.

Non-profit organisation 4PM launched a Family and Youth Development Fund to garner donations from the public to expand its programmes – which include mentoring and financial literacy classes – and support more beneficiaries.

It aims to raise around $500,000 in 2024 to support up to 900 beneficiaries, consisting of 500 needy families and 400 young people. In 2023, the organisation helped 400 families during its annual Ramadan-on-Wheels food ration programme, as well as 400 young people.

4PM stands for Persatuan Persuratan Pemuda Pemudi Melayu, or Malay Youth Literary Association. It supports mostly Malay and Muslim families.

One of the programmes that the fund will help is a mentoring programme for the bottom 20 per cent of Malay/Muslim underperformers enrolled at the Institute of Technical Education (ITE).

Volunteers conduct mentoring sessions with these students and try to find out more about their life outside of school to understand their struggles and offer guidance.

These at-risk youth are also coached by professionals in different industries like technology and new media, and given job-shadowing opportunities during the school holidays.

Speaking to The Straits Times, the president of 4PM, Mr Nassar Mohamad Zain, said: “We want to make sure that they remain in the school system and at least graduate with an ITE certificate, and then we will journey with them to the next level of their aspirations.”

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman, who attended the launch of the fund on Jan 3 in Wisma Geylang Serai, said the focus on improving the well-being of underprivileged families and supporting their children’s education is an investment in the future of the community and country.

Dr Maliki, who is also Second Minister for Education, said: “Such programmes also empower our youth from low-income households to break the cycle of disadvantage and provide opportunities for them to achieve greater heights for themselves and their families.”

He added: “This is an investment in the very fabric of our society. It is about breaking the cycles of adversity, providing wings to realise aspirations, and opening doors to opportunities that might otherwise remain closed or inaccessible.”

4PM’s new fund will also help lower-income elderly people who may be struggling with social isolation and loneliness by assigning a volunteer befriender to journey with them for six months.

The volunteers will take the elderly individuals out to shop for household items and encourage them to attend enrichment courses that can help them stay connected with the world, such as mental health workshops and digital literacy classes.

Mr Nassar said the organisation noticed a spike in issues like loneliness among its elderly beneficiaries, partly due to the isolation faced during the Covid-19 pandemic.

He added: “It’s hard for them to let go of that feeling of loneliness, and we want to do our best to help them in their old age.”

For underprivileged families with school-going children, many of whom live in public rental housing, volunteers will befriend the families and offer support to help them gain stability. This is done through financial literacy classes, upskilling, and ensuring their children have enough supplies for school, such as laptops.

Members of the public can donate to the fund at www.4pm.sg