Mr. Chairman, navigating a world that has become more contested, more fragmented, and ultimately more dangerous demands not just a capable foreign service — but a geopolitically literate citizenry to stand behind it.
I say this having served nearly seven years as a Singapore diplomat. I know firsthand that our foreign policy is only as strong as the domestic understanding behind it. Our diplomats are skilled. But our foreign policy choices often involve navigating between imperfect options — not choosing between right and wrong.
And when difficult decisions must be made — whether to take positions that may temporarily strain relationships or navigate between competing interests — those choices are much harder to sustain without a public that understands why we make them. Domestic geopolitical literacy is not a soft complement to foreign policy. It is the foundation that makes hard choices possible.
I appreciate MFA’s efforts on this front. Since January 2024, it has conducted some 150 dialogue sessions and workshops with students, youth, and businesses. This is a good start. But engagement and literacy are not the same thing, especially as several Members of this House have highlighted, in an era where geopolitical actors actively shape public narratives through digital channels.
A dialogue session raises awareness. Building literacy requires the same cumulative approach we apply to other 21st century core competencies — layered across years, integrated into multiple disciplines, reinforced over time.
I urge MFA to work more deeply with MOE to embed geopolitical literacy throughout the curriculum from secondary school onward. Our students should graduate understanding how Singapore’s prosperity depends on regional peace and open trade routes; why our stance on international law serves concrete national interests; and how global shifts in technology, climate and demography will reshape the world they inherit.
A Singapore that understands the world it lives in is a Singapore that can make hard choices and hold them. That is the kind of resilience that no budget line can buy directly — but which only good education can build, over time.
