Dr. Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources, urged members of the public and stakeholders to practise good public hygiene habits and social norms. Speaking at the launch of the SG Clean Ambassadors Network at Hong Kah North Single Member Constituency (SMC), Dr. Khor called for concerted and collective efforts to keep our public spaces clean and safe, by complying with safe distancing measures and adopting good hygiene habits as a way of life. These new practices and social norms are critical components of SG Clean, and serve as our first line of defence against the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) and other infectious diseases in Singapore.

To accelerate the adoption of these habits during this COVID-19 pandemic and build a ‘keep clean’ culture as a way of life, the SG Clean Ambassadors Network aims to coordinate efforts across the various sectors. The network comprises a mixture of volunteers and partners as well as newly recruited ambassadors, who share a passion to make SG Clean a way of life and help Singapore build greater resilience against the spread of diseases. The ambassadors will work with our 3P (People, Public and Private) partners including Grassroots Organisations (GROs) and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), such as the Public Hygiene Council, Restroom Association (Singapore) and Singapore Kindness Movement, to promulgate good personal habits and social norms, encourage tray return, and promote safe distancing measures at hawker centres, coffee shops and other premises.

At the launch of the SG Clean Ambassadors Network, Dr. Khor said, “Practising the 7 habits of good public hygiene and exercising new social norms, such as safe distancing, will help keep ourselves and our families safe. However these new practices may be challenging for everyone to understand and practise, hence the SG Clean Ambassadors have an important role to help heighten awareness and adoption of SG Clean measures in the wider community.”

Adopting 7 Habits of Good Public Hygiene, Adjusting Social Norms and Practising Safe Distancing

NEA aims to eventually train more than 2,000 SG Clean Ambassadors. This network will comprise volunteers from all walks of life, including Grassroots Leaders (GRLs), Litter-free volunteers, interested individuals, as well as some newly recruited ambassadors. They will be progressively deployed at our hawker centres and coffee shops, to encourage patrons to return their trays and keep tables clean, as well as practise good personal habits and social norms in the setting of our community dining rooms, as part of the SG Clean movement. They will also guide hawker centre and coffee shop patrons on safe distancing measures, such as only sitting on unmarked seats, keeping at least a 1 metre safe distance when queuing up at food stalls, as well as choosing take-out or food delivery options if seating capacity is limited.

One of NEA’s newly recruited SG Clean Ambassadors conducted outreach activities this weekend at Hawker Centre @ Our Tampines Hub, where Adviser to Tampines Grassroots Organisations, Mr. Baey Yam Keng, was also up and about with another group of volunteer SG Clean Ambassadors. Mr. Jonathan Lau shared, “In my new role, I help to educate the public on practising good social norms and personal habits, to ensure their safety and wellbeing. I am proud to perform my duty as an SG Clean Ambassador, and to be part of our national effort against COVID-19”. Mr. Jonathan Lau is a First Officer at Jetstar Asia.

Updates on the SG Clean Campaign

Launched on 16 February 2020 by Mr. Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, the SG Clean campaign seeks to rally stakeholders and members of the public to do their part, by adopting good personal habits and social responsibility, to raise standards of cleanliness and public hygiene in Singapore and safeguard public health. This includes simple habits like washing one’s hands frequently with soap, using tissues when sneezing or coughing, and disposing of litter and used tissues into trash bins instead of leaving them on tables.

To raise hygiene standards and transform the cleanliness level of our public spaces, the SG Clean campaign has involved owners of premises adopting the SG Clean quality mark to reflect their commitment to, and ownership of, maintaining high standards of environmental public hygiene at their premises. Responses towards the SG Clean quality mark have been overwhelming, with close to 7,000 premises certified SG Clean to-date. Premises that have been certified so far include hawker centres, food stalls, coffee shops, hotels, and food and retail businesses in malls and schools, amongst others.

Members of the public may refer to www.sgclean.gov.sg for more information on the SG Clean campaign. They may also contact NEA electronically via the Online Feedback Form or myENV mobile application, to provide feedback on the hygiene conditions of premises with the SG Clean quality mark.

SG Clean Ambassadors Network

Everyone can play a part in keeping themselves and others around them safe, by taking personal responsibility to adopt good personal habits at all times, and being socially responsible by practising good social norms in a community setting.

To help prevent community spread of COVID-19, it is necessary to uplift our personal hygiene habits and make adjustments to social norms in various settings in Singapore. The SG Clean Ambassadors Network will help to promote good personal habits of hygiene and encourage a shift in social norms, to help us, our families and community stay resilient and safe. For instance, in the setting of eating establishments, important social norms include using serving spoons when sharing food, eating from trays and returning them to keep tables clean, throwing away any used tissues, and washing hands before and after meals.

The SG Clean Ambassadors Network comprises volunteers and partners who share a vision and passion to make SG Clean a way of life.

SG Clean Ambassadors will:

• Lead by example, by personally practising good public hygiene habits and observing new SG Clean social norms, such as safe distancing
• Encourage everyone in their spheres of influence – family, friends, colleagues and social networks – to do the same
• Organise and take part in outreach activities (while observing prevailing public health precautionary measures) to help heighten awareness and adoption of SG Clean measures in the wider community

NEA will provide online learning and a resource package to help SG Clean Ambassadors understand their roles. The resource package will include:

• Training and e-briefing materials with which SG Clean Ambassadors will be trained as volunteer leaders to help encourage and nudge others to practise the 7 Habits of Good Public Hygiene, ‘keep clean’ social norms for different settings, and safe distancing practices
• Partners and ambassadors will have access to SG Clean materials, such as educational videos, flyers, posters and banners

NEA welcomes volunteers and partners from the community to join the SG Clean Ambassadors Network. Interested members of the public or partner organisations can sign up at: http://go.gov.sg/sgcleanambassadors