Mr Lee Yi Shyan Minister of State Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Manpower

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1 Embargoed until delivery SPEECH BY MR BRUCE POH, DIRECTOR & CEO/ITE, AT THE SHELL LiveWIRE AWARDS CEREMONY 2009 ON THURSDAY 22 OCTOBER 2009 AT 3 PM AT AUDITORIUM, ITE HEADQUARTERS, 10 DOVER DRIVE Mr Lee Yi Shyan Minister of State Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Manpower Ms Mavis Kuek General Manager, External Affairs and Communications Shell Companies in Singapore Mr Roger Lee President ITE Alumni Association Mr Lim Huan Chiang Vice-President of Editorial Services Singapore Press Holdings Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen 1

2 Introduction Good afternoon and a warm welcome to ITE. We are indeed honoured to have Mr Lee Yi Shyan joining us, as we celebrate the spirit of entrepreneurship and share in the joy of the winners of this year s SHELL LiveWIRE Awards. 2 In ITE, our ardent support towards entrepreneurial development has yielded positive results in developing a strong culture of entrepreneurship. Successful ITE Graduate Who Turned Entrepreneur 3 Let me tell you the story of Anthony Neo, one of many ITE students, who turned entrepreneur. The 30-year-old graduated from Higher Nitec in Mechatronics Engineering course at ITE College Central in May He went on to further his study in Diploma in Mechatronics Engineering at Temasek Polytechnic. 4 Instead of looking for a job like his other classmates, Anthony set up Swift Action Group. He develops unique lifestyle products and sells the prototype to a commercial 2

3 vendor. He also set up another company, Pacific Recycling Pte Ltd, which sources plastic materials for China market. 5 Running a business is not always smooth sailing. He has since closed down Pacific Recycling because business went downhill after the Beijing Olympics. But the enterprising young man persevered. While others mourned the sluggish economy, Anthony set up two new companies in the last two years. AJN, which stands for All Japan Network, supplies fishing products to Japan and ASEAN countries. Rentiz Pte Ltd rents supplies for events and weddings. 6 Anthony credits his never-say-die attitude to his education in ITE. He remembered fondly how his education here instilled in him values of tenacity, perseverance and a dogged sense of self-belief. ITE s Entrepreneurial Initiatives 7 Cultivating students like Anthony someone with the spirit of enterprise and innovation has always been an integral part of the ITE Education. We want to instill in our students an open mind. We want to motivate them to embrace change. We want to challenge them to seek 3

4 alternative or new solutions. These are fundamental qualities we want our students to learn and take with them to the workplace as an employee or as a business owner. 8 Entrepreneurship Clubs are also set up in ITE Colleges. They provide networking opportunities between students and industry, leading to beneficial sharing of experiences as well as exchange of contacts and ideas. 9 Through the Shell LiveWIRE Programme, many platforms and opportunities have been created for ITE students to cultivate and hone their thinking and entrepreneurship skills. These include sharing sessions with successful entrepreneurs, online simulation games, competitions and enterprise discovery camps. Such activities train the students to develop curiosity and to think out-ofthe-box. 10 Since 2001, ITE has partnered the Shell Companies in Singapore, the ITE Alumni Association and Singapore Press Holdings (Chinese Newspapers Division), in promoting social enterprise and entrepreneurship amongst Singaporean youths. 4

5 Recent Entrepreneurial Developments in ITE 11 Through various ITE initiatives, our students continually harness the robust enterprise energy, and shine. Recently, students from the School of Business and Services of ITE College Central did ITE proud when they came up tops in the Green Enterprise Business Plan Competition organised by Temasek Polytechnic, which was held in conjunction with GardenTech 2009 in August. Conclusion 12 We are also more than pleased to establish win-win partnerships with like-minded organisations to foster the spirit of enterprise and innovation amongst our students. We are heartened that 36 ITE graduates have started their own business since the inception of the Shell LiveWIRE programme. 13 I would like to thank the Shell Group of Companies, ITE Alumni Association and Chinese Newspaper Division of Singapore Press Holdings for your effort and commitment to make this partnership a success. 5

6 14 Last but not least, my heartiest congratulations go out to all Award winners. I wish you all the best in your entrepreneurship journey. Thank you. 6