LIFELONG LEARNER AWARDS 2006
President S R Nathan hands out awards to 16 individuals and seven companies

Sixteen individuals and seven companies are the deserving winners of the Lifelong Learner Awards (LLA) 2006 for their tenacious efforts in embracing lifelong learning to enhance employability and productivity.

LLA 2006 is organised by MediaCorp Radio in partnership with the Singapore Workforce Development Agency, the National Trades Union Congress and SPRING Singapore. To bring home the message that lifelong learning is a means to improving the competitiveness of businesses, the winners were judged not only on efforts that added to the employability of the workers but also on how the learning contributed to higher productivity at work.

The winners will receive their awards from President S R Nathan at the Lifelong Learner Awards Presentation Ceremony on 7 December 2006 at Four Seasons Hotel. They are testimonies that the robust economic times in Singapore are but a lull for learning so that workers will be ready for the challenges that come with intensifying global competition and volatile economic cycles.

The winners were picked after a nationwide search that threw up a record of more than 1,200 nominations – a 70% increase over 2005 and the highest number received in the Awards’ five-year history. The Individual Category winners include a school dropout-turned-sailor who made good, a retrenched factory staff who overcame fears to enter a high-tech industry and a Chinese-educated restaurant staff who picked up English and IT skills to be more productive at work. The Corporate Category winners represent a good mix of small and big businesses which show that a supportive environment for lifelong learning is possible at every workplace.

Says the chairperson of the LLA judging panel, Dr Ahmad Magad, Member of Parliament for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC: “Overall, the judging and selection process has been truly challenging for the judges as all the companies and individuals that were short-listed for this exercise have not only met and exceeded the basic selection criteria but were also inspiring and exemplary in their own unique ways. The final choices really boiled down to examining and singling out the differentiating and exceptional areas that they excel in.”

Other distinguished members on the panel of judges are:

· Mr Thomas Tay – General Secretary, Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union
· Mr M Rajaram – Chairman, Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce
· Ms Dilys Boey – Partner, Ernst & Young Associates
· Mr Asaad Sameer Bagharib – Senior Vice President, Technology & New Media, MediaCorp Radio

Recipients of the Individual Category Award will each be awarded a certificate and a cash prize of $500 while their nominator receives $200. The winners are encouraged to use the cash prize for further learning and training opportunities. For the Corporate Category Award, each winning company will receive a plaque while their nominator receives $200.

Issued jointly by MediaCorp Radio, Singapore Workforce Development Agency, SPRING Singapore and National Trades Union Congress.

For more information on the winners, please visit http://www.mediacorpradio.sg/LLA2006