The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre (NVPC) hosted the second City of Good Summit yesterday, bringing together over 1,000 participants from the people, private, and public sectors to foster collaboration and partnerships in philanthropy.
Themed “Nurturing the Heart of Singapore Together,” the full-day event featured a main conference, the inaugural Fundraising Forum, the third edition of the State of Play exhibition, and the BAGUS Together Groundup Evening.
Gracing the event as the Guest of Honour was Mr Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth & Second Minister for Law.
The summit also featured a keynote speech by Mr Piyush Gupta, CEO of DBS Group, and panel discussions with distinguished guests including Mr Claus Meyer, Culinary Entrepreneur and Founder of Melting Pot Foundation, and Mr Arthur Lang, Chairman of the National Kidney Foundation and Group CFO of Singtel.
Record-Breaking Giving on giving.sg in 2024
The inaugural Fundraising Forum, aimed at enhancing the fundraising capabilities of non-profits, gathered over 300 charity fundraising professionals, foundations, and funders to discuss fundraising trends and best practices.
NVPC unveiled giving.sg’s 2024 performance, which saw record-breaking donations. December 2024 recorded a total donation of $27.2 million, with $3.9 million raised on 31 December alone, the highest single-month and single-day donations in the platform’s history.
“This record-breaking donation is a powerful testament to the generosity of people in Singapore and the growing impact of digital giving. It reaffirms that giving remains accessible, seamless, and deeply meaningful when people rally behind causes they believe in. As the SG60 celebrations gain momentum, these milestones set the stage for activating even more Singaporeans and residents to give back as part of SG60. At NVPC, we remain committed to providing a trusted platform where charities can fundraise effectively, and individuals can contribute towards building a City of Good together.” Shared Ms Gemma Byrne, Deputy Director of Segments and Markets Development at NVPC.
As part of SG60, NVPC is collaborating with Community Chest on SGSHARE, a national giving campaign encouraging donations to support the wider community.
State of Play Returns with Increased Participation
The State of Play exhibition, which connects corporations with volunteering opportunities, saw its third edition expand significantly, with 60 community partners participating, three times more than in 2024.
Ms Sufei Lin, Director of Corporate and Industry Partnerships at NVPC, noted that Singapore is transitioning from one-off engagements to sustained corporate-community collaborations, leading to more meaningful impact.
Empowering SMEs Through Corporate Purpose
Building on previous initiatives, NVPC partnered with HP Singapore to launch its first structured mentorship programme, Scale with Purpose (SwP). This follows the successful corporate queen bee programmes in 2024 and coincides with HP’s 55th anniversary in Singapore. The initiative supports SMEs in embracing sustainable manufacturing and corporate responsibility.
BAGUS Together Marks First Anniversary
The BAGUS Together initiative, a collaboration between NVPC, Temasek Foundation, and Tote Board, celebrated its first anniversary with an appreciation session for groundup leaders and ecosystem partners.
Mr Lenard Pattiselanno, Senior Director of Community Leadership and Partnerships at NVPC, emphasised the increasing interest in grassroots initiatives, reinforcing the SG60 theme of collective contributions to nation-building.
