Young PAP (YP), the People’s Action Party’s youth wing, launches an academy to develop leadership skills in the next generation.
YP’s Deputy Chairman and Senior Parliamentary Secretary Syed Harun Alhabsyi announced the new Young PAP Academy at the YP 40 Festival on Jul 4, which marked YP’s 40th anniversary. Held at the Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre, it drew more than 1,200 youth activists from the PAP and National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).
The academy will work with partners like NTUC’s youth wing to engage and connect youth through networking, mentorship and leadership programmes.
The academy’s flagship programme prepares current and future branch YP chairpersons to lead with clarity, courage, and conviction. This introductory programme for emerging leaders develops participants across three core dimensions: self, team, and politics. Each three-month run accepts 20 young leaders, with sessions held twice monthly.
The academy will also provide online resources sharing best practices for ground engagement and deepening members’ understanding of party values. It will conduct in-person training at Meet-the-People Sessions, house visits, and party leader engagements, giving members first-hand exposure to serving residents and strengthening communities.
Dr Syed Harun, MP for Nee Soon GRC, said that through YP Academy, YP hopes to develop leadership not only within the party and Singapore, but globally.
“For many of you, we want to help you become better leaders within the state, thought leaders of tomorrow, and the innovators of the future.”
New fellowship to pilot community initiatives
The youth academy will include a new YP 40 Under 40 Fellowship to help 40 selected YP activists aged 40 and below pilot or expand community initiatives.
YP Adviser Hazlina Abdul Halim introduced the fellowship at the event. The programme will award $5,000 project seed grants to two categories of youth activists: emerging leaders aged 18 to 25, and impact leaders aged 26 to 40.
Industry mentors and senior party leaders will guide the selected young leaders as they develop actionable plans to benefit their communities by mid-2027.
PAP can continue to govern well if party is renewed with ‘good people’ willing to serve: Sec-Gen Wong
At the event, PAP Secretary-General Lawrence Wong told the audience that the PAP needs “good people who are willing to serve” to continue governing Singapore well.
He noted that that some young people are naturally drawn to the “underdog” rather than an established political party, but the “real competition we face is not within Singapore” but with the rest of the world.
“We are competing against countries with much larger populations, bigger markets, and far greater resources, and in that arena, Singapore has been and will always be the underdog,” he explained.
Sec-Gen Wong, who is also the prime minister, added that PAP’s past achievements do not guarantee future success.
“Every generation must bring with them their fresh ideas, new energy, and a renewed sense of responsibility to take our country forward,” he said.
”The PAP can continue to govern Singapore well only if every generation renews our party with good people who are willing to serve.”
During the address, Sec-Gen Wong also highlighted that PAP needed good people willing to step forward to sustain the kind of politics it stood for.
“We are entering a very different world, a changed world. It is full of geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty,” he said.
He said that in many places, politics was no longer about helping societies solve problems. Instead, politicians “amplify outrage” to win support, engage in “performative politics and points scoring over solving serious problems”, he added.
“The PAP believes in a different kind of politics. We do not believe that the answer is to stoke anger, deepen divides, or give in to cynicism,” he said.
“The answer is to roll up our sleeves, bridge our divides, and solve problems through our actions. That is the politics we want for Singapore. That is the politics that the PAP will always stand for.”
Sec-Gen Wong urged young Singaporeans who cared about Singapore’s future and had ideas on how to improve the country to join the party. He added that the Party needed a diversity of perspectives.
“You do not have to agree with us on every single issue. In fact, it’s the opposite. We want people with different experiences, perspectives, and ideas to tackle our challenges together and respond to them effectively.”
Sec-Gen Wong also urged existing activists to widen the party’s circle by reaching out to friends who cared about Singapore and creating spaces where their ideas and contributions would matter.
While there will always be people who have negative views on politics, he cautioned against giving into the kind of belief system that negates the worth of politics, or its ability to change things for the better.
“When that happens, remember: Singapore was built by young men and women who refused to give in to cynicism,” he said.
YP’s central focus is to identify, recruit, and empower young leaders
Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the event, Alvin Tan, Chairperson of the PAP, said that YP’s central focus is to identify, recruit, and empower young leaders for the party, the community, and the nation.
“We always need to look for the next person willing to step up, a young person who feels strongly about the nation and wants to do more for society. We hope they will choose the Young PAP, and we are making it easier by articulating our vision and providing them with leadership skill sets.”
Previous YP chairmen attended the gathering, including Lim Swee Say, Teo Ser Luck, Chan Chun Sing, Vivian Balakrishnan and Janil Puthucheary.
