Singapore Hawkers' Celebration and Awards 2025 - Ms Goh Hanyan

Good afternoon, everyone. I'm happy to be here today at the Singapore Hawkers' Celebration and Awards 2025. This event is organised by The Federation of Merchants' Associations, Singapore (FMAS) and supported by the National Environment Agency (NEA) and the National Heritage Board (NHB).

This year marks Singapore's 60th birthday. For the past 60 years, hawkers have been a huge part of our nation building journey. Our hawker food is something we're truly proud of and it's part of who we are as Singaporeans. We're always thinking about which hawker centre to visit for our favourite chicken rice, char kway teow, roti prata or mee rebus.

Like many Singaporeans, hawker food has been part of my life since childhood. When I was growing up at Rangoon Road, I have fond memories of Sunday breakfasts. My dad would da pao food from Pek Kio Market – chwee kueh, zai mi fen, nasi lemak in small packets. Later, when I was a student, many of my meals were with classmates at Ghim Moh Market. It was our go-to place after class for thosai, duck rice, and chwee kueh, again – one of my favourite dishes and I understand, one of our awardees today as well!

When I was working overseas in the US, I saw how Singaporeans were all trying to recreate their own versions of hawker food – bak chor mee, chicken rice, bak kut teh – to cure our homesickness. And when overseas friends visit Singapore, the first question is always "have you tried our hawker food?"

This shows how deeply ingrained hawker culture is in our identity as Singaporeans. Our hawker culture exists because of you, our hawkers. As we saw in the video earlier, our hawker culture is what it is today because of your hard work, your determination, and your love for good food. That's why we're here today, to celebrate all of you.

Celebrating Our Hawkers

I'm really pleased that today, FMAS will be giving out awards to recognise our hawkers in three areas. First, heritage hawkers who have kept traditional recipes alive and passed on their cooking methods to the next generation. Second, enterprising hawkers who have found new ways to run their businesses. And third, hawker mentors who have spent time and effort guiding new hawkers.

The video we just watched showed us some of our heritage and enterprising hawkers. Keeping traditional recipes and cooking methods alive, so that future generations can enjoy traditional flavours, takes a lot of work. This is even harder in today's fast-changing world, where younger people's tastes keep changing.

Let me share an example. Many of you probably know Warong Pak Sapari. Located at Adam Food Centre, Mr Sumadi bin Sapari's stall won the Michelin Bib Gourmand. But today, we want to share his story about heritage and how he has not just kept but also expanded traditional flavours. Creating the Mee Rebus and Mee Soto we know today at Warong Pak Sapari wasn't easy. Mr Sumadi and his father travelled to Indonesia to study different versions of these dishes. The broth they created with lemongrass and spices was made to suit Singaporean tastes. Today, Warong Pak Sapari is a third-generation business. Mr Sumadi keeps his father's heritage alive by creating a paste that's now sold commercially, letting more Singaporeans taste this tradition.

Also at Adam Food Centre, Mr Syed Abdul Rahaman from Bahrakath Mutton Soup has kept his family's traditional recipes and cooking methods. Over the years, he has grown his business without losing the traditional taste and quality. Mr Sumadi and Mr Syed show the same spirit that many of you have. As Singapore changes, you have adapted too.

Our young hawkers are taking the hawker trade in exciting new directions. Take Mr Lau Wei Yong at Spicelios in Amoy Street Food Centre, who sells traditional biryani and fusion wraps. He uses technology – from online ordering platforms to modern ovens – to work more efficiently. Like many enterprising hawkers, Mr Lau shows how new ideas can help hawkers succeed. In today's digital world, social media has become a key part of doing business. Many hawkers, like Ms Ngoo Hui Shen from SALT Singapore, have been using Instagram and TikTok to reach more customers.

While we celebrate our heritage and culture, it's just as important to pass it on to the next generation. Among us today are mentors who have given their time and shared their knowledge to guide new hawkers. These mentors have helped keep our hawker culture alive for future generations. We'll hear more from our award winners about their experiences later. I'm excited to learn about their journey as hawkers and look forward to celebrating their achievements with all of you.

I'd like to congratulate in advance all winners and nominees. Thank you for your dedication in keeping our hawker culture alive and thriving.

Embracing Tomorrow for Hawkers

Looking ahead, our hawker culture will keep evolving. But you – our hawkers – will continue to be at the heart of it all. This is why the Government remains committed to supporting you. Government agencies have worked together to make rules simpler for hawkers.

Agencies including NEA, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS), and the Singapore Police Force (SPF) have improved the Hawkers Service Journey for you.First, NEA and MTI have made it easier to find support for hawker services. The 'Becoming a Hawker' platform puts everything in one place. This includes guidance for new hawkers, information on tenancy and licensing requirements, and direct links to apply for licences.

Next, we've also made licensing easier. MUIS is using a risk-based approach for Halal certification. This means that compliant establishments can get faster approvals and longer licence periods.SPF is also extending licence periods and reducing processing timessides these efforts, NEA also runs many schemes and programmes for hawkers.

For those wanting to enter the trade, I encourage you to consider our Incubation Stall Programme. This lets you rent a stall at a lower cost for a trial period. You can use this time to see if the trade is right for you. For those already in the trade, make use of the Hawkers Productivity Grant to buy equipment that will help you work more efficiently. For those retiring from the trade, consider joining the Hawkers Succession Scheme to pass down your recipes and skills to the next generation of hawkers.

Call for Community Involvement

The hawker community can also come together to support one another, whether you are hawkers or customers. I encourage the community to partner with us in promoting our hawker culture. You can apply for NEA's Vibrant Hawker Culture Programme which supports community projects that celebrate this heritage. You can use this to run activities at hawker centres, interactive exhibitions, or even social media campaigns.

We also want to hear directly from the community. This year, FMAS has asked Singaporeans to vote for hawker centres in two awards. First, the Healthier Dining Hawker Centre Award, which recognises hawker centres that promote healthier dining. Second, the Favourite Hawker Centre Award, which celebrates hawker centres that have won the hearts of Singaporeans as community dining spaces. I'm excited to find out which hawker centres will win these awards!

Conclusion

Hawker culture has come a long way. While the hawker landscape may continue changing, hawkers remain at the heart of our efforts. We are committed to protecting our hawker heritage and will continue to work with FMAS, Hawker Associations, and the community to support you. I thank FMAS for organising this year's Singapore Hawkers' Celebration and Awards and once again congratulate all winners and nominees.

I will now say a few words in Mandarin.

今年是新加坡独立60周年。在过去60年里，小贩们为国家建设作出了重要贡献。正是你们坚韧不拔、拼搏的精神，以及对美食的热爱，造就了今天的小贩文化。小贩美食已成为我们国人引以为豪和身份认同的重要部分。今天我们聚集在这里，就是要庆祝并认可每一位小贩。

展望未来，小贩文化会不断演变。但是，小贩始终是小贩文化的核心，政府会持续支持你们。 经过各政府机构的通力合作，我们为小贩们改善了服务历程并简化了条例。参与的机构包括国家环境局（NEA）、贸工部（MTI）、新加坡回教理事会（MUIS）以及新加坡警察部队（SPF）等其他政府机构。

首先，环境局和贸工部让小贩更容易获得帮助。环境局网站的“如何成为小贩”平台提供一站式服务。新手小贩可以通过这个平台获得关于如何起步小贩业务的信息。同时，所有小贩都能在平台找到租约和执照的重要资讯。小贩也能够直接申请营业执照。

其次，我们简化了执照申请程序。政府机构将延长部分小贩相关执照的有效期，并缩短申请处理时间。

除了这些新措施，环境局现有的各项计划和补贴，也会继续支持我们的小贩。对于想进入小贩行业的新手，我鼓励你们参加“培育摊位计划”。这个计划让新手小贩以较低的租金租下摊位。在“培育期”内新手小贩可以评估自己是否适合这个行业。现有的小贩可以善用“小贩生产力资助金”购买自动化厨房设备，提高营运效率。想要退休的资深小贩，请考虑加入“小贩承前启后计划”，将宝贵的食谱和厨艺传承给下一代。

小贩文化已取得长足进步。虽然环境持续变化，但小贩永远是我们努力的核心。政府将致力于传承和保护这珍贵的文化遗产，与新加坡全国商联总会、各小贩商联会，以及社区携手，为小贩提供全面支持。

最后，我要感谢新加坡全国商联总会主办今年的《新加坡小贩庆典与小贩奖》，也恭喜今天所有获奖者和入围者。