Home Team Training Excellence Awards Ceremony – Speech by Assoc Prof Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim, Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs & Ministry of National Development

Permanent Secretary, Home Affairs

Deputy Secretary (Corporate)

Chief Executive, Home Team Academy

Home Team colleagues and partners

1. A very good afternoon to each and every one of you. I am pleased to join you today to recognise the outstanding work of our Home Team trainers.

2. The Home Team continues to do well in maintaining safety and security, evidenced in the high level of public trust in the Home Team.

3. In the latest public perception survey conducted from late 2023 to early 2024, 92% of respondents indicated that they trusted the Home Team and 93% indicated confidence in the Home Team’s ability to keep Singapore safe and secure. The ability of Home Team officers to execute their duties well is in large part due to the high-quality training provided by HTA and the Home Team Departments.

4. The Home Team Training Excellence (TraX) Awards Ceremony is an annual event that recognises Home Team trainers and training units for their exemplary performance in designing and delivering training programmes. It is especially meaningful to have our Home Team Training and Learning (T&L) community come together to honour and show appreciation for our award recipients.

Deepening the Professional Development of Trainers

5. As the Home Team’s operating environment continues to evolve and grow in complexity, the role of our trainers becomes even more critical.

6. Training is not just for newbies.  Training must be an on-going endeavour because our operating environment, the world we live in, is always evolving and we must keep pace to stay current and on top of the situation.  We must adopt the mindset of upskilling and reskilling throughout our careers.  Which means that the Home Team will always need a cadre of good and proficient trainers for the training to be effective.

7. For our trainers to be proficient in training others, they must be developed as professional trainers. Such professional development will enable them to deliver high-quality training that prepares officers for operational success.

8. To support our trainers, the Trainers’ Competency Development Roadmap (TCDR) was established in 2017 to provide a clear and structured guide for trainers to acquire and enhance the competencies needed to be effective in their roles.

9. HTA has been reviewing the TCDR with the HTDs to better support trainers’ growth and development. Various pathways for trainers to develop professionally and upskill themselves have been identified. Other key improvements to the TCDR include broadening the professional development pathways and providing ample opportunities for trainers to practise and contribute to the T&L community. These recommendations from the review will take effect at the end of this year.

Equipping Trainers to Conduct Training Effectively

10. In addition to professional development, it is essential to equip our trainers with the necessary resources and tools to enhance the learning experience of their trainees. Leveraging resources such as technology and infrastructure will allow our trainers to better engage trainees and design training programmes that best meet the intended learning outcomes.

11. HTA is committed to advancing its infrastructure as part of the Home Team Transformation efforts. Today, I am pleased to officially launch one of the key initiatives in HTA’s transformation: our first smart classroom.

12. The smart classroom is equipped with features designed to enhance the learning experience. HTA has carefully considered all aspects of the classroom environment, including improved acoustics, lighting and noise reduction, to create a conducive learning environment. The smart classroom also provides trainers with digital learning resources to engage officers through various means, supporting training in physical, virtual as well as hybrid formats. HTA will be building more of these classrooms over several phases. The first phase is expected to be completed in September 2025.

13. At the same time, HTA is reviewing the training curriculum. This is aimed at fully leveraging the features of the smart classrooms, to maximise our officers’ learning experience.

Congratulating Award Winners

14. This year, 17 trainers and eight training units will receive the TraX awards for their outstanding work. Let me highlight two award winners who have gone above and beyond in designing and delivering training to our officers.

15. First, Deputy Superintendent (DSP) Md Izwan Yusi from ICA will receive the Home Team Trainer of the Year (Full Time) Award. Izwan consistently demonstrates innovation in finding new ways to engage his learners effectively. For example, he introduced gamification into his lessons on managing border security incidents. He succeeded in engaging his learners through fostering friendly competition and interactive learning.

16. Tiffany Nicole Danker from SPF will receive the Home Team Trainer of the Year (Adjunct) Award. As a trainer in the Police Psychological Services Department, Tiffany uses the instructional practice of learning scaffolding to ensure her learners progressively grasp complex issues such as Victim Care. To further enrich the learning experience, she also leverages the expertise of more experienced learners to share their perspectives.

17. These examples demonstrate the passion and dedication of our TraX award winners, who embody the qualities we desire in all our trainers. Well done to all, and I encourage every trainer to continue finding ways to enhance how training is delivered.

18. If you look at the training framework, as well as the whole ecosystem of how our officers operate, or the way they carry out their operations and activities, the training they receive provides them not only with the knowledge, but some aspects of simulation and on-ground training perspectives.

19. Even for me, as one of your colleagues, I feel very proud to see how every operation that you undertake harnesses the skills, perspectives and your experiences to come up with solutions.

20. I want to share an experience I had just last night, when there was a fire in my constituency. We saw the SCDF officers who worked very hard to fight the fire, and also the Police officers who worked together with the community to make sure that things went very smoothly. But all these would not have happened if not for the training that they have undergone, and the years of experience that they continue to harness. In fact, many of my residents are very proud of our officers - their rigour, courage, and ability to work together. That shows how we gain the trust of the people through training, as well as operational competency, which over time will help us do well in any situation, and at the same time continue to upgrade ourselves.

Conclusion

21. Let me conclude by thanking all of you in attendance as representatives of the Home Team T&L community. Your contributions help to create a supportive environment for our TraX award winners and all our trainers to perform their roles effectively.

22. I urge all of you to emulate the values of our award winners. Let us continue to improve on how we train our officers as the Home Team navigates the challenges of an increasingly volatile and fast-changing operational landscape.

23. I want to thank all the trainers. Your work is important. Continue to engage our officers, and on your own, continue to up-skill and upgrade yourself, so that you are relevant in whatever context you are operating in. Thank you for your passion, commitment and your ability to train our officers.

24. On that note, thank you and congratulations once again to all award recipients!