A NEW fast-track course in kindergarten education will be launched this year to attract quality pre-school teachers and raise standards in the sector.

Education Minister Ng Eng Hen said in Parliament on Tuesday that the new 10-month Advanced Diploma in Kindergarten-Teaching (Adket) developed by Singapore Polytechnic will provide 'much needed teachers to raise the quality of pre-school education.'

SINGAPORE, expecting tourism revenue to dip further this year, on Wednesday rolled out details of a $90 million plan to boost the sector which has been hard hit by the global economic downturn.

Aptly named BOOST (Building on Opportunities to Strengthen Tourism), the plan aimed to help the dwindling Singapore's tourism sector 'overcome the clear and present challenges', said Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran on Wednesday morning.

LOW-INCOME families and the most vulnerable Singaporeans will get more government assistance to help them cushion the impact of the economic recession.

The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports will spend about $77 million this year on various ComCare programmes to help these families and their children. It also assures them that help will be administered more flexibly.

BANKING on an economic upturn in two years time which may see visitor arrivals back on track, the Wildlife Reserves of Singapore on Wednesday announced plans to develop a $140 million river-themed park by 2011.

Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), which created the award-winning Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, hopes that the River Safari - the first of its kind in Asia - will pull in at least 750,000 visitors annually.