SINGAPORE - An appreciation event was held for 400 licensed solemnisers on Monday (Sept 19) to thank them for their contributions in solemnising civil marriages here.

They officiated more than 20,000 civil marriages every year.

"You are not just there to officiate a marriage. It is an opportunity for you to play a key role in ensuring the couples start on the right foot," said Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan-Jin, at the event held at Grand Ballroom of the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel.

He was joined at the event by Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development, Associate Professor Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim.

Special tribute was also paid to pioneer solemnisers who have been volunteering their services since the 1970s.

To celebrate the 55th anniversary of the first civil marriages to be registered in Singapore, the Registry of Marriages (ROM) will provide couples who had registered their civil marriage at ROM in September 1961 with a commemorative marriage certificate.

Couples, including their family members and friends, can contact ROM to register for the certificate, which will be issued from end October (2016).

There are currently 1,104 licensed solemnisers, close to double the number since 2002.