We thank Ms Amanda Auyong for the suggestions in her letter (Give youngsters space to talk about racial issues; Aug 6).

The National Youth Survey 2016 shows that youth attitudes towards diversity have improved over time.

Looking ahead, having safe spaces for constructive conversations will continue to be important to enhance mutual understanding. This is an important part of building a cohesive and resilient nation.

The Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) has been encouraging and supporting citizen initiatives in this area.

For example, over 400 youth took part in the CommaCon conference last year in whichissues such as race, socio-economic inequality and terrorism were discussed.

Subsequently, smaller CommaCon events, such as workshops, dialogues and experiential learning sessions, were held to continue the conversation and learning.

In March this year, we also launched Bridge, a series of community-led initiatives to deepen racial and religious understanding in Singapore.

Through the Harmony Fund, we have supported a range of activities, including dialogues on Islamophobia and extremism, workshops on faith and music, and dinner conversations on race and racism.

We continue to encourage and support Singaporeans to have these conversations. Youth who wish to take part in such dialogues can connect with the National Youth Council at : www.facebook.com/nycsg.

Ng Chun Pin

Senior Director, Youth Division, MCCY

Deputy Chief Executive Officer, National Youth Council