Forum: Sustained donations can support children who start from unequal circumstances

Singapore’s SG60 fund-raising efforts, with over $100 million raised and a growing base of more than 270,000 regular donors, reflect something encouraging about the kind of society we are becoming.

Donations like these are not symbolic gestures. For many families, they make access to support possible.

What matters now is how this giving is sustained and translated into meaningful outcomes over time.

Children’s home environment, including the presence of books, language exposure and the availability of time and guidance, shapes their readiness to learn in ways that follow them into the classroom.

When families are under financial pressure, these foundations can be harder to build.

This is something we see closely at the Dyslexia Association of Singapore. More than half of the children we support come from lower-income families. Many are navigating learning differences alongside significant financial pressures at home. We do not just work with the child in the classroom but extend our support into the home, working with parents and caregivers to build a more consistent environment for learning.

We have also observed over the years a shift in how donors think about giving. More people are asking not just where their money goes, but what it leads to, and whether it makes a lasting difference.

Sustained donations that are maintained over time let organisations plan, commit and walk alongside families through the stages that matter most.

National efforts like SG60 remind us that generosity, when it is collective and consistent, has the power to change trajectories.

For children who learn differently, that trajectory is shaped by whether support came early enough and whether it lasted long enough to make a difference in their lives.

Lim Jiaern
Director (Designate), Communications, Engagement and Fundraising
Dyslexia Association of Singapore