From Singa to Sharity: Celebrating Singapore's mascots

These are 10 household names Singaporeans have grown up with, who impart values like kindness, charity and care for the environment

Singaporeans have grown up with these mascots, who impart values like kindness, charity and care for the environment. ST FILE

Nila

Named after Sang Nila Utama, Nila is Sport Singapore’s lion mascot, promoting engaging in sports. The official mascot of the 28th SEA Games and the 8th Asean Para Games, he was first created as the face of the inaugural Singapore National Games in 2012.

Smiley

Appointed by POSB Bank, Smiley has been the face of the National School Savings Campaign, encouraging children to save their pocket money since 1983. POSB chose the squirrel as its mascot because the animal is known for storing food for rainy days.

Merli

Merli is an illustration of Singapore’s beloved icon, the Merlion. Unveiled by the Singapore Tourism Board in 2018, the mascot is designed to appeal to tourists with young children.

Water Wally

Unveiled by the Public Utilities Board in 2005, Water Wally is a water droplet whose mission is to protect all water sources so that they can be clean, sparkling and free-flowing. His sister, Water Sally, joined him in 2020 to share their knowledge and experience on water sustainability with younger Singaporeans.

Sharity

Introduced in 1984 on Children’s Day, Sharity Elephant is a mascot designed for Singapore’s Community Chest. Sharity’s name is a combination of the words “share” and “charity”, values that Sharity constantly practises and wishes for children to emulate.

Singa

One of our most beloved mascots, Singa was launched in 1982 as the face of the National Courtesy Campaign with the slogan, “Courtesy is part of our tradition, it’s so nice to be courteous”. In 1997, the Singapore Kindness Movement was launched. The National Courtesy Campaign was then naturally folded into the new Kindness Movement.

August

SPH Brightcove Video
With its beady eyes and a rounded, fish-like body, National Day Parade (NDP) mascot August has charmed Singaporeans since it was introduced last year.

A redesign of an older NDP mascot from 2009, August was introduced as the face of the National Day Parade in 2021. Featured prominently in various social media platforms, he is also a virtual YouTuber, hosting a series of NDP-related videos.

Blood Buddy

First introduced in 2005, Blood Buddy is Singapore Red Cross’ blood donation mascot, regularly popping up at mobile blood donation drives and outreach activities. Given a refreshed look in 2021, Blood Buddy aims to appeal to a younger generation of blood donors with a more modern and adorable image.

Teamy

Launched by the then National Productivity Board in 1982, Teamy the Bee was the face of Singapore’s Productivity Movement in the 1980s and 1990s. Although Teamy’s tour of duty ended in 1999, it is still well remembered by older Singaporeans today.

Captain Green

Captain Green was unveiled in 1990 during Singapore’s first “Clean & Green Week” campaign, which encouraged Singaporeans to adopt a clean and green lifestyle. Today, the National Environment Agency uses Captain Green to teach Singaporeans about protecting and caring for the environment.

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