SINGAPORE – The law that governs Singapore’s largest philanthropic organisation Ngee Ann Kongsi mandates it to donate 75 per cent of its net income each year to charitable causes.

In 2021, it donated $37.7 million to educational, cultural and other causes, topping the list of Singapore’s 10 largest philanthropic groups in terms of sums donated.

The list is compiled by consultancy Soristic Impact Collective.

The Ngee Ann Kongsi is a big supporter of education, having started schools such as Ngee Ann Primary School and Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

In 2022, it made the news for a whole range of donations, such as giving $25 million to the Singapore Institute of Technology, to help needy students go for overseas exchange programmes and other learning opportunities, and develop its library.

It also donated $15 million to the Education Ministry and the money will allow all secondary school students studying mother tongue languages to get free digital access to newspapers Lianhe Zaobao, Berita Harian and Tamil Murasu.

It also runs the Yueh Hai Ching Temple in Phillip Street and the Teochew Funeral Parlour in Ubi Road.

The Ngee Ann Kongsi was formed in 1845 by a group of Teochew leaders, such as the late Seah Eu Chin, who made his fortune from pepper and gambier. They came from what was then known as Ngee Ann county in China’s Guangdong province.

The group was started to promote the customs and religious beliefs of the Teochews in Singapore and look after the welfare of poor Teochew immigrants, according to its website. In 1933, the Ngee Ann Kongsi was formally incorporated.

Its president, Mr James Teo Wee Wee, said in recent years it has been expanding its focus beyond educational, social welfare and cultural causes to include healthcare, especially initiatives that benefit the elderly.

It also wants to support causes that help more than the Teochew community, to benefit Singaporeans from all walks of life and races.