Update on Redevelopment of the Malay Heritage Centre

Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef asked the Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts if he can provide an update on the progress of the redevelopment of the Malay Heritage Centre.

Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: The new Malay Heritage Centre (MHC) will officially re-open to the public in September 2012, after having completed the majority of MHC's redevelopment works, as scheduled in June 2012. The new MHC will feature revamped permanent galleries, new temporary exhibition spaces, an auditorium, a visitor centre and a learning garden.

The new MHC will highlight the history of Kampong Gelam as a port town and its significance to the Malay community, and will showcase the different aspects of Malay culture and heritage that originated from the Indo-Malay Archipelago. The new MHC hopes to highlight the connection between the past heritage of Malays in Singapore and the present, while acknowledging the progress of the Malay community and its contributions. This will be done through a series of public lectures and workshops to increase public awareness.

Throughout its redevelopment period, MHC has been actively engaging key stakeholders through focus group sessions to seek feedback on both the redevelopment works and on the centre's future programmes. These stakeholders, which include community elders, Malay art and heritage practitioners, Kampong Gelam stakeholders, Malay organisations, students and educators, have indicated support for MHC's redevelopment works and have provided useful feedback.

For instance, they have requested for more joint activities with the Malay community, as well as more outdoor programmes to attract Singaporeans and tourists to the precinct. In response to stakeholders' feedback, MHC has organised joint activities, such as the recent Heritage Hunt for children involving the Kampong Gelam stakeholders, and developed outdoor programmes, such as the popular "Neighbourhood Sketches" featuring Malay arts and cultural performances along the streets of Kampong Gelam

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