HAWKER CENTRES UPGRADING PROGRAMME (Programmes to enforce housekeeping and hygiene standards of hawkers)

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HAWKER CENTRES UPGRADING PROGRAMME:

(Programmes to enforce housekeeping and hygiene standards of hawkers): 8.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo asked the Minister for the Environment (a) if he will update the House on the number of markets and food centres that have undergone Hawker Centres Upgrading Programme (HUP) in the last five years;

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(b) what types of programmes are in place to enforce housekeeping and hygiene standards of hawkers in Singapore versus successful programmes in other countries; (c) whether his Ministry is satisfied that there has been overall compliance with the benchmark standards set for hawkers, for example, Singapore's OK and the grading system for hawkers; and (d) what more can be done to improve the overall image of our hawkers.

The Minister for the Environment (Mr Lim Swee Say): Mr Speaker, Sir, the Hawker Centres Upgrading Programme (HUP) was launched three years ago in 2001. To date, 25 hawker centres have been upgraded, with another 19 centres undergoing design and construction. This year, another 15 centres are selected for upgrading, bringing the total number of upgraded centres to 59. This accounts for 52% of all centres eligible for upgrading under the HUP.

To maintain a good standard of hygiene and housekeeping, hawkers are required to undergo a food-handling course conducted by NEA. NEA officers also make regular inspections to enforce standards. Sir, the overall standards of hygiene and cleanliness have improved over the years. The number of stallholders attaining 'A' or 'B' grades under NEA's grading system has increased from 40% in 1998 to 51% today. For the upgraded centres, the figure is much higher at 89%.

Last May, the Singapore's OK campaign was launched to further improve the cleanliness and hygiene of not only the individual stalls, but also the entire hawker centre. Within a short period of nine months, 85% of the cooked food centres and 63% of the wet markets have met the benchmark of the Singapore's OK campaign. This is indeed encouraging.

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For the remaining centres, NEA is working with them to improve the standard of housekeeping. Besides educating the hawkers on good housekeeping, NEA encourages the Town Councils and hawkers to do regular spring-cleaning three times a year. Cleaners are also being trained under the National Skills Recognition System. Some hawker associations and grassroots advisers have also convinced their hawkers to don aprons and caps to project a neater, more hygienic and smarter image.

Sir, in conclusion, we will continue to upgrade the physical environment of our hawker centres. At the same time, we will work with Town Councils and hawker associations to improve and maintain good hygiene and cleanliness standards. This will improve the overall image of our hawkers and, at the same time, enhance the public's overall impression of our hawker centres.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo (West Coast): Sir, from what I understand, there are still several hawker centres that are under the purview of the HDB. Can the Minister throw light on when these other hawker centres will be taken over by NEA and whether at this point, these hawker centres actually come under the same housekeeping guidelines as the hawker centres under NEA?

Mr Lim Swee Say: Sir, in terms of housekeeping standards, it does not matter whether the hawker centre is under the purview of HDB, NEA or JTC. Every hawker centre is subjected to the same standard of housekeeping and enforcement.

With regard to the overall management of the hawker centres, I am happy to say that with effect from 1st April, all the HDB hawker centres will come under the management of the NEA as well. This means we will have one

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agency to be responsible for the overall management of all the hawker centres.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo: Sir, with reference to enhancing the overall image of our hawkers, is there any long-term plan to enforce the wearing of uniforms and caps so that we will actually bring up the standard of our hawkers in Singapore?

Mr Lim Swee Say: Sir, earlier, Mr Khaw Boon Wan said that every birth is different. Later on, Mr Tharman said that every school is different; every principal is different. Here, I am saying that every hawker centre is different; every hawker is different.

Over the last couple of years, we have encouraged the hawker associations to project an enhanced and yet different identities for their hawker centres. I am happy to say that the grassroots advisers, the community leaders and the market associations have been most responsive. Today, if you were to go to the hawker centres at Ang Mo Kio, Mr Seng Han Thong has introduced aprons and caps there. When he introduced caps, the hawkers said that it was too warm to wear a cap in a hawker centre. So, Mr Seng Han Thong got a designer to design a half cap. The cap covers only the front but not the back. I think these are the initiatives and innovations that we would like to see in the hawker centres, so that when the public goes to different hawker centres, they will see different images as well as different quality and standard of service. There will be a variety. This is what we would like to see.

On the whole, the role of the NEA is to make sure that the minimum standard of hygiene and cleanliness is being achieved and maintained, and to progressively improve this minimum standard. But in terms of differentiating the image and the identity of hawker centres, we would rather leave it very much to the various grassroots

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organisations and grassroots advisers.