SPEECH BY MR TAN KIAT HOW, SENIOR MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF DIGITAL DEVELOPMENT AND INFORMATION & MINISTRY OF HEALTH, AT THE SOS SUICIDE PREVENTION SYMPOSIUM, 10 SEPTEMBER 2026

Mr Terry Siow, Chief Executive Officer, Samaritans of Singapore (SOS),

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

1.       It is my pleasure to join you today at the SOS Suicide Prevention Symposium, as we mark World Suicide Prevention Day.

2.       Thank you, SOS, for organising this symposium, bringing together so many partners committed to this very important cause. We come from different parts of society - healthcare, social services, schools, workplaces, research, religious organisations,  community partners, and all of us here from different background, different places, but we are here and we share a common belief: Every life matters. And no one should have to face their darkest moments alone.

Every number represents a person

3.       There are encouraging signs in some of our suicide trends. But the overall picture remains sobering.

4.       In 2024, 441 lives were lost to suicide in Singapore. For seven consecutive years, from 2018 to 2024, suicide remained the leading cause of death among young people aged 10 to 29. These statistics tell us the scale of the challenge. But statistics cannot tell us what happens in the moment when someone decides whether to hold on.

5.       SOS shared one such story with me. An SOS volunteer once received a call from a man who wanted to end his life. He asked for just one thing: “Stay with me.” And the volunteer stayed. For almost two hours, the volunteer listened, kept him engaged, and helped him take one small step at a time towards accepting help. The caller heard one voice. But behind that voice was an entire team. A Leader on Call was quietly guiding the response. Another volunteer was nearby, offering encouragement. And eventually, emergency responders arrived.

6.       The caller heard one voice. But it took a community to hold on to hope with him. That, to me, captures what suicide prevention is about. It is often one person, helping another person, at a very difficult moment. But that one moment is supported by a much larger network.

7.       SOS does this every day. Last year in 2025, its hotline received close to 40,000 calls, almost one in five involving suicide risk. CareText received close to 20,000 messages, almost two in five involving suicide risk. Behind every number is a human being reaching out. And another human being choosing to answer.

Suicide prevention is not the work of one moment

8.       The story also reminds us of something important. Suicide prevention is not the work of one moment. It does not begin only when someone makes that call or sends that text. And it does not end when the immediate crisis is over. It is a continuum.

9.       Before crisis, we build resilience and protective relationships. When distress emerges, we make it easier to talk and seek help. During crisis, we intervene quickly and connect people to appropriate care. And after crisis, we stay alongside people through recovery. And that is how we are increasingly strengthening our national approach to suicide prevention. And at every stage, there is one thing that makes a difference and that is human connection matters.

Resilience is not something we build alone

10.      This year’s theme, Sonder: Where Resilience Meets Collective Hope, captures this particularly well.

11.      Sonder reminds us that every person we meet has a life as complex as ours - a story we may know very little about. Someone may look like they are coping, but maybe struggling deeply. Someone who seems successful may feel overwhelmed. Someone who is surrounded by people may still feel alone. Distress is not always visible. And suicidality is rarely caused by one thing. It can arise from a complex interaction of stressful life experiences, relationships, physical and mental health conditions and other circumstances. That is why we cannot simply tell people to “be stronger”.

12.      It is not an individual burden. Resilience is not an individual burden. It is something we can build - through the skills and inner resources we develop, through the relationships around us, and through the environments we create.

13.      A young person needs more than coping skills. They need people they trust. They need places where it is safe to talk about difficulties. They need adults who can recognise when something has happened, something has changed. They need to know that asking for help is not a failure. As Sha mentioned earlier in the video, it is not a weakness. That is why strengthening resilience is not only about strengthening individuals. It is about strengthening the relationships and communities around them.

Make it easier to ask for help

14.      This matters because stigma can stop people from reaching out. A nationwide study in 2024 found that eight in ten Singaporeans believe there is stigma associated with suicide. We therefore need to continue changing how we talk about suicide and mental health. Asking someone, “Are you okay?” should not feel unusual. Listening without judgement should be something we are comfortable doing. And asking for help should be seen not as weakness, but as courage.

15.      Over the years, we have strengthened avenues of support, including national mindline 1771, and SOS’s 24-hour crisis hotline at 1767 and CareText. But services existing is only part of the answer.

16.      People should know where to start. They should not need to understand how the healthcare or social service system works before they can get support. And once they reach out, we need to do our best to make sure they do not fall through the cracks.

From surviving to living

17.      We must also recognise that preventing an immediate crisis is not the end of suicide prevention. For someone who has attempted suicide, leaving hospital is an important milestone. But the difficulties that contributed to the crisis may are still there.

18.      A young person may return to a stressful home environment, difficult relationships or other pressures. So we should ask not only: “Is this person ready to return to the community?” We should also ask: “Is the community ready to support this person?”

19.      That is an important shift in how we think about recovery. We need to prepare the individual. But we also need to prepare the people around them. Families may need support. Schools may need to know how to help someone returning after a difficult period. Community organisations, especially faith-based organisations, can provide belonging and continuity. Workplaces can create environments where people feel safe seeking help and returning to work.

20.      That is why we are developing a Youth Crisis Facility, with close support from our partners. This facility will provide a safe and stable environment for young people recovering from moderate to severe self-harm or suicide attempts arising from psychosocial difficulties. It fills an important space between hospital and home - providing psychosocial support, time away from social triggers where necessary, and support for young people as they prepare to return to their families and communities.

21.      But the facility itself is only one part of the journey. What happens after that matters just as much. Our goal cannot simply be to help someone survive a crisis. We must help them find their way back to living.

Building a society more capable of caring

22.      That is why suicide prevention cannot be the work of Government or healthcare professionals alone. People do not experience distress only when they enter a clinic. A friend may be the first to notice. A parent may sense that something is wrong. A teacher may see a student struggling. A colleague may notice a change. A community organisation may help someone reconnect with others after a crisis. The media has a role to play in reporting suicide responsibly. So all of us have a role in creating safer spaces, especially online, given that we all live in the age of digital and AI. None of us sees the whole journey. But together, we can create a stronger safety net around someone who is struggling.

23.      We do not need to turn everyone into a counsellor. But we can make all of us more capable of caring. We can learn to notice. To ask. To listen. And, when someone needs more help than we can provide, to connect them to the right support. No single person can prevent every suicide. But together, we can make it much harder for someone to fall through the cracks.

Collective hope

24.      Let me return to the SOS volunteer. The caller heard one voice. But behind that voice stood a team. And behind that team stood a much larger community. That is what collective hope looks like. Hope is not simply telling someone that things will get better. Sometimes, hope means staying with someone when things are difficult. It means listening without judgement. Helping them take the next step, even though it might just be a small step. Connecting them to support. And continuing to walk alongside them after the immediate crisis has passed.

25.      We cannot remove all of the difficulties that people will face in life, it is not possible. But we can build a society that is better prepared to respond when those difficulties become overwhelming. A society where talking about mental health is normal. Where asking for help carries no shame. Where people know where to turn. Where communities are equipped to support recovery. And where, when someone feels there is no way forward, someone is there to help them find one.

26.      So today, I would like to thank all of you, SOS, all your staff, volunteers, supporters and partners, all of you in the room and outside the room - for the care and hope you provide every day. And I thank everyone here for being part of this shared effort. Suicide prevention is not the work of one agency, one profession, or even one moment. It is the work of all of us. Thank you for your support, especially today, a meaningful occasion of World Suicide Prevention Day. Thank you very much.