A Gift for Medical Students and Social Entreprenuers
Lotus Life Foundation, a Singapore-based charity focused on alleviating poverty both locally and in Nepal, is supporting the next generation of doctors and entrepreneurs through gifts totalling over S$1.2 million to the National University of Singapore (NUS) Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and NUS Enterprise.
As part of this endeavour, the Foundation has established the Lotus-NUS Medical Bursary at NUS Medicine to offer medical students in financial need the chance to fulfil their potential. Up to four bursaries valued at S$33,600 each will be awarded each year for five years, starting from Academic Year 2017/2018. This is part of the Foundation’s effort to promote the well-being of the future generations through providing better education and access to financial assistance for the focused, hardworking and talented individuals who deserve it most. The ultimate goal is for the students to achieve self-reliance and to make positive, productive contributors to society.
“Education is the cornerstone of any society. Education has profound economic, social and personal impact on individuals, families, communities and the nation. Good education instils in individuals a sense of responsibility towards society, humility towards fellow members of the community and enables them to make positive contribution to the development of the nation. We hope that the individuals benefitting from our gift will continue to work for the betterment of society and furtherance of our vision of promoting the well-being of our future generations,” expressed Mr Nirmal Singh, Chairman of the Lotus Life Foundation.
Lotus Life Foundation has also pledged to NUS Enterprise in support of establishment of Lotus-NUS Fund. Lotus- NUS Fund will provide seed funding for start-ups that are founded by Singaporean entrepreneurs and are involved in social enterprise projects. From 2017 to 2021, up to five entrepreneurs or companies will be awarded S$25,000 each in funding each year to help them grow beyond ideation and to a stage where they can attract traditional venture capital funding.
The Foundation hopes that its gift will have a long-term impact and sees itself as a long-term partner for future social enterprises. “We hope the recipients of seed funding will be able to convert their ideas to workable social enterprises that will have explicit social and environmental impact. The Lotus Life Foundation provides a range of support to help social enterprises from startup to mature stages, such as access to external funding, training and advisory services, as well as access to relevant networks,” said Mr Singh.
NUS President Professor Tan Chorh Chuan said, “We are honoured that the Lotus Life Foundation has chosen NUS as a recipient of their philanthropic support. Their generosity will enable the University to provide opportunities for outstanding young people to excel and to nurture entrepreneurial leaders with a strong sense of social responsibility. We hope this gift will inspire others to similarly support the University in developing our students’ potential and fostering new ideas that will make a positive impact on society.”