More shops accept vouchers from needy

SHOPS in Sengkang's Rivervale Plaza will be pitching in to do their bit for the community.

From Wednesday, they will begin accepting community vouchers given to needy households in Punggol East.

These vouchers can be redeemed for items like food and stationery, or used to pay for haircuts and dental services.

More than 400 households will each receive $40 worth of vouchers, which are valid for six months.

The community voucher scheme for Punggol East was officially launched yesterday, with 17 outlets from the mall taking part.

It follows the success of a pilot programme involving a coffee shop and a minimart at the foot of a rental block in the area.

"The feedback (from the pilot programme) was quite positive and the residents felt that it was useful," said Dr Koh Poh Koon, patron of Rivervale Community Club Management Committee, who attended the launch ceremony.

"So we decided that we should expand it to the rest of the constituency. No matter if you are rich or poor, you do have to use such services."

Also present were Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean and North East District Mayor Teo Ser Luck.

The community voucher scheme was initiated by North-East Community Development Council in September last year.

To date, it has rolled out the scheme to eight of its 18 divisions, including Punggol East, and partnered more than 350 merchants.

Plans are under way to allow vouchers from each division to be used throughout the North-East District.

"The people who will be using the vouchers are from the lower-income group, so we want to help them if we can.

"It's good for business too," said Mr Simon Oh, who manages hardware store Yellow Tags @ 118, which is a participating merchant.

"It might take a month or so to claim the money, but that's not important."

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