The expansion of the Retailer Industry Safety and Security Watch Group (iSSWG) was officially announced on 17 February 2023, where the Singapore Retailers Association (SRA) and the Federation of Merchants’ Association, Singapore (FMAS) were onboarded to the Retailer iSSWG (please refer to Annex A for background of the schemes and associations). SRA and FMAS now join the Orchard Road Business Association (ORBA) as part of the Retailer iSSWG.
In line with the Police’s ongoing efforts to prevent crime and counter terrorism, the onboarding of SRA and FMAS allows the Police to reach out to and engage a wider group of retailers, including those located within the heartlands.
The expansion of the Retailer iSSWG aims to:
- Encourage the retailer industry to take the lead in promoting and developing safety and security measures within their industries;
- Serve as a springboard between the Police and the retailer industry to promote regular sharing of relevant crime and security advisories with members of the retailer industry on a timely basis. This could be information relating to the latest crime trends affecting the industry, such as rise in shop theft cases, where members are reminded to stay vigilant and to report suspicious observations to the relevant authorities;
- Establish regular engagement platforms such as annual dialogue sessions, symposiums, seminars and/or learning visits for cross-sharing of knowledge, expertise and best practices to upskill the retailer industry’s knowledge of issues concerning them;
- Leverage SRA’s, ORBA’s, and FMAS’s platforms to amplify Police’s crime prevention messages, especially during the Great Singapore Sale, Formula 1, and year-end festive season period; and
- Support from SRA, ORBA, and FMAS in the development of guidelines, frameworks, or standards to create a safer and more secure environment for its members and patrons.
Outstanding Community Partnership Award (OCPA)
Following the announcement of the expansion of Retailer iSSWG’s membership, Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs & Ministry of Social and Family Development, Ms Sun Xueling, presented Outstanding Community Partnership Awards to 37 stakeholders for their strong collaboration towards the fight against crimes (please refer to Annex B for the list of recipients).
Special mentions were given to Sheng Siong and NTUC FairPrice for displaying strong support for Police’s crime prevention initiatives by being one of the first few retailers to be onboarded onto the Shop Theft Awareness for Retailers (STAR) Program, as well as rolling out a new initiative to incentivise their loss prevention officers to adopt the A.S.K. protocol[1].
Director of the Community Partnership Department, Assistant Commissioner of Police (AC) Shng Yunn Chinn said, “The Police will continue to work closely with stakeholders from the retailer industry to create a safe and secure retail space for everyone. This includes implementing crime prevention initiatives to prevent shop theft and educating members of the public on the prevailing crime trends, as well as enhancing the security features at the retail premises to counter the threat of terrorism. Members of the retailer industry are strongly encouraged to onboard the STAR Program and to incentivise their employees to adopt the A.S.K. protocol.”
Anyone with information on Shop Theft may call the Police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.
[1] The A.S.K. protocol is an initiative adopted to defer shoplifters. The protocol entails three approaches, namely (i) Ask the suspect politely so that he/she is aware the staff are watching him/her, (ii) Safety first to ensure the safety of store staffs, and (iii) Keep close to the suspect so that the suspect will feel uneasy and does not have the opportunity to shoplift.
Background of Schemes and Associations
| About SSWG |
In November 2003, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) introduced the Security Watch Group initiative as a Police-networking platform for the commercial sector to collaborate on the target-hardening of their premises. The initiative underwent an upgrading exercise in 2006 by adopting a broader and more holistic Home Team approach that incorporates both safety and security aspects of the SPF and SCDF. This became known as the Safety and Security Watch Group (SSWG) initiative. The SSWG allows Police officers to engage the business communities on safety and security matters. It involves the clustering of commercial buildings located within close proximity or sharing similar operating terrain, into watch groups. Within each watch group, members will meet on a regular basis to discuss strategies to enhance workplace safety and security in the fight against crime and terrorism. |
| About iSSWG |
The iSSWG framework was formed in 2008 and currently consists of members from the Chemical, Manufacturing, Hotel, Retailer, Financial, Public Entertainment, Online and Logistical Transport industries. The iSSWG scheme provides an important platform for the Home Team and our industry stakeholders to work closely together to address industry-specific safety and security concerns, and to co-create effective measures to counter the threats posed by crime and terrorism. Since the formation of iSSWG, SPF has worked with various industries in the organisation of seminars to brief and engage the industry members on crime trends and security threats affecting the industry. On an annual basis, events such as the award ceremony, conference and dialogue have been established with the Hotel iSSWG and Chemical iSSWG in an effort to uphold the commitments in tackling crime and security concerns. In 2021, SPF and the Asia Internet Coalition (AIC), SPF’s partner for the Online iSSWG, co-developed a new set of Guidelines on Online Safety to create a safe and secure online community. The guidelines are available for download on SPF and AIC’s websites. |
| About ORBA |
ORBA was formed in 1998 under the auspices of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB). ORBA acts as the Place Manager of Orchard Road, assisting in its development, activities, and other public issues. The Association represents members and through close collaboration with different stakeholders and authorities, addresses and resolves issues that affect the precinct. ORBA is led by a 17-member strong EXCO chaired by Mr Mark Shaw from The Shaw Organisation Pte Ltd.
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| About SRA |
SRA (founded in 1977 and originally known as the Singapore Retail Merchants Association) is a non-profit, independent/non-governmental retail trade body in Singapore, funded entirely by the private sector. Led by 18 council members from leading companies and SMEs, SRA’s vision is to be the respected and collective voice of the retail industry and to advance the interests of the retail industry via insights, education and strategic collaborations.
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| About FMAS |
FMAS (incorporated in 1989) is a non-profit association formed to represent Merchants’ and Hawkers operating in the HDB towns, Hawker Centre’s under NEA’s care and neighbourhood centres. Out of the 114 Hawker Centres in Singapore, 31 Hawker/Hawker Merchant Associations are members of FMAS.
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Outstanding Community Partnership Award (Organisation) Recipient List
- C. K. TANG LIMITED
- CIMB Bank Berhad
- DBS
- Gardens By The Bay
- Grab Financial Group
- Hako Technology Pte Ltd
- Homestay Management Pte Ltd
- Hope Initiative Alliance
- HSBC Bank (Singapore) Limited
- IJOOZ AI PTE. LTD.
- Institute of Technical Education (ITE) West
- JobStreet
- Lunch Actually
- Maybank Singapore Limited
- Nanyang Technological University
- National University of Singapore Students' Union (NUSSU)
- Ninja Van
- NIUM Pte Ltd
- NTUC FairPrice
- OCBC
- Our Tampines Hub
- People's Park Complex
- RSVP Singapore
- Shangri-La Singapore
- Sheng Siong
- Singapore Chemical Industry Council
- Singapore Hotel Association
- Singapore University of Technology and Design
- Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) Limited
- Tan Tock Seng Hospital
- Temasek Polytechnic
- TG25 Pte Ltd
- UOB
- Wee Chwee Huat Scaffolding and construction Pte Ltd
- Wildlife Reserves Singapore
- WISE Singapore Pte Ltd
- Xfers Pte Ltd
* In alphabetical order
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
17 February 2023 @ 6:15 PM