Committee of Supply 2022 debate, Day 7: Masagos Zulkifli on Islamic religious teachers' leadership skills

Islamic religious teachers or asatizah can look forward to more training programmes to hone their leadership skills. There are two tracks. One is a general leadership track that offers a wide range of courses in areas such as financial management, strategy formation and human capital management. The other is a religious leadership component which seeks to deepen the asatizah's knowledge and appreciation of Singapore's religious traditions and apply them to the country's context. Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Masagos Zulkifli said this will facilitate discussions and provide a deeper understanding of policy issues. Speaking in Parliament on Thursday (Mar 10), he said the COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated the need for asatizah to be prepared to confront complex issues in a contemporary society. Besides deep knowledge about religious traditions and having a strong character, they must be able to "contextualise" their knowledge in a multi-racial and multi-religious society like Singapore.