More than 100 hectares of land to be set aside for landscape nurseries

Land has been set aside for landscape nurseries and these plots will be released through tenders in stages starting from November 2017. Mr Desmond Lee, Minister in Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Home Affairs and National Development announced today that this is the first time that land has been allocated for landscape nurseries, demonstrating the government’s recognition of the industry’s contribution to shaping and growing our City in a Garden.

Land allocation

The land parcels, located in Lim Chu Kang and Sungei Tengah, will come with basic infrastructure built up to the front gate to enable nurseries to quickly move in, kick-start operations, and defray upfront capital investments. More than 100 hectares of land will be set aside for the industry in the long term. For a start, about 40 hectares of land, comprising more than 30 plots, will be progressively released. There will be a mix of 1 hectare and 2 hectare plots. Around half of the 30 plots will be released in four tranches from November this year to end 2018. 

Transforming the landscape industry

To support the professional development of the industry and to encourage better utilisation of land and labour resources, NParks developed the Landscape Productivity Roadmap in consultation with the landscape industry. Since the rollout of the roadmap in 2012, the industry has seen transformation in their operations through an increase in productivity and manpower skills.

Raising productivity through the Landscape Productivity Grant (LPG)

An important component of the Roadmap is the Landscape Productivity Grant (LPG) which is a co-funding scheme that helps landscape companies defray their investments in machinery and technology.  Companies are eligible to seek funding of up to S$300,000 for mechanisation, adoption of technology, and innovation projects. To date, the LPG has received a total grant amount of $6.9 million. More than $4 million has been committed to 60 companies.

Growing the number of landscape professionals

To grow a new generation of highly skilled landscape specialists and project managers who will form our local core, two programmes have been introduced to attract students and mid-career professionals to join the landscape industry. The NParks-LIAS-ITE scholarship, funded through the Garden City Fund, seeks to attract students with the aptitude and interest to join the industry.  They are also paired with mentors in landscape companies to help them continue growing their skills. Following the announcement of the scheme in September 2013, the inaugural batch of ITE scholars were selected and matched with companies in 2014. 10 companies have supported 21 scholars under this programme.

For mid-career professionals keen on a job switch, the Landscape Apprenticeship Programme (LAP) matches people who are passionate about greenery, but may not have formal background in horticulture, with well-established landscape companies for training in a career in landscaping and horticulture. To date, 12 companies have supported 29 apprenticeships under the programme.

In addition to these two initiatives, the Progressive Wage Model (PWM) was also implemented in 2016, which has seen more than 90% of Singapore’s landscape workforce acquire advanced skills and be better rewarded.   

NParks will be engaging the landscape nursery operators to share more details about the upcoming land tenders and will also offer advisory sessions on the drafting of tender proposals.