Kaylee Kua, executive director of local charity Daughters of Tomorrow, on sustainable empowerment for economically challenged women

After a series of corporate and sales roles, Kua opted for a more meaningful path at Dot, a local charity founded in 2014 that empowers underprivileged women into sustained employment and social mobility. She candidly admits that she was not immediately drawn to its mission, but the pervasive issue of poverty struck a chord. Working with women from low‐income families who had been living in rental flats for generations, she recognised an opportunity to leverage her aptitude for systems and processes, gleaned from her engineering degree.

Having been with Dot for nearly eight years now, Kua, who was appointed its executive director this January, has seen how it has grown in just ten years. “When I first joined,” she shares, “we had three and a half employees, were reliant on volunteers and didn’t have many formal systems. As we built the organisation, we focused on creating livelihood opportunities that could lift women out of the poverty cycle.” Measures have evolved from enhancing women’s job readiness to fostering partnerships with employers to create supportive work environments, particularly accommodating the needs of mothers.

Dot’s range of support services has also broadened. “We now offer pre‐ and post‐employment support, [providing] career coaching for the women,” Kua details. This allows women to explore various career paths and upgrade their skills, achieving their career aspirations while meeting immediate financial needs.

Kua has been instrumental in transforming nationwide policies. When she first joined Dot, she faced challenges in placing women into the healthcare sector, particularly those from ethnic minorities and the Muslim community, who needed to wear a tudung—the issue being that the public healthcare sector, a uniform group, traditionally prohibited the wearing of headscarves. “We had closed‐door discussions with the Ministry of Health, and spoke with the employers to understand their concerns and perspectives,” says Kua.

Four years of advocacy culminated in a 2021 parliamentary bill that authorised the inclusion of the tudung in the official staff uniforms in the public healthcare sector. She also spearheaded the home‐based child‐minding programme at Dot, which emerged from a focus group discussion identifying the pressing needs that prevented women from returning to work.

Among these was the issue of childcare, especially for those who do shift work or work weekends—the traditional operating hours of most childcare centres here simply do not cater for them. The solution these women came up with? “Some, especially those with very young kids, cared for their own and others’ children, allowing other mothers to work while earning a small fee,” shares Kua.

This grassroots initiative received structured support from Dot, which provided resources to help expand the network and in 2018 piloted its programme providing flexi childcare services. The successful model was presented to the Ministry of Social and Family Services in 2022 for national implementation to make it eligible for government subsidies.

Dot aims, too, to shift public perceptions about poverty. Kua refutes the common misconception that financial hardships stem solely from poor life choices. She highlights a revealing statistic: the women Dot assists typically have only two to three children, debunking the stereotype that poverty in Singapore is caused by having too many children.

She brings up the point that decisions made by the economically disadvantaged are also often scrutinised. For instance, they might be criticised for purchasing a trendy, expensive toy for their child or continuing to smoke. “The public often forgets that no matter how rich or poor you are, everyone has their basic needs, and deserves dignity and choices in their lives,” says Kua. “That’s why we developed our poverty sensitisation workshop: to educate our volunteers, corporate partners and employers about the decision‐making challenges faced by those in poverty.”

Kua adds that often, people with limited resources must make difficult choices, which can appear poorly thought out to outsiders. She notes, though, that it is scientifically proven that stressful situations can reduce cognitive function, impacting decision‐making abilities.

This year, Dot is intensifying its focus on social mobility with a new self‐assessment tool that provides women a comprehensive view of their lives, assessing six areas beyond finances, and directing them to appropriate resources. Explaining how it works, Kua says: “It takes a snapshot of their quality of life. They’re able to see how well they’re doing in each area, and can pick and choose which areas they’d like to focus on for the next few months.”

Further illustrating Dot’s commitment to advocating for their sustainable empowerment is its new Step Up programme. It promotes financial savings by matching every dollar saved by participants with two dollars; offers wellness resources such as chiropractic care; and provides personal coaching for women who have been in stable employment for more than six months.

“The most valuable lesson is to never prejudge or make decisions for others. Share the options, [and then] let them choose their lives and the paths they’d like to take, because no one knows their lives better than them,” concludes Kua.

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