SINGAPORE — A pilot youth outreach programme has observed some 2,700 youths since its inception last year, and some 50 to 60 have been identified as at-risk cases, who have either dropped out of school or are not “meaningfully engaged” in their studies or work.

If successful, the programme – currently operating in the North East and North West Districts – could be expanded to the other three districts islandwide, said Senior Minister of State (Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs) Masagos Zulkifli yesterday at the opening of the programme’s Northeast Youth Go! Centre in Tampines.

He estimated that there may be some 10,000 youths who could be at-risk or not actively engaged. “I foresee if this (programme) becomes popular and successful, we’ll have to put these youth centres near youth hangouts in their neighbourhoods,” Mr Masagos said, adding that there should be checks five to 10 years down the road on these youths to see if the intervention programme has been “useful”. No timeline for expanding the programme was given.

The programme, called Youth GO! Programme (YGP), was developed by the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s Central Youth Guidance Office for youths aged between 13 and 21, and is replicated from a successful street outreach model in Hong Kong.

The centre is run by a team of seven youth workers — six social workers and one counsellor. Of the 2,700 youths the team observed, it engaged with 1,900 of them, before identifying the at-risk cases.

The youth workers provide intervention to these youths by linking them up to services already provided in the community, such as arranging for them to learn new skills.

Ten cases have been closed which, according to YGP’s counsellor Low Kar Leong, means these youth have been successfully engaged in activities in their school or work for more than six months.