Looking Forward to the Future
The Tote Board EFR team will continue to provide support for programmes as they evolve and adapt. Sector trends indicate that many charities will require additional necessary capabilities to mount more meaningful digital engagement
initiatives. Hence the team will continue to collaborate with agencies like Agency of Integrated Care (AIC), Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF), National Council
of Social Services (NCSS) and National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre (NVPC). With stronger digital engagement capabilities built through training and infrastructure support, charities will surely be stronger in their ability
to fund-raise, to attract interested volunteers and to create a larger impact in society.
The team also recognises the importance of internal capability-building. The team will continue to expand the capacities and capabilities of staff in data analytics, sense-making and stakeholder engagement, to further Tote Board’s
aim to be a Valued Partner in grantmaking to ride the changing trends in the non-profit ecosystem.

ABOUT EFR
(Enhanced Fund-Raising Programme)
Enhanced Fund-Raising Programme
The EFR Programme was launched on 17 April 2020 as part of Tote Board’s response to COVID-19, in support of charities that were adversely impacted by the pandemic. Safeguarding vulnerable groups in Singapore was more important
than ever, as was the need to enable the organisations that serve them. However, charities faced a significant decline in donation income, both owing to Circuit Breaker measures and the challenging economic climate. This was
compounded by the non-profit sector traditionally being high-touch and centred around human and stakeholder interactions. With charities unable to carry out physical events, functions and interactions, critical needs arose
from a fund-raising perspective, including overcoming infrastructure and process issues.
Unlike most grants, which are generally more sector-specific and targeted, EFR provides support to over a thousand charities across the entire non-profit sector. In addition, the programme was designed to be a sustainable catalyst
for change beyond COVID-19, bolstering the sector towards digitalisation and digital engagement. This change will enable charities to connect with a new generation of more digitally-savvy donors, share their stories with a
wider audience, and reduce the costs associated with organising physical fund-raising activities. Finally, EFR caters for greater flexibility by allowing charities to conduct both online and offline fund-raising projects, or
a hybrid between the two modalities.
Significance to National Efforts
The EFR Programme complemented national efforts when key changes were made: the acceptance of fundraising applications that carried out fundraising on approved digital platforms and the doubling of funding support. The programme
received government support with additional funding from the Fortitude Budget.
On 26 May 2020, Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Heng Swee Keat, announced that the Government would increase the EFR matching grant. With the additional top up, successful applicants would enjoy an overall dollar-for-dollar match for
EFR, capped at $250,000 per applicant.
‘While continuing to be passionate about supporting the vulnerable in our community, our charities and social service agencies are facing difficulties,’ he shared, ‘The leaders appreciate the support from the
Jobs Support Scheme, but they are facing falling donations. To provide more support for our charities amidst COVID-19, the Government will partner Tote Board to bolster the matching for donations through Tote Board’s
Enhanced Fund-Raising Programme.’