• A free pair of white MaskSafe DET30™ masks will be offered to every Singapore resident
• White Kids masks are now available for children aged 12 and below
• Ample stocks of free masks in Adult White or Kids White are available
• Additional pairs of masks may be pre-ordered from
  Sunday 13 September 8.00am till Friday 2 October 11.59pm, in these colours
• White: adult or kids
• Navy: adult only
• Limited edition Peach, Denim or Black: adult or kids
• Free mask kits containing a pair of masks each may be collected at StayMasked vending machines by scanning the barcodes of an NRIC, School Smartcard, Birth Certificate, FIN or any Government-issued identification with a barcode
• Pre-paid orders will be issued QR codes to be used for collection at the vending machines
• Vending machines will be open for mask collection from
  Monday 21 September, 10.00am, to Sunday 4 October 2020, 11.59pm
• Masks can be collected from vending machines located as follows:

o   White adult masks (free and pre-order), islandwide at Community Centres/Clubs (CCs), Residents’ Committee Centres, bus interchanges, and Dhoby Ghaut (Plaza Singapura and the Temasek Shophouse);

o   White kids mask kits (free and pre-order) and Navy adult mask kits (pre-order) islandwide at CCs and Dhoby Ghaut locations;

o   Limited Edition Peach, Denim or Black mask kits (pre-order) only at the Dhoby Ghaut locations

Singapore, 10 September 2020 – Temasek Foundation will offer all Singapore residents a free pair of white MaskSafe DET30™ reusable masks in its second nationwide reusable antimicrobial mask distribution.

The adult mask is the same as those given during its first nationwide distribution in June.  Smaller size Kids White masks will also be made available for all children aged 12 and below in this distribution.

Residents may also purchase additional masks in White, Navy, or other limited edition colours, by pre-ordering online.

The Stay Prepared StayMasked initiative helps our community stay safe, with a sustainable solution of reusable antimicrobial masks.  

MaskSafe DET30™ masks

The MaskSafe DET30™ mask has an outer antimicrobial layer. It has been tested against various bacteria and viruses, with 94% effectiveness against Influenza A virus, an enveloped virus¹. 

Each mask is reusable and washable up to 30 times. A pair of masks will, therefore, last up to two months, on a daily ‘wash one, wear one’ cycle. More information on how to use, wash and care for the MaskSafe DET30™ masks can be found at the StayMasked website.

The new Kids masks are designed to fit children between 3 and 12 years of age, and offer the same antimicrobial properties and comfort of the Adult masks that Temasek Foundation distributed from June to July this year.

Collection of Adult and Kids White Masks from Vending Machines Islandwide

From Monday 21 September 10.00am till Sunday 4 October 2020, 11.59pm, residents of Singapore may collect their free mask kits at the StayMasked vending machines at more than 800 locations across Singapore. Each mask kit contains a pair of masks.

Children aged 12 and below, with a government-issued ID² (e.g. School Smartcard / Birth Certificate / FIN) may each collect a free pair of Kids White masks.

Each Singapore Citizen, Permanent Resident, or holder of an Employment or Work Pass, Permit or other Long Term Pass aged above 12 and with a government-issued ID may collect a free pair of Adult White masks. This includes foreign domestic workers, migrant workers and international students living in hostels.

Residents may collect on behalf of their family members and friends, by bringing and scanning the barcodes of their respective government-issued IDs at the StayMasked vending machines.

From Sunday 13 September 8.00am, members of the public may visit stayprepared.sg/buymasks to check on locations of the vending machines for each of the different mask types, as well as stock availability.

There are ample stocks of Adult and Kids masks in White.

Temasek Foundation will work with its partners to ensure timely top up, especially during the first few days of collection, when anticipated demand is higher. Hence, residents need not rush to collect their masks, and may choose to collect their mask kits later in the distribution window, as there are ample supplies.

Pre-ordering & Collecting Extra Mask Kits with Unique QR codes

Pre-orders for additional masks can be placed online from Sunday 13 September 8.00am till Friday 2 October 11.59pm at stayprepared.sg/buymasks or via the DBS PayLah! App.

Interested residents may pre-order up to 10 pairs of masks for each of these mask types (Adult  White, Kids White, Adult Navy) and 5 pairs for each of the special limited edition mask types available in Adults and Kids sizes (Peach, Denim and Black). Pre-orders are subject to stock availability.

Payment may be made online using PayNow, or major credit cards; or via the DBS PayLah! App. A unique QR code will be generated for each successful transaction. This code will then be sent to the mobile number used for the order.

At the vending machines, residents may then scan their unique pre-order QR code at the vending machines to redeem and collect their pre-paid mask kits.  They may redeem the balance order from a different machine, should their initial vending machine run out of stock or should they order different colours requiring collection at different machines.

Direct sales or payment will NOT be available at the vending machines for this round of collection.

Advancing Sustainability and Community Resilience

During Temasek Foundation’s first distribution in June/July, nearly 10 million free reusable masks were collected by residents. Their popularity has encouraged Temasek Foundation to embark on this second nationwide distribution.

Reusable masks are a useful and sustainable alternative to single-use disposable masks, which are highly pollutive for our environment if not disposed of correctly³.

With COVID-19, nearly 100 million disposable masks are used per month globally.  This is well over a billion annually. The environmental impact from the use and disposal of these masks can be greatly reduced if we can make the switch to reusable masks.

During the circuit breaker period, Temasek supported a community project that gathered stay-home individuals in a collective endeavour to sew reusable cloth masks for the community. Named “Masks Sewn with Love” (MSWL), more than 250,000 masks have been sewn by volunteers and have been distributed to priority groups of individuals that are more vulnerable to COVID-19.

Another community-led initiative, MaskForce, was formed to rally donors and galvanise volunteers across Singapore to source and distribute reusable masks to more than 500,000 migrant workers and 250,000 domestic helpers in Singapore.

Together, over 1.6 million reusable cloth masks that come with a filter pocket and 800,000 surgical masks that can be used as a filter were generously donated by donors, non-governmental organisations and private sector companies.

Temasek Foundation supported MaskForce and MSWL as part of our Stay Prepared initiative to enhance the resilience of the Singapore community, assisting with logistics and information materials for users.

Mr Lim Boon Heng, Chairman, Temasek, said, “We are heartened by the positive public feedback that showed the first StayMasked distribution was well-received. Even as we Do Good, we wanted to do better, by providing smaller size reusable masks for children for the first time. The StayMasked distributions aim to help all people in Singapore, young and old, stay masked up in a sustainable way.”

“Together with our partners, we will continue to find more ways to help our communities stay safe, including using the vending machine network to distribute useful items such as medical supplies, vitamins or food, in future,” he added.

Temasek Foundation thanks its partners for supporting this initiative that helps build community resilience. They include Land Transport Authority, Go-Ahead Singapore, SBS Transit, SMRT Corporation and Tower Transit for providing bus interchanges to place the vending machines; People’s Association for providing their venues and volunteers; SP Group for managing the hotline; generous donors such as Sirivadhanabhakdi Foundation, whose founders are majority owners of Fraser and Neave; DBS Bank, Maybank and OCBC Bank for enabling the cashless payment features; as well as town councils, various vendors and partners for their speedy response and execution.

Mr Lim Hock Chuan, Chief Executive, Temasek Foundation Ecosperity, said: “The distribution of millions of free reusable masks is made possible by many corporate partners, generous sponsors, staff and volunteers who stepped forward to provide information on mask collection, host vending machines, handle public enquiries along with many logistical efforts behind the scenes. We are encouraged to see the collective will amongst many companies to keep residents of Singapore vigilant and prepared and will count on their support for future distributions.”

Hotline for further queries

Members of the public may visit stayprepared.sg/masks for more information on this MaskSafe DET30™ free masks initiative, or call the hotline at 1800-738-2000, from 13 September 2020 to 4 October 2020, 9.00am to 9.00pm daily (except on public holidays).

Stay Prepared StayMasked Initiative

More than just protecting ourselves, we care for our friends and family, colleagues and strangers, when we put on a mask when we are outside our homes.

Temasek Foundation’s network of StayMasked vending machines provide a safe, convenient and minimal contact distribution and collection process to collect the free reusable masks.  The high touch surfaces of the vending machines are coated with long lasting disinfectants.

The MaskSafe DET30™ reusable masks are the first of a series of products that may be distributed through this vending machine network. It is part of the StayMasked initiative under the Temasek Foundation Stay Prepared programme.

Temasek Foundation COVID-19 Initiatives

Over the past few months, Temasek Foundation has been working with multiple partners to provide support in and outside Singapore, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The second distribution of free masks in September builds on the first StayMasked distribution in June, and the #BYOBclean initiative in March, where Temasek Foundation partnered People’s Association, corporates, unions, universities and community organisations to provide 500ml of hand sanitiser to every household in Singapore.

Other community efforts also included the setting up of web portal MyMentalHealth with specially-curated articles to encourage mindfulness and mental well-being during this stressful period; partnerships and funding to provide 414,000 meals in various meal support programmes to the vulnerable; distribution of about 1 million face shields to frontline workers including those in the F&B and hairdressing sector the provision of care packs including oximeters, sanitisers and masks to various vulnerable community segments; and the pilot installation of 500 table-top separators at Kopitiam and Food Junction foodcourts and staff canteens for frontline transport workers.

For more information on the StayMasked initiative, visit stayprepared.sg/staymasked.

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For media enquiries, please contact:

Joshua Wong
Associate Director
Temasek Foundation
Mobile: 8180 0741
Email: joshuawong@temasekfoundation.org.sg

About Temasek Foundation

Temasek Foundation supports programmes that uplift lives and communities in Singapore and beyond. We aim to strengthen social resilience, foster international exchange and enhance regional capabilities, and advance science and nature for a sustainable world.

For more information, visit www.temasekfoundation.org.sg.

About Stay Prepared Programmes

Stay Prepared helps to prepare the Singapore community for emergencies like major accidents, natural disasters, pandemics, severe haze or terrorist attacks. It is supported by the Temasek Emergency Preparedness Fund, managed by Temasek Foundation.

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¹ The SARS-CoV-2 virus is also an enveloped virus.

² For Singapore School Smartcards, Birth Certificates, ID numbers starting with T08 or above are eligible. Children without government-issued Birth Certificates may use their FIN.

³ Source: Increased plastic pollution due to COVID-19 pandemic: Challenges and recommendations (2020), taken from Chemical Engineering Journal.