SINGAPORE: Singapore residents will be able to collect improved reusable face masks from next Tuesday (May 26), as part of the country’s third mask distribution exercise.
Residents can collect their masks from 24-hour vending machines at all community clubs until Jun 14, said the People’s Association in a media release on Thursday.
Masks will also be available from community club and residents’ committee counters from May 26 to Jun 1.
How members of the public can collect the new reusable masks. (Image: People’s Association)
This will be Singapore’s third nationwide distribution of masks, and the cloth face coverings will have better bacterial filtration capabilities than those from previous distributions.
READ: Singapore to distribute ‘better’ reusable face masks to households
The masks will have at least three layers of material and boast a bacterial filtration efficiency of at least 95 per cent even after 30 washes, said the People’s Association.
“New materials have also been used for these masks to improve their resistance to droplets and comfort for the users,” it said.
Both adult-sized and child-sized masks will be available, but only identity documents for children aged 12 years and under may be used to collect child-sized masks.
Adult-sized masks are available for all, but each person may only receive one mask per valid identification card.
The adult-sized (left) and child-sized improved reusable masks. (Photo: Cindy Co)
All Singapore residents with a valid identification card – including foreign domestic workers, foreign workers who are not living in dormitories and international students living in hostels – are eligible for the masks, said the People’s Association.
Masks for foreign workers living in dormitories will be distributed via the Ministry of Manpower.
To avoid having people crowding at collection points, the People’s Association advised having one family member to collect masks on behalf of their household.
This person will have to bring along each household member’s Government-issued identification document (with barcode).
Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing trying out manual collection of the improved reusable masks. (Photo: Cindy Co)
Collection points will have safe distancing and hygiene measures to protect residents, volunteers and staff members, said the People’s Association.
This includes the implementation of temperature-taking as well as cleaning and restocking vending machines regularly. All high-touch areas on the vending machines are also treated with a self-disinfecting coating which can last for three months.
Provided by Temasek Foundation, the 24-hour vending machines will have instructions in four different languages to guide residents through the mask collection process. They will be operational from 10am on May 26.
Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing trying out the vending machine for the improved reusable masks. (Photo: Cindy Co)
Members of the public can visit the MaskGoWhere website to get more information, or to check the availability of masks in the vending machines.
Around 150 Singapore Armed Forces servicemen and about 40 military vehicles were involved in the mask distribution exercise, said the People’s Association.
They assisted in breaking bulk and transporting the masks to community clubs across the island.
The exercise is also supported by RedeemSG, a mobile app system developed by Open Government Products, a division under GovTech.
The app allows users to track the redemption of goods, vouchers and tickets, and will help record who has redeemed their mask “to ensure that every resident is able to receive their mask allocation”, said the People’s Association.
READ: Singapore households to get 4 face masks each amid worries over Wuhan virus
Singapore’s third mask distribution exercise was announced by Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing on May 6.
It follows the Government’s first distribution of four surgical masks to each household in February and another distribution of reusable cloth masks last month.
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