'I am sorry': GovTech chairman on retrenchment exercise
GovTech chairman Chng Kai Fong (right) said he was "sorry for the disruption" caused by the agency's restructuring.
PHOTO: AsiaOne/Fitri Salleh, Public Service Division

PUBLISHED ON
July 16, 2026 1:36 PMUPDATED
July 16, 2026 2:15 PMBY
LIM KEWEI
"I am sorry."
That was the message from Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech) chairman Chng Kai Fong to all affected staff in the agency's retrenchment exercise.
"I am sorry for the disruption to you and your families. Thank you for what you have given GovTech and Singapore," he said.
GovTech announced on Wednesday (July 15) that it will be reducing its headcount by up to nine per cent over the next two years, as it shifts to build and manage its own digital products.
In a note to GovTech officers, which was seen by AsiaOne, Chng acknowledged that this was "difficult news" and thanked the affected staff.
"The systems you built are running in production today and serving Singaporeans. That contribution endures and it will remain part of GovTech's story," he said.
He also addressed the officers who remain, saying: "To colleagues who are staying: we owe it to those leaving to make this transformation real, not another reorganisation on paper."
A total of 305 staff from GovTech headquarters and in project and vendor management roles are affected by the first of three planned waves of job cuts.
Of these, 102 will remain in their current roles and 110 will take up apprenticeships to transition into other capabilities. The remaining 93 officers are leaving the agency.
Chng, who also holds permanent secretary appointments in the Ministry of Digital Development and Information and the Prime Minister's Office, stressed that the reorganisation was "not an AI-driven downsizing exercise".