AidHub is a platform to consolidate aid initiatives in Singapore for those impacted by COVID-19 and in need of resources. What started out as a Facebook post by Rachel Ooi (24), asking people to leave a comment with the initiatives they knew about, quickly gained traction. Members of the community pitched in to develop a solution as the demand for a consolidated list became clear. Not surprisingly, it went through iterations as an infographic and Google doc before becoming the website you see today.
We spoke to Rachel and Quek Yong Jian to find out more about the project.
In a time of crisis, it’s comforting to see a kampung (community) spirit burning strongly. Though Yong Jian didn’t know Rachel personally before, he gamely offered to help build the AidHub website after hearing about it through one of their mutual friends. Since the goal was a functional product, Yong Jian mentioned that by keeping the technical details simple, the site was built in less than a day.
“In these kinds of situations where time is a key concern, you don’t want anything complicated or feature-ful – you want something easy to use that can go live ASAP.”
Quek Yong Jian
The duo shared how they were encouraged by the positive feedback of their friends and community, as well as observations like spikes in traffic to AidHub after the Solidarity Payout was disbursed. Despite some concerns about how open community-based projects like AidHub could be abused, the team says they’re thankful to have not encountered any misuse so far. In Rachel’s words,
“I think you can trust people to step up when there’s a need to be filled, it’s just a matter of connecting them. There are so many people in Singapore doing great things…people generally do want to contribute, and you can often really amplify the amount of resources and traction [initiatives] get by consolidating information. AidHub showed me the importance of making sure that people in Singapore are more tightly networked.”
Rachel Ooi
Rachel and Yong Jian share a passion not just for giving back to the community, but also for prototyping ideas. Their advice for those looking to start their own initiative or project would be to “stop being so practical”, and to dare to start small. After all, ideas can be built on iteratively – just as AidHub grew from a humble social media post!
If you’re looking for a cause to contribute to, or require aid, the team has accumulated a database over at aidhub.sg with over 120 initiatives that can be filtered by target group and type of support offered. They list both long-standing programs like TOUCH Home’s Care Meals-on-Wheels, and efforts that have arisen spontaneously in response to evolving needs, such as a fund to sponsor prepaid SIM card top-ups for migrant workers.
