The Temasek Foundation was established in May 2007 to provide a broader focus for corporate giving in line with its mandate to build people and their capabilities, build bridges among diverse people, build a culture of excellence and good governance, and rebuild lives and livelihoods affected by major natural disasters.

Independently managed and staffed with its own board, the Foundation had a very busy first year, focused on identifying and developing programmes with long-term impact and defined outcomes. Some S$16 million has been committed to fund 14 programmes in Asia, including China, India, the Philippines, Vietnam and Singapore.

One programme approach is based on training the trainers or masters, in order to multiply capacity more quickly. Such programmes included English, leadership, and curriculum development courses for more than 80 principals and senior teachers from the Philippines, 480 master teachers from Vietnam, and some 50 master teachers from Hainan in China.

To promote cross-cultural understanding among Asia's youth, the Foundation supports customised student exchange programmes at Singapore's three main universities and their partner universities across Asia.

The Foundation is sponsoring 140 government officials from Kerala, India to meet with various Singapore agencies to share knowledge and expertise in urban governance and master planning, urban township and facilities management, and sanitation services. The Foundation is also co-sponsoring the training of master builders in West Sumatra, Indonesia, for a low-cost method of strengthening existing walls and housing in order to delay their destruction during earthquakes.

The newly set up Temasek Foundation Centre for Trade & Negotiations at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies will be another platform for learning and research on international trade and negotiations.