Singapore’s government has announced a rewards scheme under which citizens can earn up to $1,000 for choosing books over phones, with 15 minutes of reading qualifying for rewards.
LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 16th Sep, 2026) In the modern era, people spend much of their time scrolling on smartphones and other devices instead of reading. However, one country has announced an interesting programme to discourage citizens from wasting time on smartphones.
Under the programme, citizens will be paid for reading a book for at least 15 minutes a day.
Singapore is rewarding citizens for choosing books over phones. The Singaporean government hopes the programme will improve people’s ability to concentrate, critical thinking and imagination.
The programme was launched in September, under which readers will receive points that can be exchanged for money.
People who participate in 50 reading sessions daily on a government website will be able to earn one Singapore Dollar.
Participants can earn 20 virtual coins for a session lasting 15 minutes or longer, while 1,000 coins are equivalent to one Singapore dollar.
Melissa Tham, head of Singapore’s National library board, said that several steps were needed to build a reading habit for the future.
She said, “We are living in a world where an incredible amount of content is available. At any given time, we can scroll through hundreds of headlines, watch videos or view a summary of anything.”
She said they knew that establishing a habit required small and achievable steps, adding that they had therefore given people an easy target: read for just 15 minutes a day—while travelling on a bus, before going to bed or during lunch.
Singapore’s government is also considering measures to make social media less harmful for young people, such as limiting the time spent online to protect them from negative effects on their personalities.
