Lai Chung Han is a Singaporean civil servant and former two-star

rear-admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

who served as Chief of Navy between 2014 and 2017. He has been serving as Permanent Secretary for Education since 2019.

Education

Lai was awarded the

President's Scholar A President's Scholar is a recipient of the academic scholarship awarded by the Government of Singapore annually, to pursue undergraduate education at a university, usually abroad. The scholarship is considered to be the most prestigious public ...

ship and

Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Scholarship The SAF Scholarship, formerly known as the SAF Overseas Scholarship (SAFOS), is a scholarship conferred by the Public Service Commission (PSC). The scholarship is second in prestige to the President's Scholarship. Scholars are groomed for the h ...

in 1992. He graduated from Christ's College, Cambridge with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

with first class honours degree in

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

. He received the Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Postgraduate Scholarship (General Development) in 2006, before going on to complete a

Master of Public Administration The Master of Public Administration (M.P.Adm., M.P.A., or MPA) is a specialized higher professional post graduate degree in public administration, similar/ equivalent to the Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the issues of ...

degree at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. He also attended the

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associat ...

in the United States.

Military career

Lai enlisted in the

Singapore Armed Forces The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are the military services of the Republic of Singapore, responsible for protecting and defending the security interests and the sovereignty of the country. A military component of the Ministry of Defence (MIND ...

(SAF) in 1992 and served in the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN). He served on board the RSS ''Valour'' as a junior officer and later as Executive Officer before assuming command of the RSS ''Valiant'' from 2002 to 2004. He was appointed as Commander of the Missile Corvette Squadron in July 2007 and later Fleet Commander in April 2011. Lai has also held a number of staff appointments concurrently in the headquarters of the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF), this include: Head of Long Term Planning Secretariat, Office of the Chief of Defence Force; Office Director, Future Systems Directorate; Director (Policy), Ministry of Defence (2007–2010); Deputy Secretary (Policy), Ministry of Defence (2012–2014). Lai was promoted to the rank two-star

on 1 July 2014. He succeeded

Ng Chee Peng Ng Chee Peng is a Singaporean civil servant and former two-star rear-admiral who served as Chief of Navy between 2011 and 2014. Education Ng was awarded the President's Scholarship and Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Scholarship in 1989. He ...

as Chief of Navy on 1 August 2014. Lai stepped down as Chief of Navy with Rear-Admiral Lew Chuen Hong, previously Chief of Staff – Naval Staff, taking over the command on Change of Command Parade held at RSS Singapura – Changi Naval Base on 16 June 2017.

Civil Service career

Lai is also a member of the board of ST Electronics (Info-Comm Systems) and a member of the Board of Governors of

Temasek Polytechnic Temasek Polytechnic (TP) is a post-secondary education institution and statutory board under the purview of the Ministry of Education in Singapore. Established in 1990, it is the only polytechnic in Singapore offering a law programme. Histor ...

. Lai was appointed Second Permanent Secretary for Education on 19 June 2017, and Second Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs on 1 September 2017, concurrently. On 1 April 2019, Lai relinquished both appointments before being appointed Permanent Secretary for Education.

Personal life

Lai is married to Ng Chiew Yen and they have two children.

Awards

Lai was awarded the Public Administration Medal (Silver) (Military) in 2010.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lai, Chung Han Living people Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge Harvard Kennedy School alumni Singaporean people of Chinese descent Chiefs of the Republic of Singapore Navy Permanent secretaries of Singapore Naval War College alumni President's Scholars 1974 births