SINGAPORE: Health Minister Gan Kim Yong has urged taxi drivers to take better care of their health and well-being.

He said the Health Promotion Board (HPB) will work closely with the National Taxi Association (NTA) to get more drivers to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Mr Gan, together with leaders from the NTA, visited some 1,000 taxi drivers at Changi Airport on Friday.

It was to show their appreciation to those who continue to work on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

The cabbies also received goodie bags, with healthy items like tonic soup and vouchers for medical treatment.

The NTA says it will also work on getting taxi drivers started on sports and exercise programmes.

“So far we've realised that the participation of our drivers in terms of physical exercise is not as high as we've hoped to see,” said NTA adviser Ang Hin Kee. “Many reasons... (one is) because they have to drive long distances every day; they cover at least 12 hours a day.

“So, we are finding little ways to encourage them to do some stretching while they are in between breaks or in between customers in order to get them started.”

Health Minister Mr Gan said the HPB will continue to step up its efforts to reach out to all Singaporeans from all walks of life.

“We want to encourage them (all Singaporeans) to stay healthy, so that they not only add years to life but add life to years,” he said. “So, one of the efforts is to work with the various employer organisations, including the taxi association to see how we can reach out to worker groups, employee groups.”