Besides coordinating and facilitating dating activities offered by the private sector, it also serves to educate the public on singlehood issues.
Another objective of the unit was to encourage public discussion about the perceived problem of the large number of better-educated women remaining unmarried.
The government justified this elitist approach by announcing that they had identified graduates—and in particular the females among them—as a group which required assistance in terms of finding lifelong partners.
During a speech made at the National Day rally in 1983, then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew alleged that the phenomenon of graduates remaining single would result in a projected loss of about 400 talented people per year.
[citation needed] Lee had also expressed worry that the dearth of children produced by graduate women would lead to the faltering of the economy and ultimately a decline in society.
[8] The fact that the SDU was formed the following year has led many to perceive the debate to be the main reason behind the establishment of the unit and its exclusive focus.
In fact, there was an outcry by the public at large about the unfair use of taxpayers' money to subsidise leisure activities for graduates, especially since they already had a higher income.
Other top reasons cited included "not enough opportunities to socialize" and "lack of time" as career and other commitments were viewed as more/equally important, or as milestones to be achieved in life before they would think about marriage.
In the beginning, activities that the former SDU organised included personal-effectiveness workshops, computer courses, barbecues, dancing lessons, cruises/tours to the Maldives, Club Mediterrannee and Japan.
SDU's policy then was that part of the fees for courses would be sponsored by the unit, while the full costs had to be borne by participants for cruises.
[9] Types of activities offered by SDU range from dating, wine & dine, self-enrichment, sports & recreation to travel and more.
[19] Since 2009, SDN has been working with different partners from the people, private and public sectors to create a broad array of opportunities for singles to meet and form meaningful relationships.
When SDU was first started, membership was free of charge and valid until the member registered his/her marriage, either at the Registry or under the Muslim law.
Currently, singles aged 20 and above who are Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents can join the network's database to receive communications and information on dating, or register as a user to enjoy its online services, such as the chat function, forum discussion and personal ads, or to access information on events and other resources on dating and relationship.
[21] Through Project Network, SDN has helped to co-fund orientation camps and student activities organised by the local universities to facilitate more gender-balanced social interaction opportunities on campus.