Temasek Foundation supported Yayasan MENDAKI in starting a mentoring programme to help equip Malay/Muslim students from the three colleges of the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) with academic and life skills. The aim of the programme was to enable more Malay/Muslim students to do well in their studies and obtain their National ITE Certificate (NITEC). Through a series of focus group discussions, MENDAKI discovered that Malay/Muslim students in ITE needed more motivational and academic support. The mentorship programme was established to meet this need.

Under the programme, a trained coach provided for every two students so that each student received optimal attention. In addition to providing academic support, the coach also served as a role model, friend, and above all, a mentor.