Overview

Our Sustainable Population Objectives

Vision for Our Population

Like many other countries, Singapore faces the demographic challenges of low birth rates and an ageing population. As a globalised city, we are also becoming more diverse and our social fabric continues to evolve. Amidst these changes and with the constraints we face as a small city-state, it is important that we continue to support the aspirations of Singaporeans, to achieve our vision of a thriving people, a dynamic economy, an inclusive society and a resilient nation for generations of Singaporeans to come.

Our population strategies seek to achieve this by:

• Strengthening assurance for Singaporeans in starting and raising families;

• Growing opportunities for Singaporeans, through a vibrant and resilient economy;

• Strengthening solidarity for a more inclusive and cohesive society; and

• Planning ahead for future generations.

Strengthening assurance for Singaporeans

We aim to build a Singapore where families can thrive, where everyone – the Government, employers, businesses, community partners and individuals – can support Singaporeans at every stage of their marriage and parenthood journey. We will continue to strengthen assurance for Singaporeans and support them in realising their marriage and parenthood aspirations, among other life goals. This includes enabling couples to secure a home when they are ready to marry, helping parents to balance their work and family commitments, and providing financial support to defray the costs of raising children. A whole-of-society effort is needed to foster norms that embrace children, encourage shared parental responsibility, and create a family-friendly culture at workplaces and in the community.

We also want to ensure that all Singaporeans can age with grace and purpose, and view longevity as a blessing and opportunity. We work on measures to enable Singaporeans to remain healthy for longer, boost their retirement adequacy, and provide for their long-term care needs. We also work with community partners to encourage older Singaporeans to maintain robust social networks, so they can continue to contribute to their communities and society at large in meaningful and fulfilling ways.

Growing opportunities for Singaporeans

Despite an uncertain global economic outlook, we work hard to provide attractive opportunities for Singaporeans and sustain economic growth. A vibrant economy brings opportunities and benefits to Singaporeans. Ideas, technological advances and a dynamic workforce help fuel economic growth.

A key enabler for businesses to stay viable is having enough workers with the necessary skills to support their businesses and activities here. Core to this is developing our local workforce. This includes preparing our youth for jobs of the future by providing access to quality education and diversifying pathways in schools. We invest heavily in the upskilling of Singaporeans, to help them reach their full potential. During times of economic volatility and unemployment, we will support affected workers while they undergo training or look for new opportunities.

We also want to build a stronger pipeline of Singaporeans for leadership positions across different sectors of the economy. This includes supporting Singaporeans who venture overseas to live, study or work, gaining valuable experience that will help them contribute back to Singapore. The Singapore Global Network builds networks with these Overseas Singaporeans so they can stay connected with developments in Singapore and with Singaporeans around the world.

However, there are not enough Singaporeans to meet all our economic and social needs. Foreign manpower can support innovation, help fill skills shortages in our labour market and overall boost the productive capacity of the economy. We are committed to ensuring that the foreign workforce complements rather than displaces the local workforce. Singaporeans benefit in the long run from a more productive economy, better jobs and higher wages.

Strengthening solidarity for a more inclusive and cohesive society

The complexion of our society is changing. As more Singaporeans venture overseas for school, work and travel, they may meet and marry non-Singaporeans, and return home to start a family. Singapore is also an attractive place for skilled people who come here to work; over time, some want to make Singapore their home and form families here. Immigrants add to the diversity and vibrancy of our population, and play an important role in moderating the impact of ageing and low birth rates in our population.

At the same time, newcomers must respect our values and norms and make efforts to adapt to our way of life. We work with partners within and outside of government to help foreigners settle in and understand our local norms and culture. This is a whole-of-society effort where different stakeholders including newcomers, Singaporeans, community groups and businesses have a role to play. Although we may all come from different backgrounds, we have in common our sense of belonging to Singapore. Building unity among ourselves is key to staying resilient amidst a more fractious world.

Planning ahead for future generations

Our resources are finite, and we must steward them carefully for future generations so we can build a greener, more liveable and more sustainable home for all. We analyse demographic trends and consider how our needs and aspirations as a society may evolve. This allows us to plan for future infrastructure needs, and build better spaces for generations of Singaporeans to live, work and play.