December 26, 2009
Despite government incentives to boost Singapore’s flagging
birth rates, Singaporeans are still not producing enough babies
this year.
According to figures from the Registry of Births and Deaths,
32,630 babies were born in Singapore in the first 10 months of this
year, far short of the 50,000 needed to replace the population each
year.
39,826 babies were born in Singapore in 2008.
Sociologist Dr Chang Yau Hoon from the School of Social Sciences
at the Singapore Management University felt that the state of the
economy is a key reason deterring couples from having more
babies.
When interviewed by CNA, he said:
“A lot of family planning decision is being made based on
the economy, like whether a person can keep their job, maintain
their job. Their salary over the couple of years would be a main
determinant. Inflation….whether there would be an expected rise and
the cost of living. They would want to ensure they can provide for
the family and provide a good education (for their
children).”
The CNA article defends “the need for Singapore to bring in new
citizens to make up for the low birth numbers.” However,
immigration is only a stop-gap measure which does not address the
root cause of the problem and may create another one in the
process.
A key reason for the low birth rates is the high cost
of public housing in Singapore. While the prices of HDB flats
has more than tripled in the last decade or so, the median wages of
ordinary Singaporeans have not kept pace with it.
Young Singapore couples are finding it harder to afford a home
of their own, let alone start a family. The price of resale flats
hit a record high in June this year.
Despite evidence showing otherwise, HDB continues to insist that
public housing is affordable in Singapore. Government ministers
even claim that rising asset value helps to create wealth for
Singaporeans.
The situation is exacerbated by the relentless influx of
foreigners into Singapore which contributes to inflation,
especially that of properties.
According to the Home Affairs Ministry, there were over 20,000
new citizens and 90,000 PRs in 2008. Foreigners now make up 36 per
cent of the population, up from 14 per cent in 1990.
In a recent interview with the National Geographic magazine, MM
Lee Kuan Yew said he did not care less if Singaporeans are unable
to compete with the newcomers:
“Over time, Singaporeans have become less hard-driving and
hard-striving. This is why it is a good thing that the nation has
welcomed so many Chinese immigrants. If native
Singaporeans are falling behind because the spurs are not stuck
into the hide, that is their problem,” he quipped.
With such a mindset in the officialdom, it is little wonder that
Singaporeans are not keen to have more children. After all, who
will want to bring up their children in a country which offers no
security or benefits to them.
