Downturn may see decline in Singapore non-resident population

Kor Kian Beng, Straits Times 5 Feb 09;

THE explosive growth in the proportion of foreigners here will slow and their numbers may even dip as the economy contracts this year.

But continuing to shut them out when things get better will not be in Singapore's long-term interest, said Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng in Parliament on Tuesday.

Responding to Madam Ho Geok Choo (West Coast GRC) on population trends and immigration policies, he said that when the economy grew strongly over the past few years, Singapore's non-resident population rose to meet the man-power needs, especially in labour-intensive industries like construction.

'As we enter into a period of economic contraction, our non-resident population is unlikely to grow at the same rate as in the past. The current proportion of non-resident population of 25 per cent may decline,' he added.

Mr Wong, who is Home Affairs Minister, cited figures from the Population Trends 2008 which showed that as of last June, 65 per cent of the 4.84 million population were Singaporeans, while 10 per cent were permanent residents (PRs).

The remaining 25 per cent were referred to as the non-residents - mostly transient foreigners working, studying and living here. They numbered 1.2 million last June - a spike of 19 per cent over the previous year.

The jump showed that Singapore's foreign manpower needs are highly dependent on the economy, said Mr Wong.

Madam Ho asked about the employment scene, particularly measures to address concerns among Singaporeans over job competition from foreigners in the downturn.

Mr Wong's response: 'For the Government, Singaporeans' interests must come first. But excluding foreigners from coming here to work when there's a legitimate need for companies to hire them will be against our long-term interests.'

He added that Singapore had to consider all factors needed to keep its economy competitive. It could not follow blindly what other countries did in their immigration policies. This is especially if foreign manpower is needed to keep companies going, when they are competing with foreign companies, or to keep companies cost-effective.

Mr Wong also listed various programmes to assist Singaporeans, including the Workfare Income Supplement scheme, which gives an income boost to low-wage workers.

He also said that immigration was still needed to boost the population. Singapore's total fertility rate was 1.29 last year - far from the 2.1 replacement rate.

But he added: 'This will be done on a selective basis, taking in consideration the contributions or potential contributions of the immigrants to our economy.'

Over the last five years, 58,000 PRs became citizens, while 242,000 were added to the PR pool. This growth underscored the importance of integrating new citizens and PRs into society here so that communal bonds will be fostered and social cohesion enhanced, said Mr Wong.

The Government is working on a proposal to further help the integration process. More details will be announced during the debate on the budget for individual ministries.