Reasons for promoting population growth in the 1980s. Ageing population

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1 Reasons for promoting population growth in the 1980s Ageing population fewer babies born fewer young people in the populationnumber of older people would become proportionately larger ageing population more resources would have to be used to take care of the increasing number of senior citizens each young people would have to bear a greater share of responsibility to take care of the elderly With population growth, there will be more young people to work to provide the resources required by the increasing number of citizens. reduce the average burden for the young people to care for the elderly. Lack of attractiveness to multinational companies lower birth rate = smaller population smaller talent pool multinational corporations (MNCs) find it difficult & more expensive to recruit Singaporeans compared to the huge labour markets in countries such as China smaller consumers market = Singapore less attractive as multinational companies find it more difficult to sell their goods in Singapore. Must ensure Singapore has sufficient manpower and talent to meet the needs of the MNCs attract more MNCs to operate in Singapore and help Singapore s development. Need for defence manpower Declining birth rate = fewer men to recruit for National services would weaken Singapore s defence, as manpower is needed for our defence force and to operate military equipment more difficult to defend Singapore if other countries are attacking it makes Singapore unsafe have a negative impact on Singapore s development This ensures that there would be more men to recruit for National Service make Singapore secure and facilitate Singapore s development. Declining birth rate from the 1980s 1980s, fertility rate = 1.82 children per women number of babies born fell below the replacement value (due to the success of the family planning policy in reducing the birth rate) Increased cost of living + late marriages also contributed to the declining birth rate However, at the same period, more jobs were created and larger workforce was present Manpower needed for national defence.

2 Ensure that Singapore has sufficient people to meet the growing manpower needs for our industries and defence necessary to maintain Singapore s growth and security. Strategies to promote population in the 1980s Three or more if you can afford it campaign Introduced in 1987 aimed at encouraging parents to have three or more children if they could afford it government helps relief the financial burden of having more children: - allowing the use of Medisave to pay for the delivery charges of the first three children lowered cost of having children encourage more financiallyabled parents to have three or more children. promoted this scheme through the use of posters and advertisements government hopes that parents are more convinced of having bigger families Graduate Mother Scheme In the 1980s, more graduates were marrying later and bearing fewer children. Based on research, it was felt that the education level of parents had a direct impact on the performance of their children in school. 1984, the Graduate Mother Scheme was introduced To encourage graduates to have more children: - priority in primary school registration is given to children from families where the mother has an acceptable university degree or approved professional qualifications. - enhanced child relief for better-educated women for up to three children. measures were meant to make it easier for graduate parents to raise children However, this scheme sparked off debate and unhappiness among Singaporeans. The less-educated felt that the policy neglected them. Pro-family measures equalised medical benefits = both parents are entitled to make medical claims for their children from their employers - Previously, only the father can make such claims. maternity leaves are also extended from 12 weeks to 16 weeks to allow mother additional time to rest and to take care of their children introduces the 5-days work week for civil servants to have better work life balance Will lessen the burden of having more children, by ensuring that Singaporeans have more time and resources to raise their children encourage Singaporeans to bear more children.

3 Attracting foreign talent government relaxed its immigration policy to attract foreign talent with skills that Singapore required. - Easier entry into Singapore - subsidized housing - attractive educations package for children were offered to foreign talent who were willing to work in Singapore. government hopes that these individuals would develop an attachment to our country take up permanent residence or citizenships increase our population growth, especially if foreigners also give birth to the next generation boost the quality of our limited manpower + increase our population Strategies to cope with ageing population Individuals/Self-reliance encouraged to attend pre-retirement talks to learn how to plan for old age cover a few aspects of old age planning like health education and financial planning elderly are also encouraged to have regular medical check-up for detection of diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes, hypertension and heart diseases. elderly are also encouraged to lead an active and healthy lifestyle by incorporating physical activities into their daily lives and learning how to read food labels to select healthier food help the aged maintain good health reduce the need for medical treatment individuals can save on medical expenses reduce their dependency on the government and the younger generation Government support CPF central provident fund (CPF) = compulsory savings scheme for all employees compulsory that all employees contribute about 20% of their income into the CPF every month + employers will have to also contribute between 10 to 20% of the employee s income into the CPF account. The CPF saving in the special account are set aside for retirement and emergency purposes workers also contribute 6 to 8% of their salary into Medisave account whereby this money can be used for medical expenses This scheme forces people to start saving for their old age once they start working and since CPF members can only withdraw their savings when they are 55 years old

4 ensures that most if the ageing population have a substantial sum of money to depend on when they retire reduce the dependency on the government for funds lessen the burden on the younger generations RETIREMENT SAVINGS FROM CPF compulsory that all CPF members leave a minimum sum in the retirement account retirees will get a monthly sum from this account from age 62 onwards ensures that all retirees still keep a sum of money for future use after they have retired and that they still have a sum of money every month to support themselves cope with the ageing population by making sure that the old have some money to support themselves after retirement PARENTS RIGHT TO SEEK FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM CHILDREN introduced tribunal for the maintenance of parents Parents who are incapable of supporting themselves can get the court s help to seek financial support from children who are capable of supporting them serves as a body to help the aged ask for help if they are incapable of supporting themselves and this also makes the children responsible for taking care of the old TAX RELIEF FOR COUPLES CARING FOR PARENTS Taxpayers can claim an income deduction for taking care of the elderly parents, grandparent and great grandparent can claim an income tax deduction if they contribute to their own or their elderly dependent s CPF accounts Children staying with their parent can claim up to $5000 of income tax reduction encourage children to stay with their parents and take care of the elderly members in the family and such tax relief also helps lessen the financial burden of the younger generations, thus helping to cope with the ageing populations.

5 FINANCIAL INCENTIVE FOR STAYING NEAR PARENTS First time buyers of government flats can get a housing grant of $ if they buy a flat in the area where their parents live. aims to encourage children to stay near their parents so that they can visit their parents more frequently and also facilitate taking care of their parents Family Support show care and concern for the elderly must understand the physical and emotional change that occurs when a person grows old and be patient with the elderly can make the elderly feel wanted by giving them a part to play in the family like asking them for their opinions and asking for assistance in taking care of their children ensuring that their houses is safe for senior citizens like putting support hand bars in toilets can spend more time with the elderly and by strengthening family bonds and meeting the physical and emotional needs of these elderly, families can play a part in ensuring that elderly are well taken-care of reducing the dependence in the government Community help Voluntary welfare organizations run community-based services for senior citizens Example- home nursing foundation for elderly. - involves members of the community such as housewives, students and retirees to help look after the need of the senior citizens. offer free health check and organize recreational activities for senior citizens elderly would be encouraged to check their health to prevent serious disease from affecting their health Prevention is better than cure reduce the number of elderly be afflicted with serious illness requiring huge medical expenses. Recreational activities also help senior citizens to be physically, mentally and socially active happier and healthier reducing the burden of taking care of physical and emotional problem