Singapore’s population to hit 6.9 million by 2030

Government predicts scarry total workforce scenario.

According to government’s White Paper, Singapore’s total population could reach between 6.5 and 6.9 million by 2030. The actual population, it said, will again depend on factors such as the country’s birth rate and life expectancy, the global and regional environment, its economic structure and social needs.

Here’s more:

Singapore’s total population of residents and non-residents could be between 5.8 million and 6 million in 2020, depending on changes to the country’s birth rates, life expectancy, and its social and economic needs.

The resident population (comprising citizens and PRs) is projected to be 4 to 4.1 million, of which citizens alone will make up 3.5 to 3.6 million of the population.

For a strong Singaporean core, we will continue to support Singaporeans in their decisions to get married and have children, and remain open to immigration. This will stop our citizen population from shrinking and sustain the citizen population with a stable age distribution. The PR population will remain stable at between 0.5 and 0.6 million to ensure a pool of good quality candidates for Singapore citizenship.

Total workforce growth will fall from the average of 3.3% per year in the last three decades, to between 1% and 2% per year from now to 2020. 

As we push to raise productivity and tighten controls on foreign manpower, the foreign workforce will still grow, but more slowly. As such, the growth in the non-resident population, which includes our foreign workforce, is expected to slow. By 2020, the size of our non-resident population is projected to be about 1.8 to 1.9 million.

The resident population (comprising citizens and PRs) is projected to be 4.2 to 4.4 million, of which citizens alone will make up 3.6 to 3.8 million, as the growth in the citizen population slows. 4.16 Total workforce growth is expected to slow further to about 1% as the size of the Singaporean workforce plateaus, with more Singaporeans retiring and fewer entering the workforce. Two-thirds of Singaporeans are expected to be working in PMET jobs.

We will need foreign workers to supplement the Singaporean core in the workforce so that we have a workforce structure with the full range of skills, backgrounds and experiences to support our needs. As such, the non-resident population is projected to be around 2.3 to 2.5 million by 2030. 

As the rate of growth in our citizen population slows, and as we slow down foreign workforce growth rates, total population growth rate will slow compared to the previous three decades.