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https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Te...=1&pub_date=20220801123000&seq_num=5&si=44594
Singapore seeks to stay competitive by retraining entire workforce
PayPal and Microsoft partner with national 'reskilling' program
Singapore has offered midcareer training opportunities through the SkillsFuture program since 2014. © Reuters
TAKASHI NAKANO, KOITSU YAMADA and YOSUKE KURABE, Nikkei staff writersJuly 30, 2022 10:00 JST
SINGAPORE/TOKYO -- Caught between a declining birthrate and a rising anti-immigrant sentiment, Singapore has decided to retrain its own citizens for tech jobs that are expected to drive the country's growth.
Gangadevi Balakrishnan, a software engineer, owes her current position at PayPal to the government's reskilling program.
She is eager to acquire more new skills. "I am personally interested in security and artificial intelligence. Therefore, I will be looking into programs and courses related to these areas." said Balakrishnan, 29.
The program, SkillsFuture, began in 2014 to retrain the entire population of Singapore. It has provided credits for people 25 and older to study more than 24,000 courses ranging from digital technology to business management.
SkillsFuture is a response to a sense of looming crisis fueled by the city-state's declining population.
Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's first prime minister, once said that without immigrants the economy would collapse by 2050, when 1.5 workers would have to support one elderly person.
During Singapore's high-growth period in the 1980s and 1990s, the influx of immigrants made up for the low birthrate. But more and more citizens have become concerned about the increase in immigration, with some accusing them of stealing jobs. In response, the government has tightened entry restrictions on foreigners, who make up nearly 30% of the population.
Last year, Singapore's population of foreigners fell 10% to 1.47 million, a drop that owes chiefly to the country's COVID travel controls. Singapore's overall population has declined for two consecutive years for the first time ever.
Gangadevi Balakrishnan owes her job at PayPal to Singapore's reskilling program.
That leaves the country with no choice but to train its existing population, including middle-aged and elderly people. The government has placed its bet on raising productivity.
The reskilling movement has entered its second phase, shifting into higher gear during the pandemic instead of pumping the brakes. Citizens receive access to credits, but there also are partnership programs formed with companies at home and abroad to develop skill sets that match specific job classifications in demand.
PayPal is one partner, along with Microsoft, Siemens and several other big-name corporations. A public-private citizen retraining program of this scope has few precedents.
Singapore's Skillsfuture program provides training support for over 24,000 courses ranging from digital technology to business management.
Last year, around 660,000 people received support. This is equivalent to one-quarter of the country's total working-age residents. "We can't change the genetic composition of our population. But we can maximize their potential with education and training," Lee once said.
Singapore's per capita labor productivity totaled about $170,000 in 2020, an average annual increase of roughly 3% since 2015. For a wealthy country, those numbers demonstrate the difficulty of shooting for a higher level.
Luxembourg, whose per capita gross domestic product is at the top level, also faces slow growth in labor productivity, prompting a policy reboot. The country launched a project to support learning of advanced skills. From 2020, digital technology has been added to the curriculum for elementary- and secondary-school students.
Declining populations and an accompanying slowdown in economic growth will be part of a future creeping up on Japan and other advanced nations. Digitalization of industry, deregulation to promote growth and retraining populations can offer a path away from that fate.
Singapore seeks to stay competitive by retraining entire workforce
PayPal and Microsoft partner with national 'reskilling' program
Singapore has offered midcareer training opportunities through the SkillsFuture program since 2014. © Reuters
TAKASHI NAKANO, KOITSU YAMADA and YOSUKE KURABE, Nikkei staff writersJuly 30, 2022 10:00 JST
SINGAPORE/TOKYO -- Caught between a declining birthrate and a rising anti-immigrant sentiment, Singapore has decided to retrain its own citizens for tech jobs that are expected to drive the country's growth.
Gangadevi Balakrishnan, a software engineer, owes her current position at PayPal to the government's reskilling program.
She is eager to acquire more new skills. "I am personally interested in security and artificial intelligence. Therefore, I will be looking into programs and courses related to these areas." said Balakrishnan, 29.
The program, SkillsFuture, began in 2014 to retrain the entire population of Singapore. It has provided credits for people 25 and older to study more than 24,000 courses ranging from digital technology to business management.
SkillsFuture is a response to a sense of looming crisis fueled by the city-state's declining population.
Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's first prime minister, once said that without immigrants the economy would collapse by 2050, when 1.5 workers would have to support one elderly person.
During Singapore's high-growth period in the 1980s and 1990s, the influx of immigrants made up for the low birthrate. But more and more citizens have become concerned about the increase in immigration, with some accusing them of stealing jobs. In response, the government has tightened entry restrictions on foreigners, who make up nearly 30% of the population.
Last year, Singapore's population of foreigners fell 10% to 1.47 million, a drop that owes chiefly to the country's COVID travel controls. Singapore's overall population has declined for two consecutive years for the first time ever.
Gangadevi Balakrishnan owes her job at PayPal to Singapore's reskilling program.
That leaves the country with no choice but to train its existing population, including middle-aged and elderly people. The government has placed its bet on raising productivity.
The reskilling movement has entered its second phase, shifting into higher gear during the pandemic instead of pumping the brakes. Citizens receive access to credits, but there also are partnership programs formed with companies at home and abroad to develop skill sets that match specific job classifications in demand.
PayPal is one partner, along with Microsoft, Siemens and several other big-name corporations. A public-private citizen retraining program of this scope has few precedents.
Singapore's Skillsfuture program provides training support for over 24,000 courses ranging from digital technology to business management.
Last year, around 660,000 people received support. This is equivalent to one-quarter of the country's total working-age residents. "We can't change the genetic composition of our population. But we can maximize their potential with education and training," Lee once said.
Singapore's per capita labor productivity totaled about $170,000 in 2020, an average annual increase of roughly 3% since 2015. For a wealthy country, those numbers demonstrate the difficulty of shooting for a higher level.
Luxembourg, whose per capita gross domestic product is at the top level, also faces slow growth in labor productivity, prompting a policy reboot. The country launched a project to support learning of advanced skills. From 2020, digital technology has been added to the curriculum for elementary- and secondary-school students.
Declining populations and an accompanying slowdown in economic growth will be part of a future creeping up on Japan and other advanced nations. Digitalization of industry, deregulation to promote growth and retraining populations can offer a path away from that fate.
