Background Informations

It has been observed that Singapore experiences a low rate of population growth mainly the cause of low birth rate, people tend to have fewer babies.

Factors that lead to a low birth rate:

Later Marriages:
More poeple are marrying later and having children later in their lives. This could be due to the fact that more women now receiving degrees than in the past and hence would choose to pursue a career before retiring and having plans to have children. Since most of the ladies cannot conceive babies after they reach the age of 50, those who marry later or delay having children are left with lesser years to have childrens.

Fewer Marriages:
As more singaporeans choose to remain single, there will be fewer families and birth rates will fall. With fewer births, the number of young people in the population decreases.

Preference for smaller families:
Increasingly, people in Singapore prefer to have smaller families. This is partly due to the increasing number of working women who find it difficult to balance work and family and hence choose to have fewer children. More singaporeans today also feel that the cost of raising children has increased. Such changing trends and values have led to some couples not having any children at all!

Effect on low birth rate in Singapore:

Fertility figures:
Singapore's TFR(Total Fertility Rate) of 1.16 for last year places in lower thn Japan and South Korea, which have TFRs of 1.2 and 1.22 respectively. Taiwan now has the lowest TFR in the world at 0.91. But some population experts think that last year's drop in birthrate might be because of other reasons and could be reversed this year. It is believed by some to be an unlucky year last year for having children as the Chinese zodiac year of the Tiger. With the economy growing strongly and the good years of the Rabbit and Dragon coming up, the TFR is likely to stabilise - or rise this year.

Consequence of a low rate of population growth in Singapore:

Higher Taxes:
Public projects such as the building of hospitals and community centres are funded by taxes collected from the working population. With a shrinking population, fewer people will be in the workforce. This will mean that each working person will have to pay more taxes to fund public projects, such as building more public facilities such as swimming pools and libraries.

Action to manage a low rate of population growth in Singapore:

Encouraging marriage and childbearing:
One solution to the problems of a low rate of population growth is to increase birth rates. The government can encourage married couples to have more children. In Singapore, couples are now encourage to have three or more children. For example, women who have children younger are given more tax rebates, that is, the amount of taxes that they have to pay is reduced. The government has also encouraged the setting up of more child care centres to look after children while their parents are at work.

Sources: The Straits Times Jan 18, 2011. Earth our home Textbook.