OPINION | S’poreans are not having babies; besides high cost of living, can a child’s future be truly free from stresses beyond reasonable?
Singapore’s government has been in a jam in the last few decades. Singapore is getting older, and people are not having babies. On Friday, 24 Feb 2023, it was announced that our fertility rate had hit an all-time low, so low that it even became the topic of international news.
The government has been desperately trying to address the decline in the fertility rate for the longest time. We had a budget day before the announcement of the record-low fertility rate. In that budget, our Prime Minister-In- Waiting, Mr Lawrence Wong, announced that he was throwing even more money at couples if they had more children. The logic behind Mr Wong’s announcement was simple – since we, the people, say that having kids is expensive, the government will make it less expensive and so we should jolly well start reproducing.
Leon Perera: “I repeat, BTO projects should continue. It doesn’t say BTO projects should stop.”
Singaporeans obviously followed the Budget 2023 proceedings with more than the usual interest. If nothing else, they would want to know what the government will be doing to help them cope with the GST increases, among other things. There was another reason. They would be interested in the performance of Deputy PM and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong, their future PM.
How would he deal with an elected Opposition which seemed to be getting better and better? Steamroller? Gently dismissive? Engager?
Singaporean: How much $ do you give your parents monthly? I give 10% ($400)
SINGAPORE: A local Reddit user was “wondering what’s the standard around here” for giving money to parents, and asked How “much $ do you give your parents monthly?”
On an Ask Singapore Reddit thread on Thursday (Feb 23), u/needleintheh4y wrote that he is 30 years old and has two other siblings. He gives his parents $400 a month, which is ten per cent of his income.
‘Maybe they’re looking for S$10K starting pay’ — S’poreans say as ‘more graduates remain unemployed’ after finishing university
SINGAPORE: Singaporeans are responding to a recent report on the amount of time more fresh graduates allegedly spend unemployed after finishing university.
An online user took to an online group on Tuesday (Feb 21) to share a news headline stating that more graduates stayed unemployed for six months following their exit from their studies in 2022 but that median salaries are up.
How Much Does it Cost for Millennial Families to Raise a Child in Singapore?
The decision not to have kids is becoming more prevalent, with Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, the United States and a handful of European countries seeing a decline in family size over the past decade.
The reasons for not having a child are plenty. Whether it is struggling to find financial stability or placing greater priority on career growth, there is a myriad of reasons why people forego having children.