In his National Day Rally speech on Sunday (Aug 21), Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong underlined the importance of building “a world-class talent pool in Singapore,” even as he noted that globalization is on the decline and countries are turning inward.
But Singapore needs top foreign workers in order to avoid being left behind, he said.
“When it comes to top talent, we can never have enough. This is an age where talent makes all the difference to a nation’s success. We need to focus on attracting and retaining top talent, in the same way we focus on attracting and retaining investments.”
He added that other countries are also “making a special effort to court top international talents.”
“Germany recently allowed skilled foreign professionals to live there even before they secure a job. Come first, look for a job later.
The UK wants to attract the best and brightest at the beginning of their careers. It recently introduced a special visa for graduates from the top 50 universities in the world outside the UK,” including, the Prime Minister noted, the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University.
“In this global contest for talent, Singapore cannot afford to be creamed off, or left behind,” he added.
2) We must stay open & connected to the world. SG is a global city. We cannot survive any other way. 3) We must build a world-class talent pool here. In this global contest for talent, SG cannot afford to be creamed off or left behind. [2/2]#NDR2022 #NDRsg pic.twitter.com/i6ZvkFr6V5
— leehsienloong (@leehsienloong) August 21, 2022
However, PM Lee acknowledged the concerns many Singaporeans have regarding the impact of a large number of non-residents in the country, and said that these problems would continue to be addressed by the government.
“But while we manage the overall population of foreign professionals here, we must not stop seeking out top talent who can contribute to our Singapore Story,” he added.
One example he gave of top talent contributing to Singapore’s success is in the biomedical sciences, where a push was made to develop the country in the 1990s. This paid off during the Covid pandemic.
During COVID-19, our local & non-local researchers made significant contributions: helping maintain GISAID database; developing test kits & diagnostics; tapping into industry networks & securing vaccines & therapeutics early for SG. [3/4]#NDR2022 #NDRsg pic.twitter.com/jIjpmxK04c
— leehsienloong (@leehsienloong) August 21, 2022
Had we not sought out top talent 30 years ago & continued to build up our biomedical research teams and activities, and develop home grown talent, all this would never have happened. This is the difference top talent can make. [4/4]#NDR2022 #NDRsg
— leehsienloong (@leehsienloong) August 21, 2022
And today, amid global economic uncertainties, Singapore has “a window of opportunity now,” PM Lee added.
“Singapore has attracted the interest of many talented people and international companies. Those with special talents and skills are looking for places to move to, where they and their families feel safe and welcome, and where they can make an impact. Businesses want to invest in places where the talent is, business follows the talent, and they also look for places where the politics and policies are stable, and where the system works.”
And while schemes are already in place to attract and retain top talent in fields such as the technology industry, this may not be enough.
“We need to do more, especially in the sectors with good potential. We want to make top talent everywhere sit up, pay attention, and think seriously about coming to Singapore.
MOM, MTI and the economic agencies will soon announce new initiatives to achieve this. If we can get the people we want to come here, it will really help Singapore to shine brightly as a hub of innovation, entrepreneurship, and growth. It will make our own talent want to stay in Singapore, to participate in building a dynamic and outstanding nation, and every Singaporean will benefit from our progress and success.” /TISG