Essay On Ageing Population In Singapore

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Thousands died when a tsunami struck the beaches and towns of Aceh, Indonesia in 2004. After the tide retreated, the province was crippled when it faced difficulty in allocating enough resources to meet their multiple needs - continue rescue operations, support the living and at the same time, take care of the dead. Thankfully, Singapore is protected from such calamity due to her geography but she is facing a different tsunami, a “silver” one that is possibly and equally crippling. That led to the introduction of the highly controversial Population White Paper in January 2013 by the Singapore government as a counter-measure. A highly debated policies found in the White Paper is the government’s aim to increase the population by continuing to open the door for immigrants into Singapore as new citizens, Permanent Residents and foreign workers. In the government’s point of view, the policy is essential as it helps Singapore cope with the problem of an ageing population that is a result of Singapore’s increasing life expectancy and low total fertility rate (NPTD, 2013, p. 10). The government had assessed that an ageing population will impose challenges on Singapore’s population because as the population…show more content…
Many are afraid that an influx of new immigrants will make job seeking more competitive. There is also the fear that foreigners in Singapore may discriminate against Singaporeans in their hiring process. Some are concerned that the population expansion will further contribute to congestion in the transportation system and there are those who are afraid that the pool of new immigrants may change Singapore’s existing identity by introducing new cultures into Singapore (Chong, 2013, pp. 2-3). I am particularly worried that the expanding population will make housing unaffordable for me in the future as a result of an increased demand for housing in our small

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