~from: National Population and Talent Division~
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Population Size & Growth
Singapore’s total population was 5.18 million as at end June 2011. There were 3.79 million Singapore residents, comprising 3.26 million Singapore citizens and 0.53 million permanent residents (PRs), and 1.39 million non-residents.
Due to the tightened immigration framework, the growth in our PR population has slowed significantly since 2010. This has contributed to the slower growth of our resident population from 1.0% in 2010 to 0.5% in 2011. As for the non-resident population, most are in Singapore to work. Singapore’s total employment grew by 115,900 in 2010, of which resident employment grew by 56,200. As more jobs were created than there are locals available to fill them, the remaining jobs were filled by our foreign workforce.
Aging Population
With increasing life expectancy and low fertility rates, the proportion of residents aged 65 and above has continued to rise. A rising proportion of the aged within the population could translate into higher socio-economic costs for all Singaporeans. The proportion of residents aged 65 and above increased from 7.2% in 2000 to 9.3% in 2011.
Marriage & Fertility
Singapore’s resident total fertility rate (TFR) reached a low of 1.15 in 2010. Singapore’s TFR has been on the decline and has remained below the replacement level of 2.1 for more than 30 years. Low fertility arises from various contributing and inter-related factors. They include:
- More people remaining single;
- Marriages later in life;
- Having children later in life, and having fewer or no children.
