S’pore learns it takes more than money to raise fertility rates

Free Malaysia Today

Factors such as career aspirations play a significant role in whether couples have children, says Singapore minister Indranee Rajah.  Read More: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2024/08/03/spore-learns-it-takes-more-than-money-to-raise-fertility-rates/  Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com Follow FMT on Facebook: https://bit.ly/49JJoo5 Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM Follow FMT on X: https://bit.ly/48zARSW  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/48Cq76h Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3uKuQFp Follow FMT Berita on TikTok: https://bit.ly/48vpnQG  Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/42VyzMX Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/42YytEb Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/42WrsUj Follow FMT on WhatsApp: https://bit.ly/49GMbxW  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Download FMT News App: Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46 App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP  #FMTNews #Singapore #FertilityRates #Incentives #IndraneeRajah

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00:00Financial incentives alone are not enough to reverse declining fertility rates.

00:09This is what Indrani Raja, a minister in the Singapore Prime Minister's Office, told

00:14FMT, adding that she realised increasingly that it was not only about money.

00:20She said early government efforts had focused on financial solutions such as tax incentives,

00:26which were helpful but not the solution.

00:29Indrani, who assists in overseeing the National Population and Talent Division, said if young

00:34people felt there was an opportunity cost, which meant they have to choose between a

00:39career or family, they might end up choosing to have a career.

00:45In this case, she said the government's job is to make it easier for Singaporeans

00:49to have both their careers and children.

00:52Since 2001, the Singapore government has encouraged Singaporeans to have children, through the

00:58Baby Bonus Scheme, made up of a Baby Bonus Cash Gift and a Child Development Account.

01:04However, this did not stop the fertility rate from falling from 1.12 in 2021 to 1.04 in

01:122022 and to a historic low of 0.97 in 2023.

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