Singapore: Cause for Influx of Foreigners and Immigrants

Statistics shows that foreigners make up 26.8% of the current population, compared to 18.7% in 2000 and 10% in 1990. This shows that we are relying more and more on foreign labour. As Singapore is a small country with no natural resources and has to rely on human labour to maintain and further propel its economy. With only about 3.87 million Singapore residents.

Cause for influx of foreigners and immigrants

Low total fertility rate
Singapore is currently facing an increase in the ageing population. With a total fertility rate of 1.2 and replacement rate of 2.1, Singapore will be facing a silver tsunami in 2030 where Singapore resident population will start to decline. The population will, moreover, age rapidly with the median age rising to 55 in 2050 from the current 39 years There will also be 1.7 working age persons per elderly person in 2050, down from the current 7.7. We will then experience a lower level of productivity and efficiency due to the shortage of human resource as the older generations go into retirement, which may lead into an economic slowdown for Singapore. The decline in the younger generation will pose a potential problem in the future, with the increase financial burden and emotional stress on the younger generations of caring and providing for the elderly. This may lead households to make a rational decision not to have children so as to maintain a "financially optimal" ratio of dependants and workers in the household, thus creating a vicious downward spiral for the society at large. I believe that as individuals, we are unprepared to accept the negative societal and economical impacts of a rapidly ageing population. This is where foreigners and immigrants come into use for Singapore. They will bring their families over or start a family here to make up for the low fertility rate, thus alleviating the problem of an ageing population. Thus, importing foreigners and immigrants becomes a necessity it becomes an implication to ensure that Singapore's future generations, be it young or old can live in a sustainable environment.
Shortage of human resource for jobs with low wages
Foreigners make up to 26.8% of our population where a huge portion of them are expected to take up labour intensive jobs. Singaporeans shun those jobs as most of them are educated and the job is physically demanding coupled with unattractive wages . Thus foreigner workers come into the picture as they are more than willing to take up these jobs. Employers from local companies will also be happy to hire them as these foreign workers are willing to work longer hours for lower wages than our locals. From an employer's perspective, it is an outmost importance to maximise profits. Hence, by hiring foreign workers, employers are able to save costs, while depressing the wages of locals and increase productivity at the same time due to the long working hours of foreign workers which in turn will lead to a profit maximisation for the company and economic growth for the nation. If the government did not import foreign workers, there will be a shortage of human resource for these jobs, and there will be nobody to take responsibility of the construction and maintenance of infrastructures in our country. Thus, these foreign workers play a pivotal role in our country's economic growth.
Increase the talent pool in our country.
Singapore is a small country with no natural resources and has to rely on human labour to sustain the economy. Hence, it would be wise for the government to import more foreigners and immigrants so as to have a bigger talent pool to further propel our economy forward. With a bigger talent pool, Singapore will be able to attract more foreign investments easily. There is a need to import foreign talents as there are not enough experts on fields like the chemical and medical industry in Singapore, hence by importing them over to Singapore, they will be able to share their expertise and knowledge with our locals so as to improve in that industry. By importing foreign talents, there is a higher chance of foraging into a new industry, thus opening up a new source of income for the economy and creating new job opportunities for the people. These foreign talents will thus pave the way for locals to compete on an international scale as they help us establish new overseas partnerships and attract new investments. With prominent citizens such as actors Jet Li and Gong Li and world renowned investor Jim Rogers, they help to raise Singapore's profile and further increase her chances of attracting investors. With a ready pool of foreign workers and talents, international investors will be attracted to set up a business here or look for investment opportunities as they know that they will be able to hire skilled workers easily.
Conclusion
Being a small country with no natural resources, Singapore has to rely on human labour in the form of its local citizens and foreigners. It is evident that there is a significant amount of foreign contribution to Singapore. Without these contributions, Singapore might face societal and economical impacts of a rapidly ageing population. Thus, with the import of foreigners and immigrants, thus Singapore is able to alleviate the problem.