Quora Answer: How Can the Singaporean Government Raise the Falling Birth Rate of the Country?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “How can the Singaporean government raise the falling birth rate of the country?” 

Ultimately, it is about self-interest.  People are not having children because it has a negative effect on their lifestyle, and it is costly.  The “Stop at Two” policy was far too effective, and we cannot simply reverse how people think with a few public service campaigns.  This requires a comprehensive rethink at an economic and social level.  We need Singaporeans to have children at an earlier age, with a fertility rate above replacement for the population to grow. 

Firstly, for there to be children, we must emphasise work life balance.  Couples need time to get to know each other and settle down.  People who are working to establish their career tend to settle down later.  Marrying later means they are unlikely to have children, let alone many children. 

Secondly, we need to change the mindset that stay at home parents are somehow inadequate.  We need more than tax incentives.  This materialism in our thinking must be curbed.  For a nation to grow, we need more than a population of professionals.  We need to emphasise the entire edifice. 

Thirdly, we need to relook the infrastructural support for young parents.  We need to go beyond the bare minimum in subsidies for parents, we need to raise the minimum compensation for preschool teachers as a whole, we need to shape the corporate mindset with the civil service leading the way in terms of flexi-hours and working from home. 

The problem is that the Singapore government is not going all out to solve a serious problem by changing the way civil service management think.  We have to move this ship of state in a different direction and quickly.  What we have are half measures.  A lower TFI means we have serious problems financing the system down the road.  The government fixated on the easier solution of increasing immigration.  That is part of the solution, not all of it.