Developing Local and Foreign Talent for Sustained Economic Growth

Mr Teo Siong Seng asked the Prime Minister (a) what are the specific roles and objectives of the National Population and Talent Division in the light of Singapore's current efforts to restructure the economy; (b) what measures are being taken to identify, attract, retain and develop both local and foreign talents to sustain our social, cultural and economic development; and (c) what has been achieved thus far.

Mr Teo Chee Hean (for the Prime Minister): Mr Speaker, Sir, the National Population and Talent Division (NPTD) works closely with economic, social and infrastructure agencies to coordinate policies to achieve a sustainable population – one which ensures a good quality of life, with an inclusive and cohesive society and a vibrant economy that supports good jobs for Singaporeans now and in the future.

Economic restructuring is a long-term collective effort by businesses, workers and the Government to upgrade the economy, reduce our reliance on foreign workers, and raise productivity so that Singaporean wages continue to rise, job opportunities improve and our economy continues to be able to thrive and prosper.

We are building a strong core of Singaporeans to contribute to a vibrant economy and take up key roles in our industries. New education institutions in the arts, design and technology give Singaporeans greater opportunities to develop their diverse abilities and pursue exciting careers. We are also helping Singaporeans to upgrade through continuing education and skills training programmes. Singaporeans working or studying overseas are kept engaged by the Overseas Singaporean Unit in the National Population and Talent Division to keep them updated on developments and opportunities here.

NPTD also monitors and analyses trends in migration and the labour landscape in both in Singapore and globally. By creating a conducive environment to live, work and play in, Singapore will continue to be an attractive place for Singaporeans, as well as those who are able to contribute to Singapore's development. Our objective is to develop a sustainable population as we face the challenges of an ageing and shrinking citizen population and workforce. And the National Population and Talent Division will engage the public on these important issues as we prepare the White Paper on Population to be tabled by the end of this year.

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Mr Teo Siong Seng (Nominated Member): Mr Speaker, I thank the Deputy Prime Minister for the answer. What I am concerned is that after the last GE, the various signals sent out to the foreign talent are that we have raised our bar. I think there is a lack of emphasis on the need to attract and retain foreign talent. Just now, in the Deputy Prime Minister's answer to Ms Denise Phua, he talked about the need to have foreign workers to build houses, for healthcare, that is all understood. My concern is that, among the society and in the business sectors, there is a concern that there is not enough effort or attention spent to attract foreign talents to come to Singapore to make us a competitive commercial centre.

Mr Teo Chee Hean: I think Mr Teo is absolutely correct. In many of the types of jobs that we are creating here, regional HQs, representative offices for major corporations, even Singapore companies wanting to expand into other markets in Asia, the presence of good foreign employees with the ability to complement Singaporeans is a very important factor in their expansion plans. Because if you wanted to be a regional centre serving, say, Southeast Asia and East Asia, you would want to have people who can speak the language, who feel comfortable in those cultures, who can work easily in different countries and be your representatives there.

And so, I think that as we develop more of these kinds of activities in Singapore, we need a complementing workforce of able, talented foreigners to be based here in Singapore. Because without them, then many of these activities which Mr Teo talked about will not locate here and they will not then create good jobs, the regional jobs, which will probably be higher paying and more challenging than, say, a job which focuses on the Singapore market alone. So, if you have a regional headquarters here, you will have a wider scope for Singaporeans to be able to expand into those regional jobs. And without those jobs here, either there will be loss of jobs for Singaporeans in Singapore or Singaporeans themselves, in search of such challenging jobs, will go to other centres which are more open. And then we will lose not just those headquarters and high-value activities, we will lose our Singaporeans as well.

So, I think what Mr Teo has said is correct. I would urge Mr Teo and other business associations and federations to help to make this known that actually, there is a complementary process by which Singaporeans as well as able, talented foreigners come together to make Singapore a more interesting, vibrant place and create more opportunities and jobs for Singaporeans.