Foreigners
Remains controversial
But Singapore's future depends on getting more - the right kind.
By Seah Chiang Nee
May 29, 2005

AT an interchange, a couple of Filipino maids sat on a bench waiting for their bus. A young Bangladeshi worker in long-sleeved shirt moved in to chat them up.

If they responded, it could be fun time; if not he would try again with others.

On this Sunday, the girls were not biting. They carried on chatting, using enough "wah lau's" (local slang for "oh, my goodness") to indicate they had been living here for some time.

A stone's throw away, another maid was calling home (Philippines) on her cell-phone while awaiting her employer to finish shopping.

Malaysia- and China-born PRs operated food-stalls, Thai workers laid bricks in a nearby building project while Indian labourers emptied rubbish bins and paved streets.

About 1.2 million - more than a quarter of Singapore's population of 4.6 million - are foreigners, a figure that could rise or fall according to the state of the economy.

These largely unskilled workers are on contracts and will eventually leave.

They are not the state's targets for retention, unlike skilled foreigners like managers and professionals who earn at least S$1,800. An average of 25,000 are given PR or citizenship a year.

Singapore is trying to attract qualified aliens to set up roots here to compensate for a falling birth rate and a rising number of Singaporeans migrating overseas.

The exact figure is unknown but is estimated to be around 250,000 professionals comprising IT engineers, graphic designers, sportsmen, etc. On the higher level are neurosurgeons, PhD researchers and bankers.

In recent years, the arrivals have risen significantly. The large influx has transformed Singapore more than anything else in the past 19 years.

The population was 3.22 million in 1990. Ten years later, it rose by about 25% to 4.01 million. Then in 2002, it went up to 4.3 million, and today it is 4.6 million.

Few nations in the world have seen its population jump by 43% in 13 years.

A student back on holiday after a year in Australia wrote of his surprise at the over-crowdedness everywhere. "Was I gone that long? Where did everyone come from?"

A foray at Orchard Road, he said, "revealed more Caucasians, Africans, and people of different ethnicities and cultures than before.

"Snatches of German, French, Tagalog, and American- and Australian-accented English pervaded the air. Japanese with their trendy, top-of-the-line cameras and mobile phones, while Filipino maids lazed on the green on their day off."

His observation: "Singapore has become a melting pot of every conceivable ethnic and cultural group known to the world."

But globalism has come at a price, he added. "It has become too crowded and life too hectic."

Without the foreigners Singapore 2005 would have been something vastly inferior, less innovative and vibrant.

One online analyst explains, "What is Singapore's economy today dealing with? ... Think of these two words 'global' and 'hub' and what do they entail? Foreigners."

There is, of course, growing resentment. In the wake of a fundamentally weaker economy, many Singaporeans are more concerned about their current well-being than creating a more vibrant economy.

Others realise the importance of importing qualified foreigners to make up for Singapore's depleting stock. The rapidly ageing and falling population is threatening its future.

But unemployed graduates and other jobless citizens who are above 40 are unhappy about "losing out" to the outsiders.

This unhappiness has, however, never been directed at the majority of the unskilled workers like labourers or maids, who are doing work that they don't want.

Neither is it aimed at Malaysians. For historical reasons, these neighbours are not really regarded as foreigners.

Nor does it cover the top range of well-paid talents like scientists, university professors, corporate leaders, etc.

The grievances are over the admission of thousands of general degree or diploma holders from countries like China and India, who are willing to work for lower salaries.

Another bone of contention is the large number of bright overseas students in universities here.

The locals fear being deprived of a place or being outshone by the foreigners, but this has subsided following assurances that any Singaporean who qualifies will have a place in university.

The government is handling the issue sensitively, balancing a long-term strategy with short-term control.

In its cost-saving exercise, the civil service recently outsourced jobs to the private sector and kept the jobs in Singapore instead of transferring them to cheaper countries.

There is, however, no denying that the republic needs a lot more foreigners of the right kind to grow.

Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew envisages a vibrant global city of six to seven million people by 2030. This obviously cannot be achieved by natural increase.

Assuming its annual birth and death rates remain at their current 35,000 and 15,000 respectively, some 40,000 to 50,000 more foreigners are needed every year for the next 25 years.

This equation is too neat and may give way to human emotions.
A faster pace may be needed because of rising competition from the growing economies of China and India.

The statistics could be altered by human considerations; more ageing people will die or an increasing number of citizens may emigrate or - a lucky surprise - more babies may be born to Singaporeans.

What will not change is the republic's long-term dependency on qualified foreigners.

(It was published in The Sunday Star on May 29, 2005)