Over the course of the past decades, Singapore has steadily grown into one of the world’s most dynamic economies. One of the most important features of the Singaporean economy is the higher per capita income of its citizens compared to other Asian countries and is also well known for the generous retirement packages. However, it seems that the situation might be changing for the worse if a recent ranking of countries by retirement security is to be believed. Retirement security is aimed at finding out whether retired citizens in a country are able to lead comfortable lives, adequate health care services, access to financial services and also the ability to save.
According to the revelations in the new rankings, Singapore’s position in that regard is slipping, and it now finds itself in the lower half of the table. Retirement finance had been a dominant theme of the Singapore economy for many years, but if the retirement security in the country is nose-diving at this rate, then it is not good news. That being said, it is necessary to point out that the report stated that despite the drop in its rankings, Singapore is still performing better than many other countries in Asia. Among Asian nations, Singapore is currently at the 3rd position, while on the worldwide basis it found itself within the top 30. Singapore has been a part of the selected few nations for five years straight.
The issues with regards to retirement security could eventually prove to be a burning issue in Singapore politics in the immediate future. The country now has a substantial ageing population, and the demands for retirement finance are only going to go up due to those reasons. Since the country has a robust health care system, it is not a surprise that its ageing population has increased significantly over the past decade. There are talks about introducing new financial packages in order to take better care of the elderly population in Singapore, and it remains to be seen how the policymakers go about it. That being said, historically, Singapore and its political class have been highly effective with regards to complex policy issues. This is an issue that has been simmering under the surface for many years, and it will be interesting to see how it unfolds.
