Ministries outline plans to keep economy resilient, promote non-inflationary growth

The Government aims to keep Singapore's economy resilient and promote non-inflationary growth in the foreseeable future.

This was announced on Tuesday (Sept 16) in multiple ministries' addenda to President Tharman Shanmugaratnam's address at the opening of Parliament.

These ministries are the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) and Prime Minister's Office (PMO) — which oversees the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and National Research Foundation (NRF).

In his speech on Sept 5, President Tharman warned that Singapore cannot hold back against "a tide of change" with jobs and skills evolving faster than before.

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"We will empower workers with the skills they need to adapt and seize new opportunities," he said, adding that such measures include the Jobseeker Support Scheme and SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme.

President Tharman also said that the Government will also support Singaporeans at every stage of their lives beyond jobs — whether it meant keeping public housing affordable and accessible, secure jobs or helping the elderly age well.

Here are some highlights from the various addenda and public statements by each ministry:

Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI)

• MTI will keep Singapore's economy strong and resilient by positioning Singapore as a home to leading firms, key global business hub and vital connector in the global economy, said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong.
• The ministry aims to strengthen advanced manufacturing by leveraging AI, robotics and biotechnology while sustaining investments in research and development. This will encourage innovation for products and services.
• MTI will anchor leading local and foreign firms in Singapore by helping enterprises that show potential internationalise and grow into regional or global leaders. It will also support companies' transition to a low carbon economy while safeguarding energy security and remaining competitive, said DPM Gan.
• The ministry also aims to deepen relationships with Asean partners and expand Singapore's trade links with emerging markets such as Latin America, South Asia, Middle East and Africa. It will work with like-minded partners to support the rules-based trading system and reforms at the World Trade Organisation.
• MTI will work with companies, unions, trade associations and chambers — as well as MOM and the Ministry of Education — to equip citizens with future-ready, industry-relevant skills and support career transitions into growth sectors. This is to ensure that every Singaporean can aspire to good jobs, secure progress, and build a better future for themselves and their families, said DPM Gan.

Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)

• The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) aims to promote stable, non-inflationary economic growth and foster a trusted and resilient financial sector. It will continue to do so amid the increasing global uncertainties and new risks, said DPM Gan. This involves staying vigilant to the impact of global developments on Singapore's growth and inflation as well as ensuring timely and appropriate monetary policy responses to unexpected economic changes.
• MAS will uphold Singapore's standing as a trusted financial centre through robust supervision and risk proportionate regulation. It will continue to work with the financial industry and other government agencies to protect Singapore's financial system from illegal activities, developing safeguards such as stronger user authentication to prevent unauthorised transactions or scams.
• The authority will also continue deepen the finance sector's capabilities across banking, foreign exchange, insurance, asset and wealth management as well as payments. It will support AI capability building in financial services through the Financial Sector Technology and Innovation Grant Scheme as well as the Pathfinder programme as well as upskilling amongst those working in the industry.
• MAS will facilitate industry efforts to expand the use of tokenisation in financial assets transactions as well. This is to achieve greater efficiency and lower costs.

National Research Foundation (NRF)

• The National Research Foundation (NRF) seeks to build strong research expertise and a dynamic Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) ecosystem that advances Singapore's competitiveness, and drives societal and economic impact for Singapore and the world, said DPM Gan.
• Sustained RIE investments in semiconductors have positioned Singapore as a critical node in the global semiconductor supply chain and its capabilities in biomedical sciences research have contributed to healthcare improvements and helped to manage crises like the Covid-19 pandemic, he added.
• NRF's RIE2030 plan aims to achieve an even greater societal and economic impact. It involves keeping Singapore's basic research capabilities, talent and infrastructure at the cutting-edge while initiating cross-cutting research and development programmes to drive stronger outcomes in key economic areas and national priorities.
• NRF will also continue to develop strong AI and compute research capabilities to boost and accelerate research and innovation.

Ministry of Manpower (MOM)

• MOM will support broad-based AI literacy and adoption across the workforce to empower it to be future and AI-ready. It will also help Singaporeans navigate the fast-changing job market with confidence by driving the Career Health SG initiative, said Minister for Manpower Dr Tan See Leng.
• In view of Singaporeans living longer and having longer careers, the Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment will partner with employers to create flexible, age-friendly jobs and multi-generational workplace solutions.
• MOM also plans to strengthen the CPF system. This includes raising the Basic Retirement Sum for future cohorts to help Singaporeans build up more savings for retirement. Those who are not able to set aside sufficient funds will continue receiving support from the government, said Dr Tan.
• The ministry will help Singaporeans gain global exposure for professional development and future leadership. It is also looking to refine foreign workforce policies for businesses to hire talent to complement Singapore's core and create more opportunities for Singaporeans.
• MOM also aims to build fairer, safer, and more inclusive workplaces through the Workplace Fairness Act. The Employment Act will also be updated to ensure adequate protections for different groups while providing businesses with a clear set of criteria to follow. The ministry also aims to protect platform workers' livelihoods, safety and wellbeing through the Platform Workers Trilateral Group.
• Those who have lost their jobs can utilise the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme for more work opportunities, said Dr Tan. Additionally, lower-wage workers will be given continued wage increases under the Progressive Wage Model and encouraged to upskill and reskill.

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bhavya.rawat@asiaone.com