As of 2024, Singapore’s total fertility rate has fallen to a historic low of 0.97.
For the first time in 2023, the country’s birthrate fell below 1.0, and the impending Dragon Year in 2024 failed to increase the fertility rate.
This comes as no surprise, as Singapore has been facing a declining trend for years, with a fertility rate of 1.21 in 2021 and 1.04 in 2022.
External Disruptions Affecting The Birth Rate
Singapore’s low fertility rate from 2023 to 2024 may be due to external factors, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have disrupted marriage plans for some couples.
More cite reasons such as the financial costs of child-raising, and the overall “declining value” of having children in Singapore.
Rising Cost Of Living
Source: CNA
Basic expenses and necessities like housing have only been steadily increasing over the decades, and disproportionately to the increase in average income.
An average four-room Build-To-Order (BTO), according to SmartWealth Singapore, is $627,404.
Public housing resale prices in 2024 rose by 9.6%, nearly doubling the 4.9% rise seen in 2023, according to Reuters.
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) increased from 8% to 9% on January 1, 2024, and is set to rise to 10%.
The GST hike caused rippling waves of price increases across various goods and services, such as dining and transportation.
Children: A Loss-Making Investment?
According to the Straits Times, raising a child from birth to University can range anywhere from $200,000 to $1 million, depending on schooling choices, healthcare and lifestyle choices.
With the rising cost of living, children can seem like a huge financial burden on young families who are paying off their house.
Though this guide should be taken loosely, it seems that there are shifting sentiments of Singaporeans in starting their families.
Unlike our parents’ generation, when starting a family at 30 would have been deemed natural or “about time”, married Singaporeans today cite concerns not just about the financial costs of child-raising, but the pressures to be excellent parents.
Most who work full-time jobs struggle between pursuing their careers and managing family commitments.
Not Wanting To Repeat Trauma
In a CNA article, Ms Michelle Lim, a working adult who has been married for close to 10 years, stated that “it’s worse when you actually have one (a child) and you cannot give 100 per cent of yourself to raising that child”.
Adults in young families cited growing up with parents who were physically or emotionally absent and do not want to repeat the same for their children.
With a majority of adult Singaporeans having full-time careers, the struggle is real.
On top of that, having experienced the grueling reality of Singapore’s education system, many fear how much harder the future educational landscape and work environment will be.
Many think: “How will we, as parents, raise our children to brave the storm of how competitive our reality will be?”
Because of this uncertainty, many prefer to abstain from having children at all if it means not being able to be a ‘perfect’ parent.
Fewer Women Want To Start A Family
Source: The Straits Times
According to the Department of Statistics (DOS) analysis of the factors behind the falling Total Fertility Rate (TFR) between 2005 and 2023 was due to a decline in the proportion of married women, which carried over to the fertility rate of married women.
This statistic is a reflection of changing societal goals, in that more people no longer see marriage as a life goal.
Research fellow Kalpana Vignehsa from the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) co-authored a study that found that women between the ages of 21 and 34 were significantly less interested in marriage than men in their age group.
Though not explicitly said, some respondents stated they were worried about having to shoulder the burden of caregiving and other domestic responsibilities, on top of full-time employment.
Fear Of Losing Independence
Source: Pexels
In an interview done by The Straits Times, young couples choose not to have children due to lifestyle preferences, such as wanting to travel more and live through new experiences.
Having a child comes with the responsibility of ensuring they grow up well and into objectively good people.
In a similar vein, Ms Tan also vocalised that she did not want to experience the stresses of managing her child’s studies. She said that raising a child in today’s society is much more complex than in the past.
What The Government Is Doing To Support Families
Singapore has implemented various measures for parenthood, including the Baby Bonus Scheme for children born from 18th February 2025, parental leave policies, and flexible work arrangements.
Newer changes have been made to parental leave policies, with improved paternal leave of up to 4 weeks of Government-Paid Paternity Leave (GPPL).
Despite this, the TFR remains low, indicating that financial incentives alone may not suffice.
A holistic approach addressing economic pressures, work-life balance, and societal attitudes toward family is essential to reverse the declining birth trend.
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