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E.g., 04/24/2024
Country Resource - Singapore
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Singapore

SG
  • Population..............................................................................5,975,383 (2023 est.)
  • Population growth rate: .................................................................0.9% (2023 est.)
  • Birth rate....................................................8.94 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
  • Death rate..................................................4.15 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
  • Net migration rate..................................4.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
  • Ethnic groups*.....................Chinese 74.2%, Malay 13.7%, Indian 8.9%, other 3.2% (2021 est.)

* Data represent population by self-identification; the population is divided into four categories: Chinese, Malay (includes indigenous Malays and Indonesians), Indian (includes Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, or Sri Lankan), and other ethnic groups (includes Eurasians, Caucasians, Japanese, Filipino, Vietnamese)

CIA World Factbook

Profile
April 3, 2012

Rapid Growth in Singapore's Immigrant Population Brings Policy Challenges

Over the past decade, Singapore's multicultural yet nationalist society has experienced substantial inflows of Asian and Western professionals, low-skilled migrants from across Southeast Asia, and new immigrants from nontraditional sending countries. This, coupled with increasingly permanent emigration of educated and skilled Singaporeans, has presented the city-state with complex challenges related to migration policymaking.

Recent Activity

Luxury cars in front of a hotel on Dubai's Palm Jumeirah.
Feature
November 10, 2022
Millionaire Migration Rises and Heads to New Destinations

Migrant millionaires are once again on the move, though headed to new destinations amid fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While wealthy new arrivals can help provide a healthy tax base and invest in local economies, they can upset housing markets and exacerbate wealth disparities, as this article describes.

Profile
April 3, 2012
Rapid Growth in Singapore's Immigrant Population Brings Policy Challenges

Over the past decade, Singapore's multicultural yet nationalist society has experienced substantial inflows of Asian and Western professionals, low-skilled migrants from across Southeast Asia, and new immigrants from nontraditional sending countries. This, coupled with increasingly permanent emigration of educated and skilled Singaporeans, has presented the city-state with complex challenges related to migration policymaking.

Top Ten
December 2, 2010
Not Just the Highly Skilled - Only the Best and Brightest, Please

In these lean times, countries still want the talent — key to their long-term competitiveness — but a handful want more assurance they're getting the cream of the cream, as well as skills they don't have already.

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Profile
January 1, 2007
Singapore: Hungry for Foreign Workers at All Skill Levels
Historically a diverse country, Singapore since the 1980s has become a top destination for Asian and Western professionals as well as low-skilled migrants from across the region. Brenda S.A. Yeoh of the National University of Singapore reports.
Feature
March 1, 2003
Asian Women Migrants: Going the Distance, But Not Far Enough

Maruja M.B. Asis, of the Philippines Scalabrini Migration Center, maps out the obstacles and opportunities facing the swelling ranks of women migrant workers in Asia.
Cover image for Mobility Shutdown
Reports
March 2024

Mobility Shutdown: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in Asia and the Pacific

Some of the strictest COVID-19 pandemic-era limits on human mobility occurred in the Asia Pacific region. Border closures started in East and Southeast Asia in early 2020 and quickly spread through the entire region, in some cases remaining in place for more than two years. This report examines the approaches countries took and reflects on the immense costs and benefits of using border measures to tackle public-health risks.

Cover image for COVID-19 and the State of Global Mobility in 2021
Reports
May 2022

COVID-19 and the State of Global Mobility in 2021

Despite high hopes that international movement would be revived in 2021 after the deep chill in 2020 with designation of a global pandemic, cross-border mobility remained limited as migrants and travelers faced complex rules, high costs, and uncertainty as new COVID-19 variants emerged. This report assesses global mobility in 2021, including changing use of travel restrictions, their impacts on mobile populations, and efforts to safely restart migration and travel.

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Reports
April 2021

COVID-19 and the State of Global Mobility in 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically curtailed cross-border mobility in 2020, affecting travelers and migrants around the world. This report presents a first-of-its-kind analysis of the many thousands of travel restrictions and border closures imposed by governments to curb the spread of the virus. It examines how these policies evolved, varied across countries and regions, and what these trends may mean for the future of international movement.

Coverthumb_TCM Start Up Visas
Reports
July 2019

Start-Up Visas: A Passport for Innovation and Growth?

Over the last decade, a number of governments have launched start-up visa programs in the hopes of attracting talented immigrant entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas. With the track record for these programs a mixed one, this report explains how embedding start-up visas within a broader innovation strategy could lead to greater success.

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Reports
February 2016

Achieving Skill Mobility in the ASEAN Economic Community: Challenges, Opportunities, and Policy Implications

This report by MPI and the Asian Development Bank lays out a realistic roadmap toward freer movement among skilled professionals within the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), encouraging cooperation among ASEAN Member States in recognizing foreign qualifications and making government investments in training and educations systems that prepare workers in accordance with common standards.

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Reports
November 2015

The Southeast Asia-Australia Regional Migration System: Some Insights into the “New Emigration”

This report dispels the perception that flows between Australia and the ASEAN region are headed in one direction: to Australia. Using unpublished administrative data, the authors sketch a complex picture of skilled Australian emigration to ASEAN, significant temporary movements of skilled workers in both directions, and close connections between the two regions even after migrants permanently return to their country of origin.
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Policy Briefs
December 2014

A ‘Freer’ Flow of Skilled Labour within ASEAN: Aspirations, Opportunities, and Challenges in 2015 and Beyond

Skilled labor migration is particularly important for developing countries seeking growth and looking to fill skills shortages. How can Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) facilitate “freer” flows of skilled migration? This joint policy brief with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) explores the challenges and prospects for cooperation.