Speech by Minister Indranee Rajah at the Population Association of Singapore Conference 2026

PAS President, Professor Jean Yeung

Dean of NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, Prof Chong Yap Seng

PAS Governing Committee Members

Distinguished speakers

Ladies and gentlemen

I am very glad to be with you here with you today. The last time I gave opening remarks at a PAS conference was in 2024, when I spoke about the importance of a sustainable population and the challenges that we face in achieving it.

Back then, I highlighted Singapore’s twin demographic challenge of a declining fertility rate and a rapidly ageing population. This challenge is even more pressing today. Singapore’s Total Fertility Rate, or TFR, fell to 0.87 in 2025. We are now also a “super-aged” society, with more than 21% of citizens aged 65 and above.

These trends will profoundly reshape our small nation, our society, and our economy. What Singapore looks and feels like in 60 years, or in two generations’ time—the vibrancy of our economy and the kind of society that we become—will depend on the decisions we make today. Today’s theme of Low Fertility and Human Development is therefore very apt.

Background

Recognising the urgency and complexity of the issue, we set up an interagency marriage and parenthood, or M&P, Reset Workgroup to coordinate efforts to better understand the mindsets and the barriers relating to marriage and parenthood, to develop effective ways to shape or address them, and, most importantly, to mobilise all of society to join us in this endeavour.

Let me share two key observations that have come up in our surveys and engagements, and our thoughts on addressing them.

Shifting priorities

First, the priority of M&P amidst other life goals is declining. While many young Singaporeans still express a desire for marriage and parenthood, other important aspirations are competing for the same years of life—the late-20s to 30s. In a time-tight society like ours, something often has to give, and for a growing number of individuals, it is marriage and parenthood.

If we dig deeper, these shifts in priorities have to do with changing notions of what constitutes success, and what it means to lead a good or meaningful life. These beliefs have in turn been shaped by the environment we grow up in – our policies, our workplaces and community norms, and societal culture. There is no simple solution. But it does not mean we – and by that I mean both the Government and the rest of society – cannot do anything about it.

What would it take to make marriage and parenthood more important to Singaporeans? On one hand, we will continue to strengthen tangible forms of support for parents to make parenthood experience easier and more achievable alongside other life goals.

On the other hand, there is the much more challenging work of reshaping beliefs or attitudes. A big part of this is working with employers and the community to cultivate more positive mindsets around marriage and parenthood – not to push a single “correct” path, but to create an environment where the value marriage and parenthood is recognised and affirmed by all.

Increasingly uncertain outlook

The second observation is a growing sentiment that the environment in Singapore is not conducive for raising children. Like many metropolitan cities, Singapore faces challenges like costs of living and a faster, more intense pace of life—with stress and competition across many stages of life, whether in school or at work.

For many couples, these pressures can make parenthood feel not just daunting, but emotionally overwhelming. Our surveys show that, for those with no children, financial cost and the anticipated stress of raising children in Singapore are the top two barriers to having children. Many young people are not just asking, “Can we afford children?” They are also asking, “What kind of life will we be able to give our children—and what kind of life will we have as parents?” For some, having to navigate what they see as a competitive education system, on top of an already frantic working life, feels like more than they are ready to take on.

Time scarcity has also come up time and again in our engagements, and through various opinion pieces in the media.

M&P Reset

We are keen to tackle these issues under the Marriage and Parenthood Reset Workgroup.

On financial costs, we are doing a deeper dive on the costs families face at different stages of the child-raising journey. We can then see what more to do to support couples financially on their parenthood journey.

Addressing the perceived stress of raising children requires a more holistic approach. On educational stress, we have been expanding educational pathways and reducing over-emphasis on academic results. These efforts aim to broaden the definition of success. We will also conduct engagements with students, parents, educators, researchers, and academics to explore new ways to mitigate the education “arms race”.

Time scarcity is probably the toughest issue of all to address. Because we have to deal with the tension between two good things. On one hand, Singaporeans work hard and strive for excellence, and this has helped us progress as a society and a country. But the pursuit of achievement can sometimes come at the expense of rest, well-being, and having enough time and space to pursue life goals beyond work including marriage and parenthood. Both are important to flourishing. So, it is not a matter of one or the other, but rather how we can manage the tension between these two equally important objectives.

The feedback we have been hearing points to a need for a rebalance. This balance will be important to sustaining Singapore’s success. A society that is perpetually stretched risks burnout. This can directly undermine work productivity and output. More importantly though, it is not a system that is sustainable over the longer term. In the long run, giving everyone more space and time for family and other non-work goals also allows us to lead fuller lives, and makes us more resilient as a society.

There are no easy answers. A recent move we made was to launch the Tripartite Guidelines for Flexible Work Arrangements Requests to support employees and employers in finding mutually beneficial arrangements that allow employees to achieve better work-life alignment, while meeting business needs.

The Workgroup will continue to work with employers, tripartite partners and other stakeholders to build more supportive work environments, and study other suggestions raised in the feedback.

Shared National Effort

Policies are key to shaping the mindsets, values and views we hold towards marriage and parenthood. However, policy measures alone cannot move the needle. These same mindsets, values and views are also shaped by societal norms and people’s day-to-day experience of marriage and parenthood. To truly achieve a marriage and parenthood Reset, we need a shared national effort where everyone contributes and plays their part. Let me highlight a few today.

First, we need employers, HR and line managers to come on board. Providing flexible work options to employees who need it; putting in place basic facilities like lactation rooms – these are actions that can help employees feel supported in managing their work and family commitments and help make parenthood more achievable in Singapore.

Second, academics and researchers, like yourselves, are important voices of credibility that help to shape public mindsets, whether through the pieces you put out in mainstream media or opinions you share on podcasts. That is why we regularly engage academics in tandem with the publication of our Population in Brief report, as well as major announcements – it is to hear your feedback, and work together in shaping how the public understand new data and measures\But your role goes beyond communication. The research you conduct on fertility decline provides valuable insights that help inform Government policies and approaches towards this issue.

For example, Professor Yeung’s Singapore Longitudinal Early Development Study, or SG-LEADS, found positive impacts of paternity leave-taking on family dynamics and child outcomes. These findings supported our recent enhancements of paternity leave and the introduction of Shared Parental Leave.

More recently, the research team found that fathers who took two weeks of paternity leave in Singapore did not appear to have higher likelihood of having a second or third child. This contrasts with evidence from Nordic countries and shows that – at least in our context – the two weeks of paternity leave are not enough to shift mindsets. This is why more structural shifts, such as improving workplace culture and encouraging shared parental responsibility, are likely needed to shift the needle. Hopefully, the recent increase of paternity leave to four weeks and the new Shared Parental Leave are steps in the right direction that will help to shift the underlying mindsets.

Third, community organisations and businesses can also play a part in celebrating families through events and supporting ground-up initiatives. For example, they can provide more family-friendly spaces for parents to bring their children to and bond with other families.

Each of us as individuals should also consider how we can be more understanding towards parents of young children as they navigate parenthood and offer practical help when we see a family in need, such as on public transport. These small gestures may seem simple, but they make a real difference in helping parents feel seen, supported, and less alone.

Conclusion

Through our collective efforts, let us build a sustained movement that goes beyond the Marriage and Parenthood Reset Workgroup and brings us closer to a society where marriage and parenthood is celebrated.

Ultimately, we want couples to not feel that raising a child is a private burden to bear. It should instead be a journey which is filled with love and joy and where parents feel supported, every step of the way.