This article is about the demographic features of the population of Singapore, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
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By end of June 2011, the island's population stood at 5.18 million with 3.8 million citizens and 1.4 million non-resident foreigners[1] and is the second most densely populated independent country in the world (behind Monaco).[2] Singapore is a multicultural country with a majority population of Chinese (74 percent), with substantial Malay (13 percent) and Indian minorities (9.2 percent).[1] The Malays are recognised as the indigenous community although most are the descendants of post-1945 immigrants from Indonesia and Malaysia.[3][4][5][6] Mahayana Buddhism is the first religion in Singapore though not representing a majority, with significant numbers following Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism or no religion at all. The annual population growth rate for the year 2000 was 2.8%. The country has four official languages consisting of Mandarin, Malay, Tamil and English. English is the current main working language while Mandarin has been heavily promoted by the government and is now the second working language in the country.[7] According to latest 2010 statistics, Singapore’s resident total fertility rate (TFR) reached a level of 1.1 in 2010. The Chinese TFR was (1.08), followed by Indians (1.14) and Malays (1.82). Malay fertility-rate is ~70% higher than Chinese and Indians.[8] Singapore has attempted to boost the fertility rate for years to the replacement level of 2.1 birth per woman.[1]
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Singapore became numerically dominated by immigrant ethnic groups soon after Sir Stamford Raffles established a trading post on the island in 1819. It is estimated that in January 1819, Singapore had about 880 Malays and aboriginal tribes and about 20 to 30 Chinese. In 1821, it was estimated that there were nearly 3,000 Malays and more than 1,000 Chinese.
While the Singapore Department of Statistics reports overall population figures for Singapore (4.48 million in 2006), as a matter of policy, it only provides more detailed demographic breakdown analysis for the approximately 80% of the population who are Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents (collectively termed 'residents'). Of this group of about 3.6 million people, Chinese form 75.2%, Malays form 13.6%, Indians form 8.8%, while Eurasians and other groups form 2.4%.
Official figures show that the number of foreigners on short-term permits (termed 'non-residents') has grown from 30,900 in 1970 to 797,900 in 2005, which translate roughly to a 24-fold increase in 35 years, or from 1% of the population in 1970 to 18.3% in 2005. Despite this huge increase, no further breakdown is given by Singstat.
Some studies have attempted to cast light on the demographic profile of Singapore's non-resident population. According to 'The Encyclopedia of the Indian Diaspora' (published in 2006), "independent surveys approximate the number of South Asians on work permits to be between 30-35 per cent of the total 'Indian' population in Singapore, or approximately 90,000-100,000." Based on this, we can estimate that, as of June 2006, the Indian population formed 12.5% of the non-resident population, and therefore numbered between 415,000 and 430,000, or about 9.5% of the total population of about 4.5 million. It is likely the population of 'others' is similarly greater than suggested by the figures for the 'resident' population. Conversely, it is likely that the Chinese form significantly less than 75% of the total population of 4.5 million.
Following figures show that the ethnic composition of the resident population has been stable over the last 30 years, while non-resident population has boomed.
A recent figure released by the Straits Times on 20 July 2010 shows that the total population of Non Resident Singaporeans (PRs + foreigners) is around 1.79 million[9] of which Indians are 400,000 (22.35%). It is noteworthy that the number of Indian PRs and foreigners have doubled in the last 2 years![9] An increase of 200,000 in 2 years may portend a rapid shift in the demographic scenery of Singapore.
| Ethnic | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese | 77.0 | 78.3 | 77.7 | 76.8 | 74.1 |
| Malays | 14.8 | 14.4 | 14.1 | 13.9 | 13.4 |
| Indians | 7.0 | 6.3 | 7.1 | 7.9 | 9.2 |
| Others | 1.2 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 3.3 |
Note: No breakdown by ethnicity is released for the non-resident population.
| 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2009 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-residents (Residents = Citizens + PRs) | 2.9% | 5.5% | 10.2% | 18.7% | 25.3% |
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[10]
There are four official languages: English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil.
Malay is the national language of the country, although English is mainly used. English serves as the link between the different ethnic groups and is the language of the educational system and the administration. The colloquial English used in everyday life is often referred to as Singlish.
The government of Singapore has been promoting the use of Mandarin, the official form of Chinese in Singapore as well as mainland China and Taiwan, with its Speak Mandarin Campaign among the Chinese population. The use of other Chinese dialects, like Hokkien, Teochew, Cantonese, Hainanese and Hakka, has been declining over the last two decades, although they are still being used especially by the older generations of the Chinese population.
About 60% of Singapore's Indian population speaks Tamil as their native language. Other Indian languages widely spoken are Malayalam and Hindi.
Around 5,000 Peranakans, the early Chinese population of the region, still use the Hokkien-influenced Malay dialect called Baba Malay.
| Language | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | 18.8 | 23.0 | 32.3 |
| Mandarin | 23.7 | 35.0 | 35.6 |
| (non-Mandarin) Chinese Dialects | 39.6 | 23.8 | 14.3 |
| Malay | 14.3 | 14.1 | 12.2 |
| Tamil | 2.9 | 3.2 | 3.3 |
Singapore generally allows religious freedom, although some religious sects are restricted or banned, such as Jehovah's Witness, due to its opposition of National Service. The majority of Malays are Muslim, the plurality of Chinese practise Buddhism and syncretic Chinese folk traditions. Christianity is growing among the Chinese, having overtaken Taoism as second most important religion among this ethnic group. Indians are mostly Hindus though many others are Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists and Christians. People who practice no religion form the third largest group in Singapore.
| Religion | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buddhism | 27.0 | 31.2 | 42.5 | 33.3 |
| Christianity | 10.1 | 12.7 | 14.6 | 18.3 |
| No religion | 13.0 | 14.1 | 14.8 | 17.0 |
| Islam | 15.7 | 15.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 |
| Taoism/Chinese traditional beliefs | 30.0 | 22.4 | 8.5 | 10.9 |
| Hinduism | 3.6 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 5.1 |
| Other religions | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.7 |
Religions of the main ethnic groups (2000):
Source: Census 2000.[12]
5,076,700 - 2010 est. Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators
After World War II, from 1947 to 1957, Singapore's version of the post–World War II baby boom occurred. [13] The birth rate rose and the death rate fell; the average annual growth rate was 4.4%, of which 1% was due to immigration; Singapore experienced its highest birth rate in 1957 at 42.7 per thousand individuals. (This was also the same year the United States saw its peak birth rate.) By 1960, the government publicly funded and supported family planning programmes; after independence in 1965, the birth rate had fallen to 29.5 per thousand individuals, and the natural growth rate had fallen to 2.5%. Singapore's population expansion can be seen in the graph below:
| Period | Growth rate |
|---|---|
| 1947—1957 | 84.7% |
| 1957—1970 | 90.8% |
| 1970—1980 | 13.3% |
| 1980—1990 | 18.5% |
| 1990— 2000 | 20.6% |
Birth rates in the 1960s were still perceived as high by the government; on average, a baby was born every 11 minutes in 1965. Kandang Kerbau Hospital (KKH) — which specialised in women's health and was the most popular hospital to have children — saw over 100 deliveries per day in 1962. In 1966, KKH delivered 39835 babies, earning it a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for "largest number of births in a single maternity facility" for ten years. Because there was generally a massive shortage of beds in that era, mothers with routine deliveries were discharged from hospitals within 24 hours. [14]
In September 1965 the Minister for Health, Yong Nyuk Lin, submitted a white paper to Parliament, recommending a "Five-year Mass Family Planning programme" that would reduce the birth rate to 20.0 per thousand individuals by 1970. In 1966, the Family Planning and Population Board (FPPB) had been established based on the findings of the white paper, providing clinical services and public education on family planning. [15] By 1970, the Stop at Two campaign was firmly established, implementing incentives, disincentives and public exhortation to discourage families from having more than two children. After 1975, the fertility rate declined below replacement level, in a sign that Singapore was undergoing the demographic transition. In 1983, the Graduate Mothers' Scheme was implemented in an attempt to get educated women, especially women with a university degree, to marry and procreate, while the government encouraged women without an O-level degree to get sterilised. This was done out of the government's belief (led by Lee Kuan Yew) that for the nation to best develop and avoid hardship, the educated classes should be encouraged to contribute to the nation's breeding pool, while the uneducated should not, sparking the Great Marriage Debate. [15] In 1986, the government reversed its population policy — except its stance on low-income, lowly-educated women — and initiated the Have Three or More (if you can afford it) campaign, offering cash and public administration incentives to have children. In 2001, the Singapore government started its Baby Bonus scheme.
Singapore's current fertility rate is 1.16 children born per woman (in 2010), which is one of the lowest in the world. Chinese had a ferlility of 1.07 in 2004 (1.65 in 1990), while Malays had a TFR of 2.10 (2.69 in 1990). Both figures declined further in 2006. TFR for Indians was 1.30 in 2004 and 1.89 in 1990. 1 2 While the Singapore government has launched several highly publicized attempts to raise the fertility rate and increase awareness of the negative effects of an aging population, the elderly (65+) still constitute only 8.3% of its population; this proportion is significantly lower than that of many other developed nations, such as the United States (12%) and Japan (21.2%).
| Age | percentage | male | female |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–14 years | 15.6% | 362,329 | 337,964 |
| 15–64 years | 76.1% | 1,666,709 | 1,750,736 |
| 65 years and over | 8.3% | 165,823 | 208,589 |
(2006 est.)
| Residential Status | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Total Population | 4,017,733 | 100.0% |
| Citizens | 2,973,091 | 74.0% |
| Permanent Residents | 290,118 | 7.2% |
| Non-resident Population | 754,524 | 18.8% |
(2000 est.)
| Population growth rate | 1.42% (2006) |
| Birth rate | 9.34 births/1,000 population |
| Death rate | 4.28 deaths/1,000 population |
| Net migration rate | 9.12 migrants/1,000 population |
(2006 est.)
| Age | males/female |
|---|---|
| at birth | 1.08 |
| under 15 years | 1.07 |
| 15–64 years | 0.95 |
| 65 years and over | 0.80 |
| total population | 0.96 |
(2006 est.)
2.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total population: 81 years
male: 79 years
female: 83 years
| 2007 | |
|---|---|
| Number of marriages (excluding previously married) | 23,996 |
| Number of resident marriage (excluding previously married) | 23,088 |
| Number of divorces and annulments | 7,226 |
| Mean age of first marriage (years) | |
| …Grooms | 29.8 |
| …Brides | 27.2 |
| General marriage rate | |
| …Males (per 1,000 unmarried resident males) | 43.8 |
| …Females (per 1,000 unmarried resident females) | 42.6 |
| General divorce rate | |
| …Males (per 1,000 unmarried resident males) | 8.1 |
| …Females (per 1,000 unmarried resident females) | 8.3 |
| Crude marriage rate (per 1,000 resident population) | 6.69 |
| Crude rate of marital dissolution (per 1,000 resident population) | 2.02 |
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[16]
The divorce rate has doubled over the last decade, and as of 2003, for every ten marriages registered in Singapore, almost three ended in divorce. The Women's Charter protects the women's financial interests during a divorce, often requiring the husband to contribute to his divorced wife and their children.
Aged 15 years & above
| Year | 2000 | 1990 |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 92.5% | 89.1% |
| Male | 96.6% | 95.1% |
| Female | 88.6% | 83.0% |
Source: Census 2000.
| Highest qualification attained | Population | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 2,277,401 | 100.0% |
| No qualification | 445,444 | 19.6% |
| Primary | 276,542 | 12.1% |
| Lower secondary | 248,598 | 10.9% |
| Secondary | 560,570 | 24.6% |
| Upper secondary | 226,275 | 9.9% |
| Polytechnic | 140,970 | 6.2% |
| Other Diploma | 112,371 | 4.9% |
| University | 266,631 | 11.7% |
Source: Census 2000.[17] Note: Based on resident non-students aged 15 years and over by highest qualification attained.
In 2005, the unemployment rate is 2.5%, the lowest in the last four years, with a labour force of 2.3 million people.[18][19]
| Year | Labour Force | Unemployment rate |
Labour force participation rate | CPF contributors in labour force |
Union members among employed |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Males | Females | |||||
| Thousand | Percent | ||||||
| 1994 | 1,693.1 | 1.9 | 64.9 | 79.6 | 50.9 | 67.3 | 14.1 |
| 1999 | 1,976.0 | 3.6 | 64.7 | 77.8 | 52.7 | 62.0 | 15.4 |
| 2000 | 2,192.2 | 3.5 | 68.6 | 81.1 | 55.5 | 58.1 | 15.0 |
| 2001 | 2,119.7 | 2.7 | 65.4 | 77.8 | 54.3 | 59.9 | 16.5 |
| 2002 | 2,128.5 | 4.2 | 64.7 | 77.2 | 53.4 | 60.3 | 19.3 |
| 2003 | 2,150.1 | 4.4 | 64.2 | 75.8 | 53.9 | 59.7 | 20.5 |
| 2004 | 2,183.3 | 4.3 | 64.2 | 75.6 | 54.2 | 60.7 | 21.5 |
| 2005 | 2,317.4 | 2.5 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Unemployment rates were seasonally adjusted. Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[20]
Note: Based on persons aged 15 years and over.
The average household monthly income is SGD$4,943 in 2000, which is an increase from SGD$3,080 in 1990 at an average annual rate of 4.9%. The average household income experienced a drop of 2.7% in 1999 due to economic slowdown.
| Year | Average income (SGD$) | Median income (SGD$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 3,076 | 2,296 |
| 1995 | 4,107 | 3,135 |
| 1997 | 4,745 | 3,617 |
| 1998 | 4,822 | 3,692 |
| 1999 | 4,691 | 3,500 |
| 2000 | 4,943 | 3,607 |
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[21]
Measured in 1990 dollars, the average household monthly income rose from SGD$3,080 in 1990 to SGD$4,170 in 2000 at an average annual rate of 2.8%.[21]
| Ethnic group | Average household income (SGD$) |
Median household income (SGD$) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 2000 | 1990 | 2000 | |
| Total | 3,076 | 4,943 | 2,296 | 3,607 |
| Chinese | 3,213 | 5,219 | 2,400 | 3,848 |
| Malays | 2,246 | 3,148 | 1,880 | 2,708 |
| Indians | 2,859 | 4,556 | 2,174 | 3,387 |
| Others | 3,885 | 7,250 | 2,782 | 4,775 |
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[21]
| Monthly household income (SGD$) |
Number ('000) | Percent | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 2000 | 1990 | 2000 | |
| Total | 661.7 | 923.3 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| Below 1,000 | 105.7 | 116.3 | 16.0 | 12.6 |
| 1,000-1,999 | 179.3 | 128.9 | 27.1 | 14.0 |
| 2,000-2,999 | 133.3 | 136.1 | 20.1 | 14.7 |
| 3,000-3,999 | 86.1 | 121.3 | 13.0 | 13.1 |
| 4,000-4,999 | 54.0 | 95.2 | 8.2 | 10.3 |
| 5,000-5,999 | 33.5 | 75.4 | 5.1 | 8.2 |
| 6,000-6,999 | 21.7 | 57.5 | 3.3 | 6.2 |
| 7,000-7,999 | 13.8 | 42.2 | 2.1 | 4.6 |
| 8,000-8,999 | 9.5 | 32.4 | 1.4 | 3.5 |
| 9,000-9,999 | 6.5 | 23.4 | 1.0 | 2.5 |
| 10,000 & over | 18.3 | 94.6 | 2.8 | 10.3 |
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[21]
With the recovery from the 1998 economic slowdown, household income growth had resumed for the majority of households in 2000. However, for the lowest two deciles, the average household income in 2000 had declined compared with 1999. This was mainly due to the increase in the proportion of households with no income earner from 75% in 1999 to 87% in 2000 for the lowest 10%. Households with no income earner include those with retired elderly persons as well as unemployed members. [1]
| Average household income from work by decile among all resident households |
||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Decile | Average household income (SGD$) | Annual Change (%) | ||||||
| 1990 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | |
| Total | 3,076 | 4,745 | 4,822 | 4,691 | 4,943 | 1.6 | -2.7 | 5.4 |
| Lowest 10% | 370 | 327 | 258 | 133 | 61 | -21.1 | -48.4 | -54.1 |
| Lowest 10%, excluding households with no income earner |
620 | 716 | 681 | 531 | 459 | -4.9 | -22.0 | -13.6 |
| Next 10% | 934 | 1,352 | 1,332 | 1,172 | 1,145 | -1.5 | -12.0 | -2.3 |
| Next 10% | 1,321 | 2,002 | 2,005 | 1,853 | 1,862 | 0.1 | -7.6 | 0.5 |
| Next 10% | 1,686 | 2,613 | 2,647 | 2,470 | 2,535 | 1.3 | -6.7 | 2.6 |
| Next 10% | 2,076 | 3,254 | 3,305 | 3,137 | 3,237 | 1.6 | -5.1 | 3.2 |
| Next 10% | 2,541 | 4,019 | 4,097 | 3,900 | 4,036 | 1.9 | -4.8 | 3.5 |
| Next 10% | 3,116 | 4,938 | 5,034 | 4,828 | 5,017 | 1.9 | -4.1 | 3.9 |
| Next 10% | 3,897 | 6,093 | 6,271 | 6,023 | 6,316 | 2.9 | -4.0 | 4.9 |
| Next 10% | 5,152 | 7,965 | 8,221 | 7,937 | 8,419 | 3.2 | -3.5 | 6.1 |
| Top 10% | 9,671 | 14,890 | 15,053 | 15,451 | 16,804 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 8.8 |
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[21]
The disparity in household income had widened in 2000, reflecting the faster income growth for the higher-income households. The Gini coefficient, a measure of income inequality, rose from 0.446 in 1998 to 0.481 in 2000. Other measures of income inequality also indicated similar trend of increasing disparity in household income.[21]
| Measure | 1990 | 1995 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gini coefficient | 0.436 | 0.443 | 0.444 | 0.446 | 0.467 | 0.481 | |
| —Excluding households with no income earner | 0.410 | 0.409 | 0.412 | 0.410 | 0.424 | 0.432 | |
| Ratio of Average Income | |||||||
| —Top 20% to Lowest 20% | 11.4 | 13.8 | 13.6 | 14.6 | 17.9 | 20.9 | |
| —9th decile to 2nd decile | 5.5 | 6.1 | 5.9 | 6.2 | 6.8 | 7.4 | |
Source: Singapore Department of Statistics.[21]
In the United Nations Development Programme Report 2004, (page 50-53)],[22] Singapore's Gini coefficient based on income is 0.425 in 1998, which is ranked 78 among 127 countries in income equality (see list of countries by income equality).
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