Germany VS

Singapore
A comparison in their management of
ageing population

Andrew Baey 4.10

Introduction
Population ageing is
defined as:
Rise in median age
Rise in portion of elderly
Singapore and Germany
have the above
Germany has negative
population growth rate
Singapore’s low growth
rate boosted by
immigrants
Hypothesis
Germany’s population growth has declined
sharply over the past decade.
Singapore experiences similar problems to a
lesser extent.
I hypothesize that the Singapore has more
successfully managed its economic and social
challenges of an ageing population than
Germany
Causes of Ageing
Populations
Modernization
Increased availability of:
Medicine
Sanitation
Education (esp. of women)
Modern contraceptives
Changes in lifestyle
Changes in culture
 The major
problem in
Social Stereotypes:
Mother nurture children at home
Father earn money for family
Thus, difficult to find childcare
Productivity-dependent pension system
Financial Instability due to impending reforms
Lack of responsiveness of community
Measures Taken
 Agenda 2010 attempts to
convert the pension system
into a multi-pillar system
relying less on the
population
 Special visas may be
provided to skilled workers
from developing nations
 An example would be
scholarships given to
Palestinian IT experts
 Retiring Germans
encouraged to continue
working
 Offers of more flexible hours
The Ageing Population in
Singapore
The population of Singapore has
been ageing since the late 1990s
Rapid Modernization
Responsiveness of citizens to
government programs in past
 Family Planning and Population
Board, (1966)
 Abortion and voluntary sterilization
were legalized in 1970
 Population disincentives (e.g. no
maternal leave, more hospital fees,
etc.)
 “Stop at Two” campaign
Measures Taken
Adapt to increasing elderly
Elderly-friendly transport
Negative income tax favoring old workers
Reducing burden of elderly
Raising retirement age (extended employment)
Live healthy lifestyles
Cash incentives for families
Various benefits such as housing priority
Comparison
Germany faces greater challenge in many
areas
Singapore’s pension system is different than
that of Germany (Self-reliant)
Germany faces greater challenge of
persuading community
Germany is thus less prepared for ageing
demographic
Conclusion
Hypothesis can be corroborated by research
However, note that problem in Germany is
amplified by various factors
Germany’s ageing demographic more severe
than Singapore
Singapore has discernibly managed its ageing
population, while Germany still undergoing
preparations.
Bibliography
 http://everything2.com/title/Impacts%2520of%2520population%2520ageing%2520and%2520decline%2520on
 http://www.mcys.gov.sg/successful_ageing/index.html
 http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1694
 http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/gems/eeo/program/germany/fami.htm
http://www.mcys.gov.sg/successful_ageing/report/CAI_report.pdf
 http://www.photius.com/countries/singapore/society/singapore_society_population_control_p~11008.html
 http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/leb/leb-gbr.html
 http://www.eurointelligence.com/Article3.1018+M52d252a3ac4.0.html
 http://www.aarpinternational.org/journal_sub/journal_sub_show.htm?doc_id=777199
 http://amf.gov.al/pdf/publikime2/periodik/arkive/sigurime/Constructing%20a%20multi-pillar%20pension%20sys
 http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/papers/people/c2000-population.pdf
 http://app.reach.gov.sg/olcp/asp/ocp/ocp01d1.asp?id=1504
 http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1621347/singapores_aging_population_the_stop.html
 http://
www.auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/en/Aussenpolitik/RegionaleSchwerpunkte/NaherUndMittlererOsten/ZukunftPala
 http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/leb/leb-gbr.html
 https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
 http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/popn/c2000adr/chap1.pdf
 http://www.tacitus.nu/historical-atlas/population/germany.htm
The End
The
End
Finish
Done
That’s all
Hope you enjoyed it
Any Questions?