S’pore sets out economic strategy road map to stay competitive, create good jobs

The ESR’s five sub-committees, chaired by the office-holders, had gathered input from more than 7,700 stakeholders, including workers, unions, businesses, associations and chambers.

The ESR said the Government would study the recommendations and work with the relevant partners to translate them into action.

Mr Siow said it took a whole-of-economy effort to put together the report, with business leaders, unions and workers involved. “The committee members were not just government representatives sitting in a room by ourselves.”

The report’s recommendations work together as a coherent strategy, he said.

“Every recommendation comes back to one vision: a Singapore that stays competitive and resilient in a changed world, and one that continues to create good jobs and opportunities for our people.”

Singapore does not just want to be in a supply chain, but wants to be “part of the supply chain that nobody can afford to take out”, said Mr Siow, who is also Senior Minister of State for Finance.

The committee’s final report builds upon its midterm update in January. Then, the ESR had identified seven key areas such as artificial intelligence and skills training that Singapore would have to adjust its strategies in.

The latest version has expanded on these with a total of eight focus areas and 32 recommendations across all of them.

One new area of focus is establishing a stronger support system for career transitions and worker support.

DPM Gan said cultivating agility for workers must mean more than coping with disruption. It must mean access to better and broader opportunities.

Good jobs will not emerge automatically – “we must design for them deliberately”, he added.

Singapore must also be prepared for career transitions to be more common. Some workers will need to move to adjacent occupations while others may need deeper reskilling, said DPM Gan, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry.

He cautioned that some professionals, managers and executives (PMEs) may face longer periods of adjustment.

The Government has to build “career bridges” before disruption hits, and intervene and help retrenched workers early to prepare for the next step, he said.

The ESR report proposes moves on these – it wants the Government to review existing schemes like SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support, noting that the scheme does not currently cover many PMEs.

It also suggests studying extra ways to smooth income loss during transitions and for retrenchment notifications to be made earlier.

These are among suggestions that the National Trades Union Congress has made recently, including at the May Day Rally, which the Government has said it is studying.

The committee also recommended that the Government closely monitor the impact of AI on workers and adjust the policies needed.

On the economy, the report stated that while Singapore needs to extend its lead in areas it already has strengths in, it must also continue taking bold, forward-looking bets in new and emerging areas.

DPM Gan noted that not every bet will succeed.

“But if we only choose traditionally safe options, we will not break new grounds or grow new industries,” he said.

A new, emerging area of the economy that the broad strategies can apply to is AI.

Singapore does not need to compete in this area by building the biggest frontier models or the largest data centres, said DPM Gan.

The country’s advantage lies elsewhere – it can become one of the best places in the world to develop, test and deploy AI solutions that solve real-world problems at scale, he said.

Singapore will also have to diffuse AI across the whole economy and use it to lift productivity, strengthen enterprises and create better jobs and opportunities, he added.

The committee said that Singapore’s AI strategy must be one that complements workers. This means prioritising technologies that augment workers and investing in and deploying AI where human capabilities remain central.

DPM Gan said Singapore is starting this new phase of economic growth from a position of strength.

But it must continue to renew its economy by building capabilities that matter and bring value to the world, he said.

It must also develop enterprises and workers that are nimble and adaptable, and strengthen trusted connections.

“This is how Singapore can continue to grow, create good jobs and provide strong opportunities for our people.”