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Singapore's Shifting Natalist Policies

Singapore initially implemented anti-natalist policies in 1969 to encourage smaller family sizes and reduce population growth, including promoting access to contraception and penalizing larger families. However, by 1987 Singapore faced a shrinking population and reversed its policies, implementing pro-natalist policies aimed at increasing births such as increasing maternity leave and benefits for larger families. While these measures led to a slight increase in fertility, limitations included that financial incentives alone may not change cultural attitudes around family size and that businesses were reluctant to support long maternity leaves.

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Layla Husein
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57 views12 pages

Singapore's Shifting Natalist Policies

Singapore initially implemented anti-natalist policies in 1969 to encourage smaller family sizes and reduce population growth, including promoting access to contraception and penalizing larger families. However, by 1987 Singapore faced a shrinking population and reversed its policies, implementing pro-natalist policies aimed at increasing births such as increasing maternity leave and benefits for larger families. While these measures led to a slight increase in fertility, limitations included that financial incentives alone may not change cultural attitudes around family size and that businesses were reluctant to support long maternity leaves.

Uploaded by

Layla Husein
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as ODP, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Introduction to natalist policies

• Pro-natalist policies are policies which are


designed with the purpose of increasing the
birth fertility rate of an area. They are found
in countries with either very slow natural
increase or natural decrease and in areas
with ageing populations.
•
• Anti-natalist policies aim to encourage people
to plan smaller families, lower fertility rates
and reduce the number of births. These tend
to be found in countries with high birth rates
and rapidly growing populations.
Singapore
Background of the country
before any policy
v Just like in many other countries, after the second world
war, a great baby boom was occurring in Singapore.
People felt freedom and peace, everyone wanted to
have children.
v That is why the birth rate was rising.
v Between 1947 and 1957, the annual natural increase
was 4.4% .
v By 1959 the country started to be overcrowded.
Singapore’s natalist policies
Singapore's recent history has seen the city state
use both anti-natalist policies to reduce birth
rates and, more recently, pro-natalist policies
aimed to increase fertility and increase the
number of births and so young people in the
country.

They introduced one anti-natalist policies and one


pro-natalist policy:
Anti-natalist policy 1969:
"Stop at Two"

Singapore's government introduced a series of policies to


encourage higher fertility in 1969 because of an
overpopulation.
This included these policies:
• Access to low cost contraception
• Creation of family planning clinics
• Free education for small families
• Access to low cost health care for small families
• Sterilisation programs promoted
Anti-natalist posters

These posters
were purpousely
made to make
people
understand that
if they have a
maximum of two
children , them
and the country
will have a
better future.
Consequences for who did’t follow the policy:
v Workers in the public sector would not receive maternity
leave for their third child or any subsequent children
v Hospitals were required to change higher fees for each
additional child
v Income tax deductions would only be given for the first
two children
v Large families were penalised in housing assignments
v Third or fourth children were given lower priorities in
education
v
v
Pro-natalist policies 1987 onwards:
"Have three or more if you can afford it."

Faced with the success of the anti-natalist


policies that were in place between 1972 and
1987, Singapore faced a shrinking population,
issues associated with "greying" and worries
about future numbers of workers and old age
dependency. Previous anti-natalist policies were
reversed and from 1987 families were being
actively encouraged to "have three or more if you
can afford it".
The policies are:
• Increased maternity leave to 12 weeks
• Maternity leave would be covered for the first four children
• Child benefit increased: parents would worry less about
the cost of having children
• Government sponsored dating agencies
• Government supported child care
• Sterilisation and abortion discouraged
• Parents with good academic qualifications would get
enhanced child benefit
•
Successes and limitations of the
pro-natalist policy
Success: Limitations:
• There was a slight • Changing people's attitudes to family size is
increase in total about "hearts and minds". Financial
fertility after the incentives are unlikely to be sufficient.
measures were • Some people saw government measures as
introduced. "controlling"
• Measures not always supported by
businesses who could not afford to have
absent employees through maternity
leave.

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