.. and 26,000 people aged 85 and over now live in Singapore
THE number of non-residents in Singapore has crossed the 1-million mark, according to the latest Population Trend report from the Department of Statistics. The group — comprising work permit holders and others who are neither citizens nor Permanent Residents — grew by 14.9 per cent, from 875,500 last year to 1,005,500 this year. This is the fastest year-on-year growth spurt in at least 10 years.
Last year, its numbers increased by 9.7 per cent, a rapid turnaround from the drop of 5.6 per cent in 2003. In all, Singapore's population reached 4.68 million this year, a rise of 4.4 per cent from last year.
The growing number of foreign residents is in tandem with the country's healthy economic growth, said National University of Singapore sociologist Angelique Chan. "The main reason is economic growth but it's also partly due to government moves to grow the population," she said. The Government expects the number of people here to hit 6.5 million.
Life expectancy at birth has jumped from 75.3 in 1990 to 79.9 last year, while those aged 65 and over can expect to live 18.3 more years, over two-and-a-half years longer than in 1990.
Dr Chan noted the rise in the median age from 20 in 1970 to 37 this year, and the large number of people now aged 85 or older — about 26,000 Singaporeans — is in keeping with worldwide trends.
"With Japan leading, Singapore is among the top four in growing the oldest-old population (those over 85 years old)," said Dr Chan.
This growth in elderly numbers means the old-age support ratio — the number of working-age adults in proportion to those over 65 — has fallen. Last year, for every elderly Singaporean, there were 8.4 that were aged 15 to 64. The ratio 10 years ago was one to 10.5.
The Government's move towards a compulsory annuity scheme to provide for increased longevity is based on these trends.
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