ABSTRACT
Introduction Population ageing will characterise Asian populations this century as it will in other parts of the world. By 2030, Asia will be home to 60 per cent of the world’s older individuals aged 60 and over, and this will have a far-reaching effect on Asia’s social and economic growth. Singapore is one of the fastest ageing populations in Asia and this change in the population age structure is occurring in a country that has experienced dramatic social and economic changes over the past 42 years. Singapore currently has the second highest gross national income (GNI) in Asia of US$32,867, second only to Japan (US$38,950), as estimated by the World Bank (2007). This economic growth has been fuelled by focused social and economic policies. When Singapore gained independence, family planning was one of the areas that received targeted attention. Population policies concentrated on lowering fertility and the end result was a decrease of the total fertility rate (TFR) from six children per woman in 1965 to the current TFR of 1.24 in 2006. Replacement level fertility was reached in 1978, setting the stage for population ageing.
