Between Pragmatism and Populism? A Conversation on the Past, Present, and Limitations of Singapore's Immigration Policy
From Yew Ming YAP
Distinguished Speaker Series: Economics and Society
Synopsis:
The story of modern
Singapore is the story of migration. And the story of Singapore's immigration
policy is, like much else, characterized by pragmatism aimed at solving
Singapore's economic and social problems. This talk will sketch a brief history
of immigration, from the founding of modern Singapore through the present day,
focusing on the economic, social, and political motivations that shaped changes
in immigration policy. Immigration policy is focused on relieving labour force
constraints and on buffers against macroeconomic cycles, allowing for rapid
expansion of the labour force while taming inflation during booms, and
moderating the impact of busts on native employment through selective attrition
of the foreign workforce. A key feature is selectivity by skills or
socioeconomic status: immigrants are assimilated from the upper tier of the
skills and income distribution, whereas low-skill immigrants have no pathway to
assimilation. The economic consequences of immigration, including impacts on
native employment, labour supply, skills and sectoral allocation, and on
industrial structure and productivity, are noted. We conclude by examining
three serious limitations to Singapore's immigration policy in the near future:
the structural economic insecurity faced by the native labour force in the
presence of technological change and open high-skill immigration policy; the
inability of the economy to wean itself off low-wage, low-skill migrant labour;
and the challenges Singapore faces in reinventing itself when long-term migrant
assimilation has thus far simply replicated the colonial-era societal status
quo. With immigration policy now seemingly caught between pragmatism and
populism, it may be increasingly difficult for Singapore to reinvent itself to
meet the demands of the future.
Speaker Biography:
Walter Edgar Theseira is
Associate Professor of Economics, School of Business, Singapore University of
Social Sciences; and Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, Asia Competitiveness
Institute, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. His Ph.D. is in Applied
Economics and Managerial Science from the Wharton School, University of
Pennsylvania. He has published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences and the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organisation. He has advised
Government agencies on economics research, and is a Board Member of the
Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore. He served as a Nominated
Member of Parliament, 13th Parliament of Singapore.
Moderator Biography:
Dr Giovanni Ko is Assistant Professor of Economics (Education) in the
College of Integrative Studies at Singapore Management University. He graduated
with a PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a BA
(Hons) in Mathematics from the University of Cambridge. His research interests
lie at the intersection of economics, politics and law. His articles have been
published in the Journal of Law and Economics and the European Journal of
Political Economy. He is currently teaching the Core Curriculum course
Economics and Society
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