YOUNG, well-educated women are posing a new challenge to Singapore in its continual effort to tackle its baby woes.
Their desire to advance their careers, be leaders in society, enjoy life and see the world can get in the way of their desire to get married and start families, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday.
'By the time they have dealt with all the other pressing priorities...it may be too late and too difficult,' he told more than 600 people attending an international women's meeting.
'The clock is ticking,' he added, in a speech which also noted that Singapore has not fully harnessed its woman power in the labour force.
'If you look at our labour force participation, you have a single- hump camel,' he said, noting that women workers tend to leave the workforce after they have children.
'In other countries, you have a second hump because after the children go to school, the women come back to work again.'
He added: 'We have been working hard and I can see the beginning of a second hump, but we have to work harder.'
Mr Lee was speaking at a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Women Leaders Network, a two-day event for gathering proposals to present in November, when leaders of Apec's 21 member economies meet in Singapore.
The Prime Minister dwelt at length on the growing role of Singapore women and how education has changed their goals and aspirations, in a bid to highlight a situation that will confront many Asia- Pacific countries as their societies develop.
'In terms of gender roles, Singapore is probably one of the most Westernised societies in Asia,' he said.
In the West, it is taken for granted that women have a right to assume equally important positions as men in business, government and to some extent in the armed forces.
But few Asian societies operate that way, even the developed ones, he said.
In Singapore, education - not affirmative action or a quota system - has been the key catalyst in improving the lot of women, he said. It has spurred women to make inroads in politics and the workplace, he noted, adding that 55 per cent of the university intake here is now female.
But Mr Lee also noted the 'unintended consequences' of the Singapore approach.
Women are no longer content with being confined to traditional, subservient roles. While more men are prepared to treat their wives as equals, there is still a mismatch between what men want and what the women expect.
This is one reason Singaporeans are marrying late or not at all, he said.
His message reflects the ongoing national concern with marriage and procreation, an issue which the country has been grappling with for more than 20 years.
Women tend to marry around the age of 27. And despite generous pro-family incentives, like longer maternity leave, the fertility rate last year was 1.28. This is well below the 2.1 rate needed for a population to replace itself naturally.
Mr Lee expressed the hope that Singapore will eventually find a 'new formula' to enable young people to fulfil their aspirations and also have families.
He stressed that Singapore has no ready answers and there are no permanent, perfect solutions.
But this is how society progresses - 'feeling our way forward step-by- step, with constant adjustments in each new generation', he said.
Yesterday's session also saw discussions on how women in Apec countries can weather the troubled economic climate.
The concern was raised by Mrs Yu- Foo Yee Shoon, Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports, when she spoke earlier in the day.
An estimated nine million more women in Apec may become jobless this year, bringing their jobless total to around 38 million.
Women play a significant role in the Apec nations, she noted, saying their economic contributions amount to US$80 billion (S$115 billion) each year.
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