Never mind the legions of imported bankers, engineers, stevedores and nannies. Singapore¡¯s attraction for these pillars of a successful hub is well documented.
However, it obscures the country¡¯s shifting labor needs. The next front in the battle to recruit and retain talent does not target elite brains or sweaty brawn, but reflects its profile as a rapidly aging society. The new hot commodity is health care.
Singapore¡¯s punishing demography ¡ª and the need to address it ¡ª was underscored recently when a minister revealed that a key measure of fertility tumbled to yet another record low. Japan and South Korea are the poster children for this type of decline: Rich economies that are not churning out enough kids even as the ranks of seniors multiply. More recently, China¡¯s dwindling population added to the gloom surrounding the former juggernaut. But Singapore gives them a run for their money.
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