Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament
Mr Neil Parekh Nimil Rajnikant, Nominated Member of Parliament
Question
To ask the Minister for Education (a) what is the current take-up rate of the SkillsFuture Credit (SFC) for lifelong learning and training in the workforce; (b) how responsive have senior citizens and back-to-work women been in utilising their SFC for training and retraining; and (c) whether there are any problems that workers have highlighted in accessing their SFC.
Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament
Dr Lim Wee Kiak, Sembawang GRC
Question
To ask the Minister for Education (a) as of 2023, how many eligible Singaporeans have fully utilised their SkillsFuture credits; (b) whether the SkillsFuture credits can be replenished for those who have used up their credits; and (c) what are the reasons why 70% of eligible individuals have not been utilising their SkillsFuture credit since 2015.
Response
1. The SkillsFuture Credit (SFC) empowers Singaporeans to take ownership of their learning and also skills development. SFC, as we all know, can be used to offset the fees for a wide range of skills-related courses, after government course fee subsidies are applied.
2. Since launching the SkillsFuture movement, the training participation rate of individuals, including employer-sponsored training, has increased from 35% in 2015 to around 50% in 2022. Utilisation of SFC was higher among the younger age groups, at close to 40% for those in their 30s, while the utilisation of SFC for those aged 60 years and above was around 25%. Only a small minority of Singaporeans have fully expended their SFC. These individuals can continue to enjoy substantial course fee subsidies of up to 90% provided by the Government.
3. 192,000 Singaporeans used their SFC in 2022. This is an annual increase of around 12,000 per year, from 156,000 in 2019. This growth has been supported by efforts of SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) and its partners to promote a culture of lifelong learning and help individuals to make informed choices based on their training needs. These partners include trade unions, enterprises, CDCs, Trade Associations, and professional bodies. For example, SSG works closely with these partners to expand the provision of Skills and Training Advisory services at job fairs, workshops, community events and touchpoints across the island. Specific to older Singaporeans, SSG works with partner agencies to ensure that there is a suitable range of SFC-eligible courses to cater to their upskilling and lifelong learning needs such as digital literacy and financial literacy, and physical and mental well-being. There are also longer courses under the SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme that incorporate career coaching and employment facilitation services. This is to help the trainees secure employment upon completion of these upskilling courses.
4. To further improve SFC utilisation, SSG has enhanced the user experience of mySkillsFuture portal, making it easier for users to navigate and search for suitable SFC-eligible courses for themselves. SSG has also simplified the claims submission process based on user feedback. In addition, to keep the courses relevant to the industry, SSG works closely with industry partners and regularly analyses data on job vacancies and skills in demand.
5. Given that mature workers require more support to pursue substantial reskilling and upskilling to stay employable, the Government is looking into providing a further substantial SFC top-up, and this would be for mature mid-career Singaporeans. More details will be announced later this year.
6. Mr Speaker, I urge Singaporeans to make good use of the support available by the Government, the training institutions, and the SkillsFuture partners to advance their own lifelong learning and strengthen their career resilience.