Participation Rates of Employment Preparation Scheme and Recidivism Outcomes

7 Mr David Hoe asked the Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs (a) as of January 2026, how many inmates have been emplaced on the Employment Preparation Scheme (EmPS); (b) what proportion of the prison population do they represent; (c) what are the recidivism rates of EmPS participants versus non-participants; and (d) what are the most common reasons eligible inmates are not emplaced on EmPS.

Mr K Shanmugam: On average, between 2023 and 2025, 159 inmates were emplaced on the Employment Preparation Scheme (EmPS) each year. This was about 4% of the penal inmate population during those years¹.

Inmates emplaced on EmPS are generally those who have poor family support and have more complex reintegration needs. Inmates may not be emplaced on EmPS if they have poor conduct in prison, respond poorly to the rehabilitation programmes offered by the Singapore Prison Service (SPS) or are assessed to present a risk to public safety.

Table 1 below shows the two-year recidivism rate of penal inmates emplaced on EmPS compared to all penal inmates.