Data on Take-up of ONE Pass and Sectors in Which ONE Pass Holders Work

15 Mr Neil Parekh Nimil Rajnikant asked the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the take-up rate of the Overseas Networks and Expertise Pass (ONE Pass) since 2 January 2024; (b) which sectors are these ONE Pass holders employed in; (c) how many of these ONE Pass holders are new entrants to Singapore and granted the ONE Pass not from a conversion of an existing employment pass; and (d) what are some of the key improvements that the Ministry is considering to better utilise ONE Pass and improve employment for Singaporeans.

The Minister for Manpower (Dr Tan See Leng): Mr Speaker, Sir, about 3,000 Overseas Networks and Expertise (ONE) Passes were issued in 2024, of which about one in six were new entrants. The conversion of existing work pass holders who meet the ONE Pass criteria also helps us to anchor talent in Singapore.

The top three sectors that the ONE Pass holders were employed in were financial and insurance services, information and communications, and professional services.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) is working with other sector agencies to increase the outreach to global talent and raise the awareness of the ONE Pass. We also encourage ONE Pass holders to participate in local programmes to mentor, to network and to exchange insights with current and future generations of local leaders, such as the Singapore Leaders Network.

Mr Speaker: Mr Gerald Giam.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song (Aljunied): Sir, can I ask the Minister, how specifically has MOM been measuring the skills transfer from ONE Pass holders to Singaporeans and the hiring of more Singaporean professionals, managers and executives (PMEs) for every ONE Pass that is issued and what have the outcomes of this been since January 2024?

Secondly, has the Ministry conducted any audits or independent assessments on the economic impact of the ONE Pass since its launch and what have the key findings been since it has been launched?

Dr Tan See Leng: I thank the Member for the supplementary question. We work collectively as an ecosystem, so MOM, the Ministry of Trade and Industry and other economic agencies monitor how Singapore performs at a macro level, and this includes the competitiveness of our Singapore economy, as well as how it translates into good employment outcomes for our locals. At the upcoming Committee of Supply, when MOM has the opportunity, we will give a balanced scorecard update as to how the performance has been.

The one point that I would like to also alert the Member to is that, when it comes to top global talent – the proverbial rainmakers, the ones that can bring deals, the super magnets for talent – they will reinforce our competitiveness as a hub for global talent, and we can never have enough.

In terms of a specific target or key performance indicator, you are not running a business where you can set the return on investment. I think we should be thinking in terms of a measure of what kind of a return on social equity that we would want. And in that sense, we will work across our entire ecosystem with all the different Government Ministries.

This programme only started two years ago. But we have already started an annual notification for the existing ONE Pass holders in September last year – so about three and a half, four months back. We will be reviewing the data that we collect and will also be evaluating their contributions to Singapore.

And I want to once again reinforce, the impact of ONE Pass holders goes beyond the individual contributions and also the immediate tangible output that can be measured. Because for the longer-term sustainable ecosystem that we endeavour to build and to succeed, we need to continue to ensure that our only resource – and that of the highest form of human resource – our talent, continues to be here, to be well anchored here. And then, I think we will continue to succeed in making Singapore attractive to leading firms and also investors. I hope that addresses the Member's point.

Mr Speaker: Mr Neil Parekh.

Mr Neil Parekh Nimil Rajnikant (Nominated Member): I want to thank the Minister for his answer. The numbers are not surprising that the majority have been conversions from other classes because we just initiated the programme. However, the real success of this programme will be determined by how many new people we give that visa to in terms of real talent. What tweaks does the Minister think we need to make in the programme to attract new talent?

Dr Tan See Leng: I thank Mr Neil Parekh for his supplementary question. I am glad he acknowledges the fact that the programme is very new. Given the fact that it is effectively the second year where the ONE Pass has started, and if you look at the year-on-year increase in new applicants coming in, I think that actually the uptake has been quite promising, the caveat is that we are starting off from a relatively lower base.

But what we have done importantly is, our economic agencies, academia and research institutes have gone out to scour the world in terms of identifying the types of talent we need to sustain our growth industries, whether it is in forefront, cutting edge research in deep tech, in infocomm or professional services. Thus far, the type of talent that we have been getting, they are the top 5% of the entire ecosystem. So, you can imagine that it is a very targeted, almost akin to a form of a headhunting exercise. And we would require the different sector leads and the experts to go after this group of global talent.

So, it is not about tweaking the ONE Pass to get big numbers to come in. It is about really getting a very differentiated, a very well curated programme to target the best of the best to join us. I hope that gives you the context.

Mr Speaker: Mr Giam.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: Sir, just to follow up on my earlier question, the Minister said earlier that the Ministry encourages ONE Pass holders to participate in local professional activities. Beyond just encouraging them, does the Ministry formally require ONE Pass holders to keep track of and report their professional activities that directly involve mentoring and training Singaporean PMETs?

Dr Tan See Leng: I have also shared in my supplementary question reply that we will be sending up notification letters. In terms of understanding the different segments of the ONE Pass holders that reside in Singapore, it would then allow us to be a lot more targeted in leveraging on their expertise, their networks and also skillsets to be able to work closely and to transfer those skillsets to mentor our locals.

Given that today, it has really been about two years into the programme, as I have said, the biggest group of ONE Pass holders are in the financial services, infocomms and professional services. Some of the programmes will be curated in those kind of areas for them to be able to come up with the capability transfer programmes. Rather than for us to mandate that they have to do that, we would prefer to work with a more encouraging tone, getting them to inspire our successive generations of Singaporeans to think outside of the box. I hope that gives you that context.