Effectiveness of "War Against Diabetes" Effort

27 Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan asked the Minister for Health since the declaration of war on diabetes in 2016, how successful has the fight against diabetes been in managing and reducing the number of diabetics in Singapore.

Mr Ong Ye Kung: The "War on Diabetes" is a multi-year effort. With longer life expectancy and an ageing population, the prevalence of diabetes and number of diabetics can be expected to increase if nothing is done.

Based on the National Population Health Survey, there was a slight decrease in the crude prevalence of diabetes in adults, from 8.8% in 2017, to 8.5% in 2022. After adjusting for ageing effect in the population, a reduction in the age-standardised prevalence of diabetes, from 7.8% in 2017, to 6.8% in 2022 was observed. These statistics suggest some progress in blunting a hitherto increasing trend. The Ministry of Health will continue our efforts in tackling diabetes and monitoring our progress.