Gap in Digital Talent Supply and Demand
Ministry of Digital Development and InformationSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the projected gap in digital talent supply and demand as raised by Ms Tin Pei Ling to Minister for Communications and Information S Iswaran. The Minister noted that tech talent has grown by 10,000 annually, with demand accelerating due to COVID-19 and nearly 10,000 job postings recorded in mid-September 2020. He highlighted that the Government is creating 6,800 jobs and skills opportunities through the TeSA and SGUnited Jobs and Skills initiatives. Over the next three years, the pipeline will produce 20,000 local graduates and 6,250 trainees in specialized functions like software engineering and cybersecurity. This strategy includes a target to place 2,500 mid-career professionals aged 40 and above into tech roles to address the long-term talent shortage.
Transcript
58 Ms Tin Pei Ling asked the Minister for Communications and Information what is the projected gap in digital talent supply and demand in Singapore over the next one year, three years and five years respectively.
Mr S Iswaran: Digital technology (tech) jobs are in high demand across all sectors of our economy. Over the last three years, tech talent in Singapore has grown by about 10,000 year-on-year. In light of COVID-19, the urgency for companies to digitalise and transform has only accelerated, which will intensify demand for people who can perform these jobs.
Notwithstanding the current global economic crisis, net job creation for tech roles remains positive in our economy. In mid-September 2020, there were nearly 10,000 tech-related job postings on WSG’s MyCareersFuture web portal alone. In addition, the Government is partnering industry to create another 6,800 jobs, traineeships and skills opportunities over the course of the year via IMDA’s TechSkills Accelerator (TeSA) and WSG’s SGUnited Jobs and Skills initiatives. Fresh graduates from our Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), and aspiring mid-career professionals keen to pursue a tech career, will benefit from these opportunities.
Over the longer term, we expect the demand for tech talent to continue outstripping supply. We have made deliberate efforts to widen our tech talent pipeline by expanding our Pre-Employment Training (PET) intake in IHLs and investing in Continuing Education and Training (CET) programmes led by IMDA and WSG. Over the next three years, our PET pipeline from IHLs will generate around 20,000 local tech talent supplemented by at least 6,250 from place-and-train CET programmes, to keep pace with growing demand, in functions such as Digital Marketing, Software Engineering, and Cybersecurity. Of these 6,250 opportunities, IMDA aims to place some 2,500 mid-career professionals aged 40 and above in good tech jobs.
The Government is committed to working with companies to create good career progression opportunities for Singaporeans. We urge Singaporeans to likewise invest in themselves and take advantage of these skills training opportunities, so that they can participate in the digital economy, and stay competitive in this dynamic landscape.