Take-Up Rate Of SkillsFuture Credit

10 Mr Neil Parekh Nimil Rajnikant asked 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.

11 Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked 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 credits since 2015.

The Minister of State for Education (Ms Gan Siow Huang) (for the Minister for Education): Mr Speaker, may I have your permission to take Question Nos 10 and 11 together?

Mr Speaker: Please proceed.

Ms Gan Siow Huang: The SkillsFuture Credit (SFC) empowers Singaporeans to take ownership of their learning and also skills development. The SFC, 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.

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 rate of SFC for those aged 60 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.

In 2022, 192,000 Singaporeans used their SFC. 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 the trade unions, enterprises, Community Development Councils (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, 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.

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 courses for themselves. SSG has also simplified the claims submission process, based on users' 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.

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 will be for mature, mid-career Singaporeans. More details will be announced later this year.

Mr Speaker, I urge Singaporeans to make good use of the support available, provided by the Government, training institutions and SkillsFuture partners to advance their own lifelong learning and strengthen their career resilience.

Mr Speaker: Dr Lim Wee Kiak.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak (Sembawang): Sir, I would like to thank the Minister of State for the reply. I would like to ask two supplementary questions. First is that, is the Government happy with the state of affairs of the current SFC utilisation? Is 50% of the of the population using SFC the target? Is there a near-term three years or five years target of raising this even higher?

Second, for eligible Singaporeans, is there any way to encourage the remaining 50% on how they can use their SFC? What is the reason why they are not using it now, currently? Can the Ministry look into how to use AI or other methods to suggest courses for Singaporeans as well as identify skills or courses that they may take up? So, prompt them, push them a little bit, so that they can use this important fund to help improve their lives.

Ms Gan Siow Huang: I thank Dr Lim Wee Kiak for the two good supplementary questions. First, is on whether we are happy with the state of the utilisation of SFC? I would say that we have seen good progress over the years. Especially since the launch of SFC, we see more Singaporeans understanding the needs of lifelong learning and upskilling; and employers too, seeing the benefit of upskilling their workers.

I would say that we know we are on the right trajectory. What is more important is that skills development and training are available and relevant, where the individuals need them. It is not limited to the use of SFC. Although SFC is a key pillar in this ecosystem, we know that employers too, also play a big role in shaping and supporting their workers and their new hires in upskilling. There are also, of course, free courses online that are widely available and that are very popular.

So, the utilisation of SFC is a proxy, I would say. We are moving in the right direction and we welcome suggestions by members of public, as well as Members in this Chamber, on what else we can do to improve the utilisation.

On why some Singaporeans might not be using SFC, some have cited lack of time and some have cited opportunity costs when they go for upskilling. So, we hope that the upcoming announcements for us to enhance SFC, as well as training allowance, will help more Singaporeans take the big step to go for upskilling.

Mr Speaker: Mr Liang Eng Hwa.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa (Bukit Panjang): Sir, I am glad to hear that the Government is looking to further upscale or increase the SFC amount or top-ups.

My first question is, whether this new push in SFC, is there any change in emphasis, or any new emphasis? Is this like a version two of SFC that we are expecting? And secondly, the Minister of State mentioned about working with professional bodies. I thought it is a very good idea because they are more attuned to the changes, the professionals skill needs. And so, whether under the new push, are we going to work more closely with the professional bodies?

Ms Gan Siow Huang: SkillsFuture is a movement. It is not a programme; by that, I mean it takes many parties to come together for this movement to create impact on individuals. We are glad that professional bodies are also coming onboard. SSG has, over the years, started partnering professional bodies to understand from them better what are the skill needs in the professional field that are envisaged and, working then, with training institutions to make available the upskilling opportunities.

We hope the announcements later this year on the SFC top-up for mid-career mature Singaporeans, will be a boost for this group. Because we have heard through Forward SG conversations and also, over time, feedback from the National Trade Union Congress (NTUC), from the unions, that this group of workers, find it even more challenging to be re-employed, especially if they lose their job or if they are retrenched in their 40s or 50s. Substantial upskilling will mean opportunity costs and also a lot of resources, drawing on their savings. This is something that we ought to do, to give our mid-career, mature Singaporeans a better chance to have longer-term employability.