Slight rise in number of babies born last year

Births up by 0.5% from 2018, first increase after four consecutive years of decline

Ms Christabel Tan with her husband Joel Ong and their daughter Clarissa, who was born last August. The couple were initially ambivalent about having children when they got married in 2016, but Ms Tan says that she is grateful to be a mother now, and
Ms Christabel Tan with her husband Joel Ong and their daughter Clarissa, who was born last August. The couple were initially ambivalent about having children when they got married in 2016, but Ms Tan says that she is grateful to be a mother now, and that her daughter is a real blessing. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
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Dr Tan Poh Lin from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore (NUS) said that as the number of babies born over the years has declined, there will be fewer women of child-bearing age in the future.

Couple the falling births with the rising number of deaths in an ageing population, the academics noted, and the result is worrying.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on April 02, 2020, with the headline Slight rise in number of babies born last year. Subscribe