“Let lower-income families keep their agency and dignity: Masagos” (ST, May 23)
“Mr Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for Social and Family Development, made this point at an SG Cares Community Network session held at Civil Service Club @ Tessensohn on Monday.
The session was held as part of MSF’s Forward SG engagements with Singaporeans.”
Comment:
Have you ever wondered how many lower-income are there in S’pore?
Practically every week – there are media reports about helping the “lower-income” – but, rarely do we ever get, if ever – how many are there and what is the poverty line, which we do not have, unlike most countries
Perhaps, some MPs should ask in Parliament?
So, let’s try to figure this out, as best we can:
Under ComCare – the criteria is $650 household per capita incomehttps://www.msf.gov.sg/docs/default-source/mediaroom-document/infographic_5_things_about_comcare.pdf
Under the Public Transport Voucher scheme – its $1,600 per capitahttps://www.mot.gov.sg/what-we-do/public-transport/public-transport-vouchers
Under Workfare – its $2,500 for a worker at least 30 years old
https://www.cpf.gov.sg/……/workfare-income-supplement
In 2022 – 9.3% (130,163 households (9.3% x 1,399,600 total resident households)) of households had per capita income below $1,000
12.5% (174,950 households) had no employed person, of which 7.6% (106,370) were Solely Non-Employed Persons Aged 65 Years & Over
As the average household size was 3.09 – does it mean that the number of people in the below $1,000 lower-income households, may be about 402,204 (130,163 x 3.09)?
I have not included the “no income households” because we don’t know how many of these, were unemployed or retired, and were financially stressed
https://tablebuilder.singstat.gov.sg/table/CT/17809
https://www.singstat.gov.sg/……/households/latest-data
So, why don’t we establish & acknowledge a poverty line, like most countries?
