SINGAPORE: Singapore is in a “stable position” in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic but it must remain vigilant amid profound uncertainties, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said in Parliament on Monday (Oct 5).
These uncertainties include how effective other countries will be in containing the pandemic and reopening their economies, as well as when an effective and safe vaccine can be developed.
AdvertisementAdvertisementBut the country will adapt to living with the coronavirus even with these unknowns, said Mr Heng in a ministerial statement that sought to provide an update on Singapore’s response against the pandemic and its strategies to emerge stronger from the crisis.
The Government has worked out the steps on how to further reopen the economy safely, with details of a Phase 3 roadmap to be released by the multi-ministry task force “in the coming weeks”, said Mr Heng.
This will include the expected timeline for moving to Phase 3, changes to current regulations on the size of group gatherings and at mass events, he said.
[h=3]READ: Government working towards Phase 3, but Singapore will remain in DORSCON Orange ‘for the time being’: Gan Kim Yong[/h] AdvertisementAdvertisementTo further reopen the economy safely, the Government will focus on four key prongs – vaccination, testing, tracing and safe management.
Singapore is working “very actively” to secure early access to safe and effective vaccines, if and when they become available, said Mr Heng.
This includes being an early supporter of the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access (COVAX) Facility, a global initiative to accelerate the development and production of potential vaccines while ensuring equitable access.
Singapore is also looking at procuring vaccines from a number of pharmaceutical companies, while supporting local efforts in developing a vaccine and the building up of manufacturing capacity.
When it comes to COVID-19 testing, Singapore has increased its polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing capacity and is close to the target of being able to conduct 40,000 laboratory tests a day. It is also evaluating new testing technologies that are less invasive and can produce results more quickly.
Such enhanced testing capability can help the country to safely resume more activities sooner, Mr Heng said.
Swift contact tracing and isolation of infected individuals are also key to limiting the spread of the virus, in addition to safe management measures, he added.
[h=3]READ: COVID-19: Rigorous testing could help revive travel but challenges remain, say experts[/h]MORE SUPPORT FOR FIRMS, WORKERS
The Government has set aside close to S$100 billion to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, including four Budgets from February to May and an additional round of tapered support in August.
All of these measures have “substantially cushioned” the economic damage, said the Deputy Prime Minister.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore estimates that the four Budgets will prevent the economy from contracting by a further 5.6 per cent in gross domestic product this year, and 4.8 per cent in 2021.
The slew of measures will also cushion some of the rise in resident unemployment rate by about 1.7 percentage points this year.
“This could mean about 155,000 jobs saved over these two years, although we will still see job losses overall. More than half of the jobs saved are due to the Jobs Support Scheme alone,” Mr Heng told the House.
Given the difficult path to recovery, the Government will continue to focus on alleviating near-term pains over the next six months, so as to help businesses and workers to emerge stronger.
Mr Heng, who is also Finance Minister, announced extensions to several help initiatives.
This includes the extension of the Enhanced Training Support Package for another six months until Jun 30, 2021, to provide higher course fee subsidies for firms in the hardest-hit sectors such as air transport, retail and tourism.
The scheme will also be extended to the marine and offshore sector from Monday.
But in recognition of the gradually recovering economy, the Government will lower the absentee payroll rates to 80 per cent from January 2021, capped at S$7.50 per hour, said Mr Heng.
The Government will also provide companies who hire people with disabilities with a higher tier of wage support – at 50 per cent – under the newly announced Jobs Growth Incentive.
This will apply to new hires from September this year to February next year, as Mr Heng noted that those with disabilities may face greater challenges in finding jobs.
Under the Jobs Growth Incentive, the Government funds between 25 and 50 per cent of the wages of each new local hire in firms that increase their total local headcount. The support is for the first S$5,000 of gross monthly wages, for up to 12 months.
[h=3]READ: Government to provide more support for newborns as COVID-19 puts some parents in tough spot[/h]Several capability-building grants will also be extended and enhanced to help businesses to internationalise, transform and digitalise. These include the Market Readiness Assistance Grant, the Productivity Solutions Grant, the Enterprise Development Grant and the PACT programme.
Details will be announced by the Ministry of Trade and Industry in the coming weeks.
The Temporary Bridging Loan Programme will be extended for a further six months until September 2021, but at reduced levels. At the same time, the central bank will extend the MAS Singapore Dollar Facility for Enterprise Singapore Loans until September 2021.
Support available under the Enterprise Financing Scheme will also be adjusted to help local companies access financing in areas such as trade and project needs, said Mr Heng, adding that further details will be announced later.
“Even as we shift our approach in supporting businesses and workers as the economy recovers, we will make sure that support does not taper off too sharply,” said Mr Heng.
Support for businesses "will ultimately benefit" workers, he added.
“The best way to protect the welfare of our workers is a good job. By helping viable firms stay afloat during this difficult period, they can retain their workers. By helping firms to restructure and retrain their workers, they can emerge stronger."
[h=3]BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the coronavirus outbreak and its developments[/h]Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram
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