Social Safety Nets

Refreshing our social compact

Our social compact is the shared understanding of how we relate to each other, which helps us progress together as a nation. Through Forward Singapore, our citizens, regardless of their starting point or current situation, strengthen their sense of agency over their own circumstances. This gives them and their families the confidence to achieve stability, self-reliance, and social mobility.

Key to this is the collective responsibility of different groups, where:

• Individuals resolve to do better for themselves and their families.

• The community contributes and creates opportunities to support families in need.

• The Government creates conditions for growth and opportunity, while continuing to provide social safety nets for those in need.

Read more: Spirit of Forward Singapore

Supporting lower-income families

Income inequality in Singapore, as measured by the Gini coefficient, fell to a low of 0.371 in 2023, after accounting for taxes and transfers.

This reflects the redistributive effect of government support measures and taxes, as well as efforts to uplift wages of lower-wage workers. The Government also provided more support to lower-income households through short-term cost-of-living support, and schemes such as Workfare which are permanent components of our social safety nets.

Read more: Quality Jobs | Retirement

ComCare remains an important social safety net for lower-income families experiencing difficulties in meeting their daily living expenses. In 2023, around $152 million in ComCare cash assistance was disbursed to help around 32,200 households meet their basic daily living expenses and stabilise their circumstances. This represented a 31% decrease in funds disbursed compared to the peak in 2020, and a 32% decrease in households assisted compared to the peak in 2021, when Singapore was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The decrease was in line with economic recovery and more job opportunities.

We made social support more comprehensive, convenient, and coordinated for families in need:

• Since introducing online applications for ComCare Short-to-Medium-Term Assistance in May 2022, over 70% of applications were made online as at August 2024, providing greater convenience for applicants.

• ComCare scheme bundles were enhanced in October 2022. As at December 2023, more than 8,000 automatic referrals to other support schemes were made, without the need for ComCare clients to make separate applications.

• As at December 2023, about 370 families with complex needs have been supported by the Social Service Systems Office set up in 2019, and by Social Service Offices that coordinate support for them across various areas such as housing, legal, and immigration. These families include those under ComLink+ and/or those receiving ComCare assistance.

To further empower lower-income families, ComLink was enhanced to ComLink+ in July 2023. ComLink+ exemplifies our shift beyond providing just social assistance to longer-term family-centric support. Under ComLink+, families are paired with dedicated family coaches who journey alongside them over the longer term and work with the community to supplement families’ efforts to achieve sustained progress in areas such as their children's education, debt clearance, and the building up of savings.

Read more on ComLink+: Spirit of Forward Singapore

Read more: Education | Quality Jobs | Family | Retirement | Housing and Amenities

Strengthening support for vulnerable groups

Together with Social Service Agencies and the community, we have established a robust system of legal protection and social service support for various groups of vulnerable individuals and families. These include support for children from lower-income families through KidSTART, early intervention programmes for children with developmental needs who require different levels of support, and partnering with the community to help rough sleepers and homeless individuals. We also strengthened support for those with multiple and complex needs.

Read more: Education | Family | Health and Wellness | Retirement

Survivors of domestic violence

Strong and stable families are the bedrock of our society, where family members feel safe and supported. Domestic violence has no place in our society and must not be condoned.

From 2021 to 2023, the number of new cases of low to moderate safety and risk concerns increased, while the number of new cases of high safety and risk concerns decreased.

The Government has strengthened legal protection, worked with community partners to increase public awareness, and improved training and responsiveness to tackle domestic violence.

• The Women's Charter was amended in July 2023 to strengthen protection for survivors of family violence and enhance rehabilitation and accountability of perpetrators of family violence.

• The 24-hour Domestic Violence Emergency Response Team (DVERT) was launched in April 2023, through which social service professionals respond jointly with the Police to provide more timely intervention for high-risk domestic violence cases with immediate safety concerns. As at July 2024, the DVERT responded to 307 cases referred by the Police. DVERT has been rolled out nationwide since September 2024.

• The new Break the Silence campaign was launched in June 2024, to raise awareness on the signs of domestic violence and encourage survivors and the community to play their part in detecting domestic violence. As at July 2024, more than 9,300 individuals from various sectors have undergone the Domestic Violence Awareness Training programme to learn how to spot and report signs of domestic violence. Professionals from preschools, schools, and Private Education Institutions have also participated in these training sessions.

Read more: Domestic Violence Trends Report 2024

Read more: Family | Legal and Diplomacy | Government and Regulations

Youth offenders

From 2018 to 2022, there were on average 2,500 arrests per year among persons aged 7 to 19 years. The number of youths arrested in 2022 was the lowest since 2018, likely due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting movement restrictions affecting arrests, as well as youths’ responsiveness towards preventive and rehabilitative efforts.

Where appropriate, youth offenders who commit minor offences are diverted from the Court and placed on programmes, such as the Guidance Programme, Streetwise Programme, Enhanced Streetwise Programme, and Youth Enhanced Supervision Scheme, based on the offences committed and the youth’s risks and needs. Youth offenders may also be placed on probation orders for community-based rehabilitation or in MSF Youth Homes for institutional rehabilitation.

Since February 2021, post-care support has been made available to all suitable youth offenders in MSF Youth Homes, with schools, workplaces, and interest groups helping them apply and sustain the skills and knowledge acquired in these homes.

Read more: Quality Jobs | Family | External and Homeland Security

Persons with disabilities

To enable persons with disabilities to participate fully as integral and contributing members of society, the Enabling Masterplan 2030 was launched in 2022. Since then, Singapore has made further progress towards a more caring and inclusive society.

To support learning:

• The total capacity for government-funded early intervention programmes was increased in 2023 and 2024. This benefitted 9,850 children with developmental needs in 2023, up from 5,833 children in 2019.

• Between 2023 and 2024, three new Special Education (SPED) schools began operations, and four new Special Education Teaching and Learning Syllabuses (TLSs) were launched, which completes the seven TLSs that form the National SPED Curriculum. This curriculum seeks to enhance the learning experience and outcomes for children with moderate to severe special educational needs.

To enable independent living:

• The Enabling Business Hub and Enabling Services Hub were launched in 2023 to bring training and employment opportunities, and community support services, respectively, closer to persons with disabilities. Between 2022 and 2023, the employment rate of persons with disabilities increased to 33%, up from 30% between 2020 and 2021. This puts us on track to reach our 40% target by 2030.

To ensure inclusive physical and social environments:

• As at July 2024, about 80% of buildings and almost all our public spaces are accessible to persons with disabilities. An example is the effort to make libraries more accessible. Between February 2023 and July 2024, more than 5,500 persons with disabilities have visited or participated in accessible programmes and learning journeys across 13 public libraries.

Feature Story: Empowering persons with disabilities through employment support

Former mechanical engineer Mr Shahul Hameed Abdul Majeed faced challenges finding work after a stroke in 2019. The 54-year-old uses a wheelchair and is learning to walk again.

Mr Shahul sought employment assistance from the Enabling Business Hub @ Jurong (EBH@Jurong), located about 20 minutes from his home. Developed by SG Enable, the hub brings training and employment opportunities closer to the homes of persons with disabilities living in the West, including those with higher work support needs.

With the guidance of a job coach from EBH@Jurong, Mr Shahul attended training sessions and eventually secured part-time employment as a Stations Guide at SBS Transit, supporting customer service and experience since July 2024.

Read more: Enabling Masterplan 2030 Taskforce Reports | Enabling Skills and Competencies Framework

Read more: Education | Quality Jobs | Housing and Amenities | Transport

Empowering change through giving

The community plays an important role in supporting those with greater needs through various forms of giving, including donations and volunteering. According to the National Giving Study 2023 by the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre, overall donation rates [PDF, 4.3 MB] remained stable at 62% in 2023 compared to 60% in 2021, though the median amount donated decreased from $200 to $100 over the same period.

Through Community Chest, the Government will continue to galvanise community-wide giving through various community fundraising initiatives. This includes matching donations under SHARE, a regular giving programme to support Social Service Agencies, and encouraging consumption-based giving by bringing businesses on board the Change for Charity initiative. Between Financial Years 2019 and 2023, Community Chest netted an average of $67.6 million in donations annually. These donations went towards supporting over 200 programmes by more than 100 Social Service Agencies in serving the needs of vulnerable and lower-income groups, including key national priority programmes like ComLink+ and KidSTART. Community funding is essential to sustaining these programmes. Through such acts of giving, both the Government and community can collectively uplift underprivileged groups in society.

In July 2024, the Sustainable Philanthropy Framework was launched to guide businesses to sustain and deepen their philanthropic efforts. Businesses can use the Framework to review, measure, and enhance their contributions in giving, volunteering, and socially inclusive practices.

Read more: Building Our Future Together

Looking ahead

Singapore’s approach towards social support has evolved over the years, as the Government continues to do more to support disadvantaged and vulnerable groups. However, the challenges of social mobility and inequality will remain as our society develops.

We will continue to work with individuals, families, and the community to strengthen our social support system – shifting our approach from social assistance to social empowerment – to ensure that Singapore remains a society that provides opportunities for all, regardless of our starting points.