Opportune time for workers, firms to put SkillsFuture credits to good use

WHEN it comes to helping citizens master different skill sets and having them embrace a culture of life-long learning, Singapore has both the wherewithal and potential to be a global leader in this field. This is largely thanks to the early success of SkillsFuture, a national movement to provide people here with the opportunities to develop their maximum potential throughout life, regardless of their starting point.

SkillsFuture is only about five years old, and the initiative is still far from reaching its true potential and reach. The training participation rate has gone up from 35 per cent in 2015 to 49 per cent last year. As of the end of 2019, more than 500,000 Singaporeans aged 25 and older have used part or all of their initial S$500 in credits to pick up new skills and develop new interests, through courses such as coding, baking and even learning a foreign language.

In his Budget 2020 speech in Parliament earlier this week, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat gave SkillsFuture a significant boost when he announced a one-off credit top-up of S$500 that will go into each person's SkillsFuture account. What's more, those who are aged 40 to 60 will get another special credit top-up of S$500, which means this group potentially has as much as S$1,500 to spend.