Even as Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat unveiled measures in his annual Budget statement yesterday to deal with immediate problems such as the coronavirus outbreak and the resulting economic fallout, he emphasised the need to maintain focus on the country's future.
To this end, this year's Budget is the strategic financial plan that will prepare the country for the long term, said Mr Heng, who is also Deputy Prime Minister.
He laid out plans in four areas: to grow the economy, transform companies and create jobs; to care for all Singaporeans and nurture them; to build a sustainable city amid climate change and secure the country's sovereignty; and to mobilise people to work together.
The plans help Singapore seize the new opportunities that arise even amid challenges ahead, including broad shifts in the world order. "To deal with these major shifts, we need a capable government, working closely with our people, and a good plan," he said.
He outlined how these broad shifts would affect Singapore. While globalisation and the advancement of technology have brought prosperity to the world, they have also widened income inequality between the skilled and the unskilled, creating winners and losers, he said.
"There are growing sentiments that globalisation and the multilateral system have failed," he added.
The prosperity brought by the decades of peace after World War II allowed governments to establish safety nets and welfare programmes, Mr Heng said.
But governments around the world have struggled to maintain this spending, with ageing populations, job disruptions and slowing economies piling on fiscal pressure, he added.
Yet, he said, it is politically untenable to cut back social benefits, and governments have resorted to issuing debt to fund social spending, increasing the debt burden on the next generation.
Central banks have also lowered interest rates to unprecedented levels, giving themselves little room to manoeuvre in the event of crises, he added.
He noted that this was happening at a time of weakening growth worldwide and greater uncertainty, with friction between the United States and China adding to the tension and portending a divided global order.
But even as Singapore enters a very challenging time, "we can, and we will pull through", as long as people advance as one, Mr Heng said.
Singapore had the means to remain exceptional, he went on to say, pointing to the fact that the Republic remains a trusted node for trade and investment, with political stability, commitment to rule of law and multilateralism, ease of doing business, and a strong intellectual property protection regime, among other things.
"As a city-state, we are small, but nimble," he added.
The openness Singapore has nurtured and embraced all along has also resulted in a multicultural society, making the country more valuable to the world, he said.
But he added that Singapore's biggest asset is its exceptional people. "We have come together and weathered many past storms, like the global financial crisis, Sars, and now, the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak," he said.
Urging unity, he added: "Budget 2020 is our strategic financial plan to prepare Singapore and Singaporeans to meet these challenges and seize new opportunities."
