ABSTRACT

Singapore now faces one of the fastest aging populations in the world, leading the country’s political leaders to fear the implications of population aging for the country’s economic viability. We analyzed National Day Rally speeches from 2011 to 2015 by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to examine how policymakers conceptualized the challenges related to its aging population. Findings point to the government’s manifest and latent emphasis on its economic viability when developing social policies to address the well-being of its aging population. Its approaches to welfare provision are informed by a neoliberalist agenda that requires its citizens to exercise personal responsibility and self-reliance, and to rely on their family and community for mutual assistance. Despite its highly interventionist approach, the government is clear about its residual role in the provision of safety nets. A neoliberalist reconceptualization of citizenship serves to restrict older citizen’s claims to basic social assistance.

摘要

新加坡现在面临着世界上人口老龄化最快的国家之一，这使该国的政治领导人担心人口老龄化对该国经济生存能力的影响。我们分析了总理李显龙（Lee Hsien Loong）2011年至2015年的国庆集会演讲，以研究决策者如何概念化与人口老龄化相关的挑战。研究结果表明，政府在制定社会政策以解决老龄化人口的福祉时，对经济生存能力的明显和潜在的强调。它的福利提供方法是由新自由主义者的议程所告知的，该议程要求其公民行使个人责任和自力更生，并依靠其家庭和社区相互协助。尽管采取高度干预主义的方法，政府清楚其在提供安全网方面的剩余作用。新自由主义者对公民身份的重新观念化将老年人的诉求限制为基本的社会援助。