Changing S'pore family and what it spells for the future

This post came out from The Straits Time (11 June 2015)

There are more analysis on an earlier post (New study on extended family to ensure care) in the papers.

Several academics and welfare experts are of the view that the definition of "family" should be broadened to include extended family members for policies that involve incentives and benefits for those who support their relatives. It could greatly lighten the burden of caregivers who, on top of caring for elderly parents and young children, want to support relatives too, they said.

One such policy is the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Retirement Sum Topping-Up Scheme, in which people can top up their loved ones; CPF accounts. Right now, "loved ones" include a person's parents, parents-in-law, siblings, spouse, grandparents and grandparents-in-law. In a 2013 survey by the Ministry of Social and Family Development, four in fie polled said that they maintained ties with relatives. That suggests some Singaporeans might welcome the chance to support their relatives in their retirement years.
Note: The money used to top up the accounts can come from the person's own CPF account, or if they use cash, they may enjoy up to $7,000 in tax relief per year.

There were more mixed views of suggestions for housing grants or priority allocation schemes to be extended to people who live near their relatives, especially childless uncles or aunts living alone. National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan had cautioned against this as they could result in an "alumni effect" that shuts out young couples whose parents do not reside in the estate they want to live in. To extend the help to people living near their uncles and aunts could result in a similar effect. Second, the priority system could be abused. For those with relatives living in popular mature estates, it could even lead to unnecessary over-consumption by those who do not need public housing, but just the flat due to the premium housing. Plus, there is a difficulty of trying to verify if the nieces and nephews are indeed looking after the old folks.

Meanwhile, at least one expert worries that broadening the definition of "family" in policy could lead to a scenario where shared responsibility becomes diluted responsibility. Said Mr Edwin Yim, direct of the Asian Women's Welfare Association Family Services: "Giving more help options could mean providing more back doors. A person may feel less inclined to support his father if he knows the father can get financial help from other relatives."

But Mrs Chang-Goh Song Eng, head of Reach Counselling, said there was a need to deal with the actual situation on the ground. "Ideally, we want to focus on the family nucleus as the first line of support. But the reality is that family forms are changing and we want to ensure they are still well-supported."

Agreeing, IPS research fellow Christopher Gee said it would not be good to claim to be pro-family, yet be unwilling to accept that "family forms are changing rapidly".

In making this shift, it seems policymakers need to strike a careful balance between ensuring support services are future-ready and not incentivising children to pass on the responsibility of care to relatives, instead of sharing it with them. The first line of care and support must remain the immediate family. When that weakens, the hope is that the extended family will step forward, and with government help, offer support.


Thoughts:

1. My major concern is that, if the immediate family do not help provide for their parents, is the state going to play a much bigger role in the future and dipping into the yearly budget and support for these aged whom the family members do not want to support? This is a very difficult problem that the government have to consider very very carefully. 

Thoughts anyone?

Yours,

Something Small Thinking Big

New study on extended family to ensure care

This post came out from The Straits Times (8 June 2015)

With families here shrinking, can a wider network of relatives be relied on to help if someone becomes frail or ill? This is what the Government is trying to find out, with what is believed to be its first study on the extended family, and the extent of care and support it can provide.

The data to be obtained by April next year may then be used for policy tweaks to encourage people to support their aunties, uncles, nephews, nieces, cousins and other relatives. These could include housing grants for extended family members if they live nearby, or tax exemptions if they top up their loved ones' Central Provident Fund accounts, for instance.

This study makes a milestone in social policy thinking, said experts, because it is moving away from the Government's traditional proxy for families - the nuclear household where a couple live with their parents or children. The reason for the shift is that the number of nuclear families is falling.

The survey is expected to examine household composition, care-giving arrangements and how far extended family members live from each other, among other factors. It also aims to understand the attitudes and perceptions people have of the extended family's role, such as whether people expect their extended family to support them, or if their understanding of "family" means nuclear family. The study will also look at challenges faced by extended family members in providing such care, and identify solutions or support measures to encourage them to do so.

The head of Reach Counselling, Mrs Chang-Goh Song Eng, said extended family support for heavy care-giving duties, such as taking care of someone who is bedridden, is usually not forthcoming. "Usually people are okay imposing on or bothering their immediate siblings if they can't turn to their children, but the line stops there because they feel that relatives are not obliged to be responsible for them," she said.

Touch Community Services' seniors cluster network director Julia Lee agreed, adding that the authorities need to come up with ideas to encourage extended families to be more involved. She said: "The social isolation and health issues of the elderly who live alone are very urgent."


Thoughts:

1. I think it is forward looking at thinking of meeting the needs of Singaporeans whose family structures have changed dramatically over the past decades.
2. However, I do have reservations of whether would this be useful as I do not think that most relatives would be keen in providing long term help to their needy kin.
3. In my view, the extended family ties are no longer as close as it was previously. I think many of the young children today might not know who their relatives are, with only meet ups during the major festivals (Hari Raya, Christmas, Chinese New Year where the relatives will gather) or family events (Wedding, Funeral, New Born).
4. To add more skepticism, I think we also should take a look at the Maintenance of Parents Act and see how many application were made. A bill like this has to be enacted to enforce children to take care of their parents. Now, think about relatives looking after their aged ones... 

Thoughts anyone?

Yours,

Something Small Thinking Big

Many poor Malays 'do not seek social aid'

This post came out from The Sunday Times (26 April 2015)

About two-thirds of low income Malay/Muslim households do not seek help from social services despite hopes that their children can escape the poverty trap, according to a new study commissioned by community self help group Mendaki.

This is not due to an ability to cope on their own, but a lack of awareness of available schemes, and more worryingly, an undercurrent of fear at stigmatization.

To those who argue that this reluctance to tap social assistance is a positive sign of resilience, Dr Caroline Brassard of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy suggested that "tolerance of a situation should not be confused with resilience". Social assistance could be the difference between escaping a poverty trap and staying in it.

But members of the low-income families she studied were held back by a sense of shame. Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Yaccob Ibrahim told reports that the findings reinforced that the need to adopt a "last mile approach" by going door to door to speak to low income families and urge them to tap resources that can help them achieve their aspirations.

The study also pointed to a need for agencies to revise a social assistance system reliant on the submission of a large volume of forms, which low income families are often unable to cope with.


Thoughts:

1. I believe that there are a number of needy Singaporeans who are either not aware of the help available or do not wish to seek help for what so ever reasons.
2. For those who are not aware of help, the challenge is for the Government to make the information on social assistance available to them, but yet not portraying a state of social welfare-ism.
3. I do come across posters and banners put up along the roads/ notice boards on the Social Service Offices. However, we are unable to determine if needy people do look out for them.
4. Face to face interactions are definitely the best way to pass on such messages. Educated and trained volunteers and Grassroots leaders seems to be the best group of people. However, we might not be blessed with such people to reach out to all those in need. Nevertheless, we should try out this to do some initial outreach which is better than nothing.
5. For those that refuse to seek help, we would have to recognize their will and respect their wishes, but do not leave them behind. 
6. Them might have bad experiences with the system previously, or are pure resilience beings. I believe that outreach should still be continued for these people, but we should empower them. Empower them by letting them being able to improve their situation. Rather than giving them things (which they will not take), maybe we can consider working with them to understand what they want to do with their situation and work with them to achieve it? This can provide some forms of control in their lives and belief that they can solve their problems. 

Thoughts anyone?

Yours,

Something Small Thinking Big

ComCare Public Assistance Scheme (II)

Based on the criteria set, one can safely assume that the majority of the beneficiaries are elderly and disabled Singaporeans who do not have family or kin to readily support them.

In Singapore, where cost of living is much higher now, the costs involved in taking care of the disadvantaged group would also be high. Costs for food and medical bills are one big concern for someone without monetary support. The Public Assistance (PA) scheme helps alleviate some of these pressing needs through cash assistance and free medical treatments.

The PA scheme has been around since the end of World War Two (July 1946) and the monthly cash payout has increased to meet the cost of living. When the scheme just started, monthly cash payouts for one person ranged from $2 to $5. Subsequently, the assistance for a one person household has risen to $40 (1976), $60 (1980), $120 (1988), $200 (1997) and $360 (2009).

(Source: http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_1613_2009-11-30.html?v=1&utm_expid=85360850-6.qNOOYF40RhKK6gXsQEaAJA.1&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com.sg%2F)

The cash assistance has been the hallmark of PA scheme, and this was enhanced in 2013. The inclusion of secondary and discretionary tiers of assistance aims to better meet the needs of beneficiaries who have difficulties with costs of essential items that the cash assistance is not able to cover for.

(Source: http://app.msf.gov.sg/Press-Room/Public-Assistance-PA-Scheme-Enhanced)

Looking at the enhancements to the PA scheme, the Government probably have recognized that (i) the elderly group are getting older and their needs in healthcare has increased, and (ii) people with special needs and disabilities have more community support for them to lead a better, meaningful life. All these would need the Government to step in with additional support so that the beneficiaries can achieve a decent lifestyle without compromising on their basic need (i.e. using cash assistance to pay for food, accommodation and transport etc).

Yours,
Something Small Thinking Big

ComCare Public Assistance Scheme (I)

The ComCare Public Assistance (PA) Scheme is a long term support for Singaporeans or Permanent Residents.

Some of the criteria as follow:

• Unable to work due to old age, illness or unfavorable family circumstances
• Have no means of stable income
• Are elderly persons who receive only a small monthly payout from CPF Minimum Sum/ CPF Life, Pension, Eldershield, Lease Buyback Scheme, and the monthly payout is lower than the prevailing PA rates
• Are elderly persons whose children are low income themselves and unable to support their parents. The children must be supporting their own families and each have household income $1,700 or below

Assistance provided includes:

• Cash assistance to support daily living expenses
• Additional cash assistance for children to support their out of pocket expenses
• Secondary tier of assistance to help those with recurring hygiene essentials or consumables
• Discretionary tier of assistance to help those with one off special needs
• Free medical treatment at polyclinics and government/restructured hospitals
• Educational assistance for school going children of PA recipients for school and miscellaneous fees as well as school books
• Supplementary community assistance that are funded by the Government 

(Source: http://app.msf.gov.sg/Assistance/ComCare-Public-Assistance)

Yours,
Something Small Thinking Big

The Social Service Office (SSO)

Your One Stop Service Centre at each HDB Town

The Social Service Office (SSO) was created by the Ministry of Social & Family Development about 2 years ago to bring Social Assistance closer to the community. Till date there are 20 known SSOs all over Singapore, each looking after a HDB Town (i.e. Bedok, Bukit Panjang, Chua Chu Kang, Geylang Serai, Jalan Besar, Jurong East, Kreta Ayer, Tampines, Woodlands and Yishun).

The social assistance schemes were previously disbursed by the 5 Community Development Councils (CDC) (i.e. Central Singapore CDC, North East CDC, North West CDC, South East CDC and South West CDC). With the SSOs, there will be more touch points in the community for needy families to turn to for help.

Most of the SSO work in partnership with the CDC as well as Workforce Development Agency (WDA), as shown on the logos of their centres (Example - http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/new-social-service-office-bukit-batok). The WDA provides Employment Assistance and training support for those needy families that come forth to seek assistance.

In all, even though there is provision of social assistance, free money (from taxpayers) will not be dished out without conditions. Families are expected to work on improving their situation to qualify for social assistance.

I will share more about social assistance provided by the SSO in my next post.

Yours,
Something Small Thinking Big