About Social Inclusion Project

This study presents the latest Minimum Income Standards (MIS) budgets after adjusting for inflation between 2020 and 2022. High inflation in recent times has sparked anxiety among Singaporeans, raising concerns about living costs and the meeting of basic needs. This latest report presents the budgets that different types of households need amidst rising costs. It compares the budgets with actual work incomes, reviews the adequacy of Singapore’s approach to wage protection and examines various public schemes relative to basic income needs. As we emerge from the pandemic and look towards the future, this research provides an explicit measure of human flourishing.

This study captures the state of homelessness in Singapore during the COVID-19 pandemic. It incorporates a geographically comprehensive cumulative count with occupancy data from temporary homeless shelters to provide, for the first time, a fuller picture of homelessness in Singapore. The results are compared with findings from 2019 to highlight changes since the start of the pandemic. The researchers also interviewed 51 shelter residents to understand the causes and experiences of homelessness.

This is the first study to determine the scale and geographical distribution of homelessness in Singapore through a nationwide street count. The study combined a geographically comprehensive cumulative count over several months, with a single night count in selected zones that incorporated a survey to find out the profile and circumstances of homeless people. Fieldwork was implemented by 480 volunteers including representatives from more than 20 NGOs and many members of public in 2019. By measuring homelessness in a rigorous and transparent way, the study helps to develop local understanding of this complex issue and provide a baseline for further research.

The UN-Habitat Housing Practices Series is an ongoing publication produced by UN-Habitat in partnership with academic institutions and national governments. It provides reliable and independent documentation of large-scale affordable housing programmes in countries around the world. As part of a report on Singapore, this chapter focuses on social housing (ie public rental housing). Drawing on archival sources and findings from a household survey, it traces the history and development of social housing in Singapore, examines its features and outcomes, and explains the significance of a subsidised and residual housing sector in a landscape otherwise dominated by homeownership. Click below to find out more or download the chapter.

The second Minimum Income Standard (MIS) research project in Singapore, published in 2021, investigates the needs of single and partnered parents and their children across various age groups—below 2 years old; 2–6; 7–12; 13–18; and 19–25. The consensus-based methodology applied in this research produces results that reflect ordinary people’s lived realities in contemporary Singapore; embody the values and principles Singaporeans identify with; and identify precise budgets that map onto these values and principles. Along with the updated budgets generated in an earlier wave of research for elderly households, this research gives a comprehensive view of basic needs across the life course and in varying household arrangements.

Minimum Income Standard for Elderly Households (2019)
How much does a Singapore household need for a basic standard of living? Minimum Income Standard (MIS) refers to a research method to establish what incomes households need in order to reach a basic standard of living. It involves in-depth focus groups with members of the public where they agree on what goods and services households require, and calculating the total costs of these items based on actual prices. The first MIS research project in Singapore was completed in 2019, focusing on the needs of older people. Singapore is now part of a network of countries carrying out similar research around the world.