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NEWS: Coastal wetlands are unable to adapt to the rate of sea-level rise and are constrained by infrastructure

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Wetlands, precious ecosystems that shield coastlines, safeguard drinking water from saltwater contamination, and nourish diverse wildlife, face a dire threat from the accelerating pace of sea-level rise, driven by global warming. Wetlands have historically adapted to rising sea levels by expanding upward and inland. However, predictions indicate that the waterline will soon shift far too rapidly for wetlands to keep pace. Consequently, future decades may witness the tragic loss of these vital wetland ecosystems. Wetlands along coastlines have historically played valuable roles for people and wildlife, but are now facing the threat of sea-level rise. As temperatures rise, sea levels are rising at an accelerating rate, and wetlands are unable to keep pace by building upward and migrating inland. This is due to human-induced climate change and the burning of fossil fuels, which has warmed the oceans and melted glaciers. Sea levels are now rising at about 10 millimeters per year, and are
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NEWS: Singapore's Foreign labour shortages in construction sector is a wake-up call for change

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Delays and stop-work orders because of COVID-19 shows this is the right time to re-think the way Singapore's construction sector does business, says labour economist, Kelvin Seah.


For a long time, Singapore’s strategy of augmenting its workforce with a large pool of low-skilled foreign labour had served it well.

It made economic sense: Focus on what we are good at, build a high-skilled educated workforce, and complement this with low cost, low-skilled, foreign labour acquired from abroad.

This strategy helped to keep production costs down, which in turn made our goods cheap and our companies competitive in the global market. But the recent COVID-19 pandemic has exposed just how vulnerable this strategy can make us, especially when black swan events like the pandemic hit.

Businesses in the construction sector came to a virtual halt for at least two months last year after COVID-19 swept through the worker dormitories and a circuit breaker had to be imposed.


Businesses in other sectors like F&B, cleaning, and manufacturing which relied heavily on low-skilled workers from neighbouring countries also struggled to find solutions after many of their employees were unable to return to Singapore owing to border restrictions and personal choice.

In April this year, the Ministry of National Development revealed that a large fraction of ongoing BTO projects would be delayed because of such manpower.

And most recently, CNA reported how cleanliness issues had emerged after many migrant cleaners were unable to enter Singapore.

Can we reduce our reliance on low-cost foreign labour? One suggestion is a proposal to re-introduce trade schools to boost the supply of Singaporeans working in essential areas such as construction, which rely heavily on foreign workers.

LOW WAGES DISCOURAGES LOCALS FROM TAKING UP THE TRADE


But simply introducing trade schools is unlikely to work, unless corresponding changes are made to reinvent the way companies produce.

Having such schools does not mean that Singaporeans will automatically enrol in them. We already have vocational schools in Singapore - the Institutes of Technical Education (ITE).

Unlike the trade schools of the past, pitched at the secondary level and provided narrower training in specific trades like carpentry, plumbing, or electrical fitting, today’s ITE is a postsecondary institution providing higher-level and broader training in vocational areas like engineering, info-comm technology and hospitality.



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