Government Measures to Support Building and Construction Industry Slowdown

Mr Gan Thiam Poh asked the Minister for National Development what measures will the Government take to support the building and construction industry which is facing challenging times in the face of an economic slowdown.

We understand the concerns about the slowdown in construction demand in 2016. At $26 billion, the quantum of building and civil engineering contracts in 2016 was $1 billion less than 2015. The contraction came from reduced private sector demand. But this was partially offset by strong public sector demand.

Total construction demand this year is projected to be between $28 to $35 billion. This is more than 2016. However, private sector demand is expected to remain subdued. The Government will help offset this shortfall by pushing out a pipeline of public sector projects. In doing so, public sector demand may increase to almost 70% of total construction demand this year. Significant public sector projects that we will roll out include phase 2 of the Deep Tunnel Sewerage System, the North-South Corridor, Changi Airport Terminal 5, and new MRT lines.

In tandem, we will continue to assist firms through various funding support schemes to help them adopt productive technologies and upgrade their workforce capabilities. Almost $800 million has been made available to firms through the Construction Productivity and Capability Fund (CPCF). As of November 2016, more than $420 million has been committed to fund projects by more than 8,600 firms in the built environment sector. Around 90% of these companies are small and medium-sized firms.

We will also do more to help our firms venture overseas. In the past three years, Singapore contractors managed to clinch an average of $1.7 billion per year in overseas projects. This is very encouraging but there is potential for even more growth given the increasing regional demand for quality housing and infrastructure. Internationalisation will be one of the focus areas for the Industry Transformation Map (ITM) for the construction sector that MND and BCA are currently developing with our industry.