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SINGAPORE: More than half of eligible Singaporeans aged 35 to 70 have utilised their SkillsFuture credit since the initiative was introduced in 2015, SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) said on Monday (Feb 9).
In 2025, which marked the 10th anniversary of its launch, 606,000 individuals took part in SSG-supported training, up from 555,000 the previous year.
SSG said the increase in the number of participants was due to the Dec 31 expiration of the one-off SkillsFuture credit top-up.
More users also used their credit in the final month, compared to the monthly average from January to November in 2025.
However, fewer employers sent their workers for SSG-supported training in 2025.
About 23,000 employers sent their workers for training, benefitting around 247,000 individuals. This compares with 24,000 employers and 241,000 individuals in the previous year.
"The dip in employer participation could be due to businesses adopting a more conservative approach due to economic and geopolitical uncertainties," said SSG, adding that it also observed a drop in employer-supported training demand in the second half of 2025.
SSG said that it has taken steps to boost employer training participation, saying that it is needed to keep training relevant to job and business needs.
“We encourage employers to engage actively in shaping training programmes and investing in workforce development.”
It has also tightened course renewal requirements and approval to ensure quality and relevance.
“To employers, our message is that training becomes more critical, not less, in an environment of technological disruption and uncertainty,” SSG chief executive Tan Kok Yam said.
"The depth and breadth of workers’ skillsets will enable businesses to pivot and adapt quickly."
POPULAR COURSES
The most popular training areas in 2025 were in information & communications, food & beverage, and security & investigation.
Credits were used for a wide range of courses, from online learning subscriptions such as Coursera to shorter courses for “bite-sized” upgrading.
"Notwithstanding the surge in demand, the training sector has been able to maintain quality, as measured by learner validation," said SSG.
In a survey, 73 per cent of respondents agreed to a large or very large extent that SSG-supported training improved their work performance, up from 69 per cent the previous year, according to SSG.
Additionally, 67 per cent of respondents attributed career advancements to courses attended, an increase from 64 per cent.
More than eight in 10 participants also confirmed that the learning and insights gained were transferable to their work.
MID-CAREER PARTICIPANTS
More mid-career individuals took courses that have a direct impact on their employability outcome.
About 123,000 people, compared with 112,000 the previous year, signed up for such courses, including full-qualification programmes, stackable courses by Institutes of Higher Learning, SkillsFuture Career Transition Programmes and courses in support of the Progressive Wage Model.
This trend was reinforced by the introduction of the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Training Allowance in 2025, which supported 5,300 recipients pursuing eligible full-time long-form training.
From next month, this training allowance will be extended to eligible part-time training programmes.
Of the 15,000 learners who completed their career transition programmes between June 2022 and June 2025, more than half found new roles or employment within six months.
"To our learners, now that many of you have been moved by the credit expiry to engage in the SkillsFuture system, SSG will deepen our engagement with you, improve how we provide information on courses and ease the processes to enrol and train," said Mr Tan.
"We seek your partnership to choose wisely the training that aids your job and career health, to engage meaningfully in the training, and to enrich the learning experiences of your course-mates."
