Jamus Lim on National Productivity Fund (Amendment) Bill

In Parliament on Thursday (Aug 3), MP Jamus Lim said he had significant reservations about expanding the scope of the National Productivity Fund (NPF) as this could inadvertently dilute the purposes of the fund. He noted that if a Bill put up in the House were to pass, investments by the NPF would no longer be limited to financing for productivity enhancement or continuing education, but investments in general, as long as they contribute towards economic development. Assoc Prof Lim suggested that the NPF commit to providing an in-depth report to Parliament, detailing how precisely a S$4 billion top-up in funds will be used, the sort of activities it will support and the main beneficiaries. He said the next wave of productivity increments will likely be driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and robotisation. And Singapore’s economy will have to transform itself as never before, to adapt to the changes faster than ever before. Over the next decade or so, he said, the NPF should be applied as much as possible towards helping local companies and people become fully AI-enabled.