Singapore has been known for some time to be a cosmopolitan country. However, in recent times, citizens have begun to protest against Singapore's continued acceptance of immigrants. In this essay I will explain why Singapore should continue to be open to immigrants. I will focus on immigrants holding an S Pass or an Employment Pass as these are professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) who are highly skilled workers and therefore have the potential to become naturalized citizens and permanent residents. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Singapore's urban population reached a turning point in 2012, when our first cohort of Baby Boomers turned 65. Due to our current low birth rate, we are unable to replace our aging population. Singapore will experience an unprecedented age shift between now and 2030. Over 900,000 Baby Boomers, more than a quarter of the city's current population, will enter their silver years. From 2020 onwards, the number of working-age citizens will decline, as older Singaporeans retiring will outnumber younger Singaporeans starting to work. In an effort to increase our birth rate, the government has worked to support young families through marriage and parenting policies in order to encourage people to start families. However, sufficient time must be allowed for policy improvements to take effect. In the meantime, it is necessary to maintain a stable population to avoid labor shortages as the population ages and there are fewer people of working age. This is where immigration comes into play, contributing to the minting of new citizens and the formation of new families. Immigration has contributed 20,000-25,000 new citizens per year, while over the past ten years citizen births have averaged 32,200 per year. And in 2016, about one in five marriages were interethnic. Therefore, immigration is vital to increase the population quantitatively and qualitatively. In addition to maintaining a stable population, immigrants benefit our economy by helping Singapore remain globally competitive. With the rapid advancement of technology, more and more new high-tech fields are emerging, such as cybersecurity and information technology. And while locals are being trained with the necessary skills, it will take time before the supply of local workers with the right skills can meet the growing demand. Many of these industries, such as information and communications technology, are rapidly evolving and market demand can change rapidly in response to advances in trends and technology. Immigrants who already possess the required specialized skills and talent are readily able to support the growth of these emerging industries to keep pace with evolving demands, allowing Singapore to remain globally competitive. Immigrants are also required to replenish Singaporeans who have chosen to migrate to other countries to prevent our workforce and talent pool from shrinking further. According to statistics published by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), the number of Singaporeans moving has reached an all-time high of 6%, with 213,400 in 2016. Furthermore, as Singapore develops and its citizens become increasingly more educated and affluent, there is an urgent increase in the need to import.