Singapore - Population, total

The value for Population, total in Singapore was 5,685,807 as of 2020. As the graph below shows, over the past 60 years this indicator reached a maximum value of 5,703,569 in 2019 and a minimum value of 1,646,400 in 1960.

Definition: Total population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship. The values shown are midyear estimates.

Source: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2019 Revision. (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Popu

See also:

Year Value
1960 1,646,400
1961 1,702,400
1962 1,750,200
1963 1,795,000
1964 1,841,600
1965 1,886,900
1966 1,934,400
1967 1,977,600
1968 2,012,000
1969 2,042,500
1970 2,074,507
1971 2,112,900
1972 2,152,400
1973 2,193,000
1974 2,229,800
1975 2,262,600
1976 2,293,300
1977 2,325,300
1978 2,353,600
1979 2,383,500
1980 2,413,945
1981 2,532,835
1982 2,646,466
1983 2,681,061
1984 2,732,221
1985 2,735,957
1986 2,733,373
1987 2,774,789
1988 2,846,108
1989 2,930,901
1990 3,047,132
1991 3,135,083
1992 3,230,698
1993 3,313,471
1994 3,419,048
1995 3,524,506
1996 3,670,704
1997 3,796,038
1998 3,927,213
1999 3,958,723
2000 4,027,887
2001 4,138,012
2002 4,175,950
2003 4,114,826
2004 4,166,664
2005 4,265,762
2006 4,401,365
2007 4,588,599
2008 4,839,396
2009 4,987,573
2010 5,076,732
2011 5,183,688
2012 5,312,437
2013 5,399,162
2014 5,469,724
2015 5,535,002
2016 5,607,283
2017 5,612,253
2018 5,638,676
2019 5,703,569
2020 5,685,807

Development Relevance: Increases in human population, whether as a result of immigration or more births than deaths, can impact natural resources and social infrastructure. This can place pressure on a country's sustainability. A significant growth in population will negatively impact the availability of land for agricultural production, and will aggravate demand for food, energy, water, social services, and infrastructure. On the other hand, decreasing population size - a result of fewer births than deaths, and people moving out of a country - can impact a government's commitment to maintain services and infrastructure.

Limitations and Exceptions: Current population estimates for developing countries that lack (i) reliable recent census data, and (ii) pre- and post-census estimates for countries with census data, are provided by the United Nations Population Division and other agencies. The cohort component method - a standard method for estimating and projecting population - requires fertility, mortality, and net migration data, often collected from sample surveys, which can be small or limited in coverage. Population estimates are from demographic modeling and so are susceptible to biases and errors from shortcomings in both the model and the data. In the UN estimates the five-year age group is the cohort unit and five-year period data are used; therefore interpolations to obtain annual data or single age structure may not reflect actual events or age composition. Because future trends cannot be known with certainty, population projections have a wide range of uncertainty.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Population estimates are usually based on national population censuses. Estimates for the years before and after the census are interpolations or extrapolations based on demographic models. Errors and undercounting occur even in high-income countries. In developing countries errors may be substantial because of limits in the transport, communications, and other resources required to conduct and analyze a full census. The quality and reliability of official demographic data are also affected by public trust in the government, government commitment to full and accurate enumeration, confidentiality and protection against misuse of census data, and census agencies' independence from political influence. Moreover, comparability of population indicators is limited by differences in the concepts, definitions, collection procedures, and estimation methods used by national statistical agencies and other organizations that collect the data. The currentness of a census and the availability of complementary data from surveys or registration systems are objective ways to judge demographic data quality. Some European countries' registration systems offer complete information on population in the absence of a census. The United Nations Statistics Division monitors the completeness of vital registration systems. Some developing countries have made progress over the last 60 years, but others still have deficiencies in civil registration systems. International migration is the only other factor besides birth and death rates that directly determines a country's population growth. Estimating migration is difficult. At any time many people are located outside their home country as tourists, workers, or refugees or for other reasons. Standards for the duration and purpose of international moves that qualify as migration vary, and estimates require information on flows into and out of countries that is difficult to collect. Population projections, starting from a base year are projected forward using assumptions of mortality, fertility, and migration by age and sex through 2050, based on the UN Population Division's World Population Prospects database medium variant.

Aggregation method: Sum

Periodicity: Annual

General Comments: Relevance to gender indicator: disaggregating the population composition by gender will help a country in projecting its demand for social services on a gender basis.

Classification

Topic: Health Indicators

Sub-Topic: Population