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Singapore loves the dating game.
The government is so keen for its citizens to marry and procreate that it is setting aside $384,250 to help fund private matchmaking agencies as part of a new move to reverse the island state's falling birth rate.
The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports announced Friday it was soliciting creative business plans for Internet or personal dating services.
Companies may apply for grants of up to $32,023 for their matchmaking businesses, it said. The businesses would be listed in a government database to be accessed by single people from next year.
The ministry said it wanted to help businesses tap into the "lucrative" matchmaking market, noting that there were 620,000 singles among Singapore's 4.5 million population.
Left unsaid was the fact that Singapore is worried about its declining birth rate. Earlier this year, the Department of Statistics reported that the birth rate had fallen for the 28th consecutive year below the "replacement rate" needed to maintain the population. The fertility rate had fallen to a record low of 1.24 children per female.
In a speech marking National Day in August, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong urged married couples to have more children, and outlined a plan to encourage immigration as part of efforts to increase Singapore's population.
The new matchmaking plan follows other government efforts such as "Romancing Singapore," a 2004 campaign that involved tips on meeting partners, heart-shaped pizzas and the launch of a perfume carrying the campaign name. The government also offers financial incentives to encourage larger families.
A recent Social Development Unit survey revealed that 90 percent of 1,000 singles interviewed hoped to get married, and 72 percent wanted more opportunities to meet possible partners.
The survey said Singapore's singles had spent $16.7 million so far this year on dating-related expenses, including dining, traditional or computer matchmaking, speed dating and personal ads.
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