Singapore

Parliament

Political system
Presidential-Parliamentary
Structure of parliament
Unicameral
IPU membership
Yes

Data on women

Information on the current and historical representation of women in the parliament. Consult the 'Elections' tab to see how women have fared in elections or renewals.

Current representation

Women's representation in the current parliament or chamber

Current number of members
99
Women
29
Percentage of women
29.3%

Speaker

No information available

Secretary general

Secretary General
Ng Sheau Jiuan (Female)

Chairs of specialized bodies

Specialized body Theme Name Sex Age
Finance Committee Finance Foo Mee Har Female 57

Data on age at the start of the legislature

Number of members, by age (2020-08)
Breakdown of members by age and gender
18 - 20 21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 60 61 - 70 71 - 80 81 - 90 91 and over Totals per gender
Male 0 0 8 16 15 21 7 0 0 0 67
Female 0 1 6 7 5 8 1 0 0 0 28
Totals per age interval 0 1 14 23 20 29 8 0 0 0 95
Total <= 45: 38 Total >= 46: 57
Percentage of members, by age
Age at the last election or renewal Overall Male Female
Percentage of MPs 30 years of age or younger
1.1% 0.0% 1.1%
Percentage of MPs 40 years of age or younger
15.8% 8% 7.4%
Percentage of MPs 45 years of age or younger
40.0% 25% 14.7%

Reserved seats and quotas

There are reserved seats in parliament for certain groups
Yes
Electoral quota for women
No

Sources: Cf. Parliamentary Elections Act (Cap. 218, 2008 Rev. Ed.) and the Constitution.

First woman in parliament

Year of first woman in parliament
1963

First woman speaker

Year of first woman speaker
2013

Women’s suffrage

Date of independence
1965
Women’s right to vote
1965
Restricted or universal suffrage
Universal

Notes: TBC; Prior to independence, under British administration, women were granted the right to vote on 18 July 1947 and first exercised this right in the 1948 legislative council elections. This right was confirmed at independence.

Women's right to stand for election
1965
Restricted or universal
Universal

Notes: TBC; Prior to independence, under British administration, women were granted the right to vote and stand for election on 18 July 1947 and first exercised this right in the 1948 legislative council elections. These rights were confirmed at independence.

Women's caucus

Women's caucuses or parliamentary groups that bring together women parliamentarians to strengthen cooperation and amplify their voices. For other parliamentary bodies or committees that have a specific mandate to address gender equality matters, see the ‘Specialized body – Gender equality’ tab.

Historical data for IPU membership

Historical data for IPU membership
Year IPU membership
2020-09
List of values for 2020-09
No
2019-04
List of values for 2019-04
No
2018-06
List of values for 2018-06
No