SINGAPORE, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Singapore will set aside a fund to support training for over 4,000 pre-school teachers over the next three year, Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Chan Chun Sing said in Parliament on Tuesday.

According to his statement, the city-state's Workforce Development Agency will, under the Workforce Skills Qualifications program, subsidize up to 90 percent of training course fees and provide employers with an absentee payroll subsidy of up to 80 percent of the employee's salary.

Besides, the government will also provide scholarships and teaching awards up to almost 10 million Singapore dollars (8.2 million U.S. dollars) over the next two years, to attract new teachers and encourage existing ones to upgrade their professional qualifications.

"Our efforts have had some results," said Chan, figuring that employment in the sector grew by 25 percent, while attrition fell from 15 to 13 percent last year.