Singapore
| The Republic of Singapore | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Flag | |
| Capital | Singapore |
| Government | Parliamentary Republic |
| Language | Mandarin, English, Malay. (official) |
| President | S. R. NATHAN |
| Prime minister | Lee Hsien Loong |
| Area | 274 sq mi |
| Population 2010 | 5 million |
| GDP 2010 | $255,338 billion (2010) |
| GDP per capita | $57,238 |
| Currency | Singapore dollar |
Singapore (Malay: Singa (lion) + pura (city)) is a city-state and parliamentary republic, situated on a group of islands at the southern tip of the Malay peninsula. Its land Area is 712 (Sq Km).
Contents
People
Its population of about 5 million people is 76% ethnic Chinese, 14% Malay, 7% Tamil and 3% others. Religions: Buddhist 42.5%, Muslim 14.9%, Taoist 8.5%, Hindu 4%, Catholic 4.8%, other Christian 9.8%, other 0.7%, none 14.8%
Urban population: 100% of total population.
Population aged 15 years & over who were literate: 95.9%.
Total SMS Messages: 27,714 Million.
Languages: Mandarin (official) 35%, English (official) 23%, Malay (official) 14.1%, Hokkien 11.4%, Cantonese 5.7%, Teochew 4.9%, Tamil (official) 3.2%, other Chinese dialects 1.8%, other 0.9% (2000 census)
Government
Chief of state: President S R NATHAN (Sellapan RAMANATHAN) (since 1 September 1999)
Head of government: Prime Minister LEE Hsien Loong (since 12 August 2004); Senior Minister GOH Chok Tong (since 12 August 2004); Senior Minister Shunmugam JAYAKUMAR (since 1 April 2009); Minister Mentor LEE Kuan Yew (since 12 August 2004); Deputy Prime Minister TEO Chee Hean (since 1 April 2009) and Deputy Prime Minister WONG Kan Seng (since 1 September 2005) [2]
Economy
Singapore has a highly developed and successful free-market economy. It enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable prices, and a per capita GDP higher than that of most developed countries. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in consumer electronics, information technology products, pharmaceuticals, and on a growing financial services sector. Real GDP growth averaged 7.1% between 2004 and 2008. The economy contracted 1.3% in 2009 as a result of the global financial crisis, but rebounded nearly 14.7% in 2010, on the strength of renewed exports. Over the longer term, the government hopes to establish a new growth path that focuses on raising productivity, which has sunk to 1% growth per year in the last decade. Singapore has attracted major investments in pharmaceuticals and medical technology production and will continue efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech hub. [3]
Gross Domestic Product: 2009 = $266.7 bn, 2010 = $303.7 bn
Per Capita Gross National Income: $57,603 (2010)
Total Labor Force: 3,136,000
Singapore’s exports of services declined by 3.2% to $136.0 billion in 2009 compared to an increase of 9.6% a year earlier. Imports of services also fell by 6.7% to $115.4 billion, in contrast to the 10.0% growth recorded in 2008. [4]
History
Singapore was an ignored, swampy island with only a few fishing villages until 1819 when Sir Stamford Raffles of the British East India Company was given permission to establish a trading station by the Sultan of Johor. Raffles had spotted its strategic location as a crossroads on the shipping routes to the East and set about turning the island into a free trading station.[1] Alongside the British colonial presence it attracted many entrepreneurs from China, India and the Middle East and within 5 years the population rose from 150 to 10,000. In 1824 the British bought the island outright from the Sultan. Following the Anglo-Dutch treaty of 1824, the Dutch, who had largely been the dominant colonial power in south-east Asia, withdrew any objections to the British occupation.
The British tended to congregate round the river waterfront and many grand buildings in the Palladian style were built largely with the help of Irish architect George Coleman.[2] With the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, the invention of steamships and the laying of long-distance telegraph cables Singapore became increasingly important as a port and trading center.
At the outbreak of World War II, Singapore was regarded as a well-defended base for the Allies in the Far-East. However, on February 15, 1942 Singapore fell to the Japanese after six-days of fighting. The occupation of the next three and a half years was brutal with many atrocities and war-crimes being committed. The island was renamed Syonan (Light of the South) until the defeat of Japan. The occupying forces formally surrendered to the British at the Changi prison-camp in September 1945.
In 1946, Singapore became a British Crown Colony. However, the communist insurgency in Malaya of 1948 put Singapore in a state of emergency for 12 years. There was a rise of nationalism during the 1950s as the merchant classes wanted to have a say in government and in 1959 Singapore was granted self-government under the leadership of Lee Kuan Yew. In 1963 Singapore merged with Federated Malaya and the Borneo states of Sarawak and North Borneo (Sabah) to create Malaysia. The third Borneo state of Brunei opted for independence. This merger was actively opposed by the neighboring states of Indonesia and the Philippines. The union did not last long, owing to ideological differences between Lee Kuan Yew's PAP (People's Action Party) and the federal government in Kuala Lumpur. Singapore was obliged to withdraw and became a sovereign, independent nation on August 9, 1965.
With only a small land mass and limited natural resources Singapore was forced to industrialize and develop its technical prowess alongside its trading and transportation hub role. Government policies emphasized the role of education, especially in computer science, and, increasingly, bio-sciences.
