About Singapore

Beginning in the 1970s Singapore pursued an aggressive policy of economic growth based primarily on export manufacturing and trade. The ruling PAP termed its sweep of all parliamentary seats a mandate for its plans for reducing the economic effects of the British military withdrawal. In January 1968 the British government had announced that all British defense forces would be withdrawn from East and Southeast Asia (except Hong Kong) by the end of 1971. The PAP faced fresh dangers of subversion when Indonesian opposition to Malaysia took the form of military and economic confrontation (1964). The ruling People’s Action Party (PAP), led by Lee Kuan Yew, had refused in 1959 to form a government until extreme left-wing leaders of the party who had been detained by the colonial authorities were released. Elected ministers and a Legislative Assembly with an elected majority assumed government responsibility in 1955, except for matters of defense and foreign policy.

• According to the 2024 Global Peace Index, Singapore is the 5th most peaceful country in the world.
• In its 2020 budget, the government set aside an initial $5 billion towards a Coastline and Flood Protection Fund.
• The judicial system is based on English common law, continuing the legal tradition established during British rule and with substantial local differences.
• The increase is expected to come primarily from non-domestic water use, which accounted for 55% of water demand in 2010 and is expected to account for 70% of demand in 2060.

Culture

Most major religious denominations are present in Singapore, with the Inter-Religious Organisation, Singapore (IRO) recognising 10 major religions in the city state. Singapore’s immigration policy is designed to alleviate the decline and maintain its working-age population. Since does amending taxes red flag them for audit 2010, its TFR has largely plateaued at 1.1 children per woman, which is among the lowest in the world and well below the 2.1 needed to replace the population. Like other developed countries in Asia, Singapore experienced a rapid decline in its total fertility rate (TFR) beginning in the 1980s.

Its men’s water polo team won the SEA Games gold medal for the 27th time in 2017, continuing Singapore sport’s longest winning streak. Two street food stalls in the city are the first in the world to be awarded a Michelin star, obtaining a single star each. The largest hawker centre is located on the second floor of Chinatown Complex, and contains over 200 stalls. In 2018, there were 114 hawker centres spread across the city centre and heartland housing estates.

British colonisation

The southern limits of the state run through Singapore Strait, where outliers of the Riau-Lingga Archipelago—which forms a part of Indonesia—extend to within 10 miles of the main island. The main island is separated from Peninsular Malaysia to the north by Johor Strait, a narrow channel crossed by a road and rail causeway that is more than half a mile long. It consists of the diamond-shaped Singapore Island and some 60 small islets; the main island occupies all but about 18 square miles of this combined area. Singapore, city-state located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, about 85 miles (137 kilometres) north of the Equator.

Standout Main Streets In Arkansas

After the first six years of education, students take the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), which determines their placement at secondary school. Singapore has six public universities, of which the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University are among the top 20 universities in the world. As alternatives to pre-university education, however, courses are offered in other post-secondary education institutions, including the 5 polytechnics and 3 ITE colleges. Pre-university education takes place at either the 21 Junior Colleges or the Millennia Institute, over a period of two and three years respectively. English is the language of instruction in all public schools, and all subjects are taught and examined in English except for the “mother tongue” language paper. All institutions, public and private, must be registered with the Ministry of Education (MOE).

Singapore has a highly developed market economy, based historically on extended entrepôt trade. In response, amendments were made to the Women’s Charter by the government in 2019 to legislate more serious punishments for traffickers, including imprisonment of up to seven years and a fine of S$100,000. Pimps often traffic women from neighbouring countries such as China, Malaysia and Vietnam at their brothels as well as rented apartments and hostels for higher profit margins when they get a cut from customers. In 2021, six Singaporeans protested for improved trans protections in the educational system outside the Ministry of Education headquarters at Buona Vista. Lee described this as a compromise between the conservative (and often religious) and progressive elements of Singaporean society to prevent further political fracturing.

Best Places To Retire In British Columbia

The Constitution of Singapore is the supreme law of the what is accumulated depreciation country, establishing the structure and responsibility of governance. Singapore was one of eight cities worldwide that was classified as an “Alpha+” city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) in 2024. On 23 March 2015, Lee Kuan Yew died, and a one-week period of public mourning was observed nationwide.

Community Development Councils of Singapore Map

Km, the country is home to a population of over 5 million residents. It represents part of a comprehensive water catchment system that spans two-thirds of the city’s area. The Marina Bay Reservoir, for instance, is a significant body of water located in the heart of the city. This region contains the Central Area, also called the city area, and is the country’s economic core. Singapore, an island city-state in Southeast Asia, lies off the southern edge of the Malay Peninsula and has a total area of about 734 km2 (281 mi2). A dense network of short streams drains the island, but floods are locally severe because the streams have low gradients and because of excessive water runoff from cleared land.

The land

As of mid-2025, Singapore’s total population stood at 6,110,200, of whom 3,660,200 (59.9%) were citizens and the remaining 2,450,000 (40.1%) were either permanent residents (543,800, 8.9%) or international students, foreign workers, or dependants (1,906,700, 31.2%). Tourism is a major industry and contributor to the Singaporean economy, attracting 13.6 million international tourists in 2023, more than double Singapore’s total population. Singapore’s approach does not rely only on physical infrastructure; it also emphasises proper legislation and enforcement, water pricing, public education as well as research and development. Singapore considers water a national security issue and the government has sought to emphasise conservation.

The nation’s lively urban musical scene has made it a centre for international performances and festivals in the region. The government also places a heavy emphasis on meritocracy, where one is judged based on one’s ability. In the 2016 EF English Proficiency Index taken in 72 countries, Singapore placed 6th and has been the only Asian country in the top 10. In 2015, both its primary and secondary students rank first in OECD’s global school performance rankings across 76 countries—described as the most comprehensive map of education standards. In 2009, 20% of all students in Singaporean universities were international students—the maximum cap allowed, a majority from ASEAN, China and India.

Some mangrove vegetation survives in the Kranji area on the northwest side of the island, but elsewhere tracts of scrub or cogon grass (called lalang locally) are common. Altogether, Singapore’s precipitation averages about 95 inches annually, and rain falls somewhere on the island every day of the year. The eastern part of the island is a low plateau cut by erosion into an intricate pattern of hills and valleys.

In 1824, a further treaty with the Sultan led to the entire island becoming a part of the British Empire. The island was then nominally ruled by Tengku Abdul Rahman, the Sultan of Johor, who was controlled by the Dutch and the Bugis. The British governor Stamford Raffles arrived in Singapore on 28 January 1819 and soon recognised the island as a natural choice for the new port. In 1613, Portuguese raiders burned down the settlement, and the island faded into obscurity for the next two centuries. These Indianised kingdoms were characterised by surprising resilience, political integrity and administrative stability.

The country borders South China Sea to the east, the Strait of Malacca to the west, and the Riau Islands lie to the south. Singapore is the largest port in Southeast Asia and one of the busiest maritime ports in the world. Singapore (officially, Republic of Singapore) is a unitary state and is divided into 5 Community Development Councils (CDCs). To the south of the main island, the Southern Islands, a collection of about 60 islets, provide a different perspective of Singapore’s geography.

The strategic international air hub has more than 480 World’s Best Airport awards as of 2015update, and is known as the most-awarded airport in the world. Other awards it has received include the US-based Travel + Leisure’s Best International Airline award, which it has won for 20 consecutive years. Singapore’s largest companies are in the telecommunications, banking, transportation, and manufacturing sectors, many of which started as state-run statutory corporations and have since been publicly listed on the Singapore Exchange. It has been rated one of the best international airports by international travel magazines, including being rated as the world’s best airport for the first time in 2006 by Skytrax.

One of those measures, a compulsory national health care plan, was to go into effect at the end of 2015. Helping to pave the way for a change in outlook were the resignations from the cabinet in 2011 of both Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong, a tacit admission by the government that their presence there was hampering new approaches and styles of governance. Such a transition took place in August 2004, when, following Goh’s resignation from office, Lee was named the country’s new prime minister. The economy continued to do well during most of Goh’s tenure in office, although the country was seriously affected by the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s. Goh Chok Tong, who for several years had served as Singapore’s deputy prime minister, succeeded Lee as prime minister in late 1990, although Lee remained in the government incremental analysis: a simple tool for powerful decision-making and powerful behind the scenes as a “senior minister” in the cabinet.

• Singapore is the largest port in Southeast Asia and one of the busiest maritime ports in the world.
• The Red Dot Design Museum celebrates exceptional art and design of objects for everyday life, hosting more than 1,000 items from 50 countries.
• Singapore,f officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia.
• The constitution was amended in 1991 to provide for an elected president with veto powers over the use of past reserves and key public service appointments.

Languages

Singapore and the United States share a long-standing close relationship, in particular in defence, the economy, health, and education. China has been Singapore’s largest trading partner since 2013, after surpassing Malaysia. Piracy in the Strait of Malacca has been a cause of concern for all three countries. Some previous disputes, such as the Pedra Branca dispute, have been resolved by the International Court of Justice. Malaysia and Singapore have clashed over the delivery of fresh water to Singapore, and access by the Singapore Armed Forces to Malaysian airspace.