Singapore - the Way to a Global City
PREFACE
Anyone who had a chance to witness a Singapore of the 1950s-the British’s colonial port and a prosperous Singapore nowadays has to admire the rise of Singaporean as well as the wise leadership of the government. There is no doubt that the city-state of Singapore represents a remarkable success story that has placed the country among the developed nations. After its independence in the mid-1960s, Singapore had no more than a deep port. There are no fresh water, no hinterland; all nation’s area just limits in 700 square kilometer. The question made in everyone’s mind was how Singapore could survive with such obstacles after the British’s withdrawal rather than how Singapore could develop to become one of the top-class economies. In contrast of everyone’s thought, Singapore has swiftly moved ahead of all neighbouring countries in almost all fields, turning itself into Asia’s second-richest country in term of per capita income. How has Singapore done to attain such remarkable achivements? What will Singapore have to do to cope with emerging giants such as China, India? It is the content of this essay: SINGAPORE -THE WAY TO THE GLOBAL CITY. In this essay, it is inevitable to have some mistakes. Therefore, I hope you will excuse them and contribute to make the essay better.
I/. Singapore’s history and periods of development:
The modern Singaopore’s history began in 1819 when Englishman Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles established a British port on the island and Singapore proved to be a prized settlement. By 1820, it was earning revenue, and three years later, its trade surpassed that of Penang. Singapore, together with Malacca and Penang, the two British settlements in the Malay Peninsula, became the Straits Settlements in 1826, under the control of British India. With the advent of the steamship in the mid-1 860s and the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, Singapore became a major port of call for ships plying between Europe and East
Anyone who had a chance to witness a Singapore of the 1950s-the British’s colonial port and a prosperous Singapore nowadays has to admire the rise of Singaporean as well as the wise leadership of the government. There is no doubt that the city-state of Singapore represents a remarkable success story that has placed the country among the developed nations. After its independence in the mid-1960s, Singapore had no more than a deep port. There are no fresh water, no hinterland; all nation’s area just limits in 700 square kilometer. The question made in everyone’s mind was how Singapore could survive with such obstacles after the British’s withdrawal rather than how Singapore could develop to become one of the top-class economies. In contrast of everyone’s thought, Singapore has swiftly moved ahead of all neighbouring countries in almost all fields, turning itself into Asia’s second-richest country in term of per capita income. How has Singapore done to attain such remarkable achivements? What will Singapore have to do to cope with emerging giants such as China, India? It is the content of this essay: SINGAPORE -THE WAY TO THE GLOBAL CITY. In this essay, it is inevitable to have some mistakes. Therefore, I hope you will excuse them and contribute to make the essay better.
I/. Singapore’s history and periods of development:
The modern Singaopore’s history began in 1819 when Englishman Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles established a British port on the island and Singapore proved to be a prized settlement. By 1820, it was earning revenue, and three years later, its trade surpassed that of Penang. Singapore, together with Malacca and Penang, the two British settlements in the Malay Peninsula, became the Straits Settlements in 1826, under the control of British India. With the advent of the steamship in the mid-1 860s and the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, Singapore became a major port of call for ships plying between Europe and East