Bilingualism has been the cornerstone of Singapore’s language policy since the People’s Action Party (PAP) was elected to power in 1959. The policy entails an emphasis on using English and the mother tongue languages, particularly that of the three main ethnic ...
In Singapore, vernacular education refers to education conducted in the native languages of the main resident communities, namely Malay, Chinese and Tamil. From the early 19th to the mid-20th centuries, formal vernacular education was started by philanthropists, ...
The two-child policy was a population control measure introduced by the Singapore government during the 1970s to encourage couples to have no more than two children. It was part of the second Five-Year National Family Planning Programme (1972–75) that was unveiled ...
The Speak Mandarin Campaign was launched on 7 September 1979 by the then prime minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew. The campaign was initially started to simplify the language environment, improve communication among Chinese Singaporeans from the various dialect ...
For much of the early 19th to mid-20th century, technical and vocational education in Singapore was underdeveloped due to the nature of the economy and the colonial government’s noninterference in education. Technical and vocational education gained importance ...
The Education Ordinance, which applied to all schools in Singapore, was enacted on 13 December 1957. The ordinance (replaced by the Education Act in 1965) made provisions for the registration of schools, managers and teachers, as well as for the roles and responsibilities ...
The clean-up of Singapore River and Kallang Basin took place largely between 1977 and 1987. Besides the physical cleaning of the heavily polluted rivers, the massive exercise also involved the removal of various sources of pollution, the provision of proper sewage ...
The Censorship Review Committee (CRC) is a government-appointed committee that reviews and makes recommendations regarding Singapore’s censorship policies. First convened in 1991, the committee was to be formed once every decade. However, the government decided ...
Formed in 1953, Cathay-Keris Studio was one of two key film producers (the other being Shaw Brothers) during the peak of filmmaking in Singapore in the 1950s and 1960s. The studio produced many black-and-white Malay films, and later also had co-productions with ...
Singapore is served by a modern sanitation system in which all used water is collected through a network of sewers and channelled to water reclamation plants. But this was not always so. In the 1800s, the sewage collection and disposal system in Singapore relied ...
The Four National Taps, a term used by then Minister for the Environment Lim Swee Say in 2004, refer to the four sources that Singapore relies on for its water supply. They comprise water from local catchment, imported water, high-grade reclaimed water known as ...
The Area Licensing Scheme (ALS) was launched on 2 June 1975. Designed to reduce traffic congestion in the Central Business District (CBD), the key concept underlying the ALS was that a special supplementary licence had to be obtained at a cost if a motorist wanted ...
Singapore became the 117th member state of the United Nations (UN) on 21 September 1965. This was an important milestone for the country as membership in the UN conferred international recognition of Singapore as a sovereign and independent state. On the occasion, ...
In August 1978, then Deputy Prime Minister Goh Keng Swee was tasked to lead a study team to identify problems in Singapore’s education system and propose solutions. The government had felt that a thorough review was crucial to align the education system with the ...
The Public Service Division (PSD) was established under the Ministry of Finance (MOF) on 3 January 1983 to serve as the central body dealing with matters relating to personnel management and career development in the civil service. These matters had previously ...
The Straits Settlements Association was founded in London by a group of ex-Straits Settlements residents on 31 January 1868. The association, which mainly comprised members from the mercantile community, aimed to safeguard the commercial and political interests ...
PUB, Singapore’s national water agency, formerly known as the Public Utilities Board (PUB), is a statutory board under the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR). Its mission is to ensure an efficient, adequate and sustainable supply of water in ...
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) launched the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system in April 1998 as a new way to manage traffic congestion. Phase I was completed in September 1998 with the activation of ERP for East Coast Parkway (ECP), Central Expressway (CTE), ...
The Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system is an initiative by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) in which toll charges are levied on vehicles according to time and congestion levels. With this system of charging, a motorist can decide on the time, destination and ...
Singapore is considered to be one of the most water-stressed countries in the world. It is heavily dependent on rainfall due to the lack of natural water resources, and limited land is available for water storage facilities. Prolonged dry spells cause or threaten ...