The Japan–Singapore Economic Arrangement for a New Age Partnership is Singapore’s first free-trade agreement (FTA) with a major trading partner and Japan’s first-ever FTA. It came into effect on 30 November 2002, and the next review of the accord is scheduled to ...
The landmark India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) is India’s first-ever such agreement and the first between Singapore and a South Asian country. It came into effect on 1 August 2005. The first review of the pact was concluded on ...
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 ...
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 ...
The Singapore Green Plan (SGP) is Singapore's first environmental blueprint. Released in 1992 by the then Ministry of the Environment (now known as the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources or MEWR), its objective is to ensure that Singapore could develop ...
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 ...
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 ...
Dutch economist Albert Winsemius (Dr) (b. 1910, Netherlands–d. 1996, The Hague, Netherlands) was an economic advisor to the Singapore government for 24 years. During that time, he contributed greatly to Singapore's economic development.
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 ...
On 9 August 1965, Singapore separated from Malaysia to become an independent and sovereign state. The separation was the result of deep political and economic differences between the ruling parties of Singapore and Malaysia. Even before the proclamation of the ...
Chinatown is an estate located largely in the Outram area in the Central Region of Singapore. In his 1822 master Town Plan, Sir Stamford Raffles allocated the whole area west of the Singapore River for a Chinese settlement known as the Chinese Campong (kampong ...
Lim Chong Yah (b. 1932, Malacca, Malaysia–) is an eminent economist and academic best known for serving as chairman of the National Wages Council for 29 years. Lim is professor emeritus at both the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University, ...
The State Development Plan, also referred to as the First Development Plan, was the first official blueprint for the economic development of Singapore after it attained self-government in 1959. Produced by the Ministry of Finance, the plan aimed to solve the pressing ...
On 16 September 1963, Singapore merged with the Federation of Malaya, Sarawak and North Borneo (present-day Sabah) to form the Federation of Malaysia. Since its exclusion from the Malayan Union in 1946, seeking a union with Malaya had been Singapore’s projected ...
Lim Peng Siang (b. 1872, Fujian, China–d. 1944, Singapore) was a Chinese merchant who made significant contributions to Singapore’s economic and social developments in the early 1900s. He was a prominent leader of the Chinese community and held key positions in ...
The first productivity promotion campaign was inaugurated on 12 April 1975 by then Minister for Foreign Affairs S. Rajaratnam at Victoria Memorial Hall. As reflected in the slogan “Productivity Is Our Business”, the campaign aimed to instil greater awareness of ...
The Arabs are a small but significant community in Singapore. During colonial times, the Arabs played prominent economic roles in the regional, retail, wholesale and production trades, the Muslim pilgrimage industry and real estate development. They were also involved ...
The National School Savings Campaign (NSSC) was introduced to government and government-aided schools in 1969 to cultivate thrift in students and to encourage them to save with the Post Office Savings Bank (POSB). The campaign was also part of a domestic savings ...
The Industrial Relations Ordinance, 1960, was a piece of legislation that sought to regulate relations between employers and employees in Singapore at a time when the country was embarking on an economic makeover following the institution of self-government in ...
On 18 July 1967, Britain announced that it would withdraw its troops from Singapore by the mid-1970s. Six months later, the deadline was brought forward to 1971. The sudden pullout of British forces presented serious problems to Singapore’s defence and economic ...