Urbanization and International Migration

The Republic of Singapore has come a long way from the days when

Stamford Raffles first stepped on to its shores, and has transformed from a

jungle to a bustling modern city-state. It has been considered one of the

Asian economic tigers because of its rapid shift from traditional to modern

sector to achieve economic development through the use of the Lewis-Fei-

Ranis (LFR) model. Singapore has overcome the rapid migration of

international workers to its country and the rapid urbanization process it needs

to take in order to provide the needs of these people. Thus, it has become a

blueprint to different developing countries for migration management and

urban development. Recently, participants from the Philippines, Vietnam,

Indonesia, Romania, Uzbekistan, and Saudi Arabia visited Singapore in June

2019 to build knowledge, skills, and solutions to improve sustainable urban

management.

Singapore’s urban environment all started during the establishment of

British trading colony in 1819. As thousands of Chinese and Indian migrant

workers who had flocked to Singapore in search for jobs in the booming

rubber and tin industries in Malay Archipelago, the British colony took a

laissez-faire approach towards housing and urban planning in general. They

paid little attention to the housing needs of these thousands of people. The

worsening living conditions and acute housing shortage compelled the British

authorities to set up the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) in 1927, a

statutory board tasked to tackle town planning, slum clearance and

subsequently provide low-cost housing, first for those made homeless due to

Improvement Schemes and then for lower-income groups. However,

conditions worsened with the outbreak of World War II where there was an

inability to catch up with the needs of the city. In 1947, the population was

nearly 940,000 with more than 70% living in the city centre and there was a

need to halt the inflow of people. After World War II, Singapore was granted
full internal self-government in 1959. On the February of 1960, the People’s

Action Party (PAP) government replaced the colonial-era SIT with the

Housing and Development Board (HDB), tasking it with an ambitious and

large-scale public housing programme for the its people. After their

independence in 1965, Singapore had to rethink their entire approach to

planning, building and housing. There was also a need of passing new

ordinances that limited immigration to only those who could contribute to its

socioeconomic development. Since their independence until today, the

Republic of Singapore has faced numerous urban challenges, from the out-

spurt of international immigrants to the urban development it needed to take in

order to provide the needs of these people.

Knowing that international companies fuel most of its economy,

International migration in Singapore is still rampant until today. According to

the 2010 census, the nonresident population increased at an unprecedented

pace in the first decade of the 21st century. As shown in figure , nonresident

population accounted for 25.7 percent of the total population, up from 18.7

percent in the previous decade. This means that the nonresident population

stood at 1,305,011 out of a total population of 5,076,732 in 2010. Thus, there

is a need to supply the needs of these people not just their jobs but also for

the housing, infrastructure and economic foundation of the city.

Figure # Proportion of citizens to foreign non-residents in

the Republic of Singapore
Source: migrationpolicy.org
 The Republic of Singapore has faced the same problem since its
independence which is the scarcity of land. This problem can easily be
explained through the law of diminishing marginal return. The law of
diminishing marginal returns states that if a factor of production is increased,
while other factors are constant, the output per unit of the variable factor will
eventually diminish. Provided that the city-state is only 721.5 sq. Km.,
Singapore is a really small country and its land mass will eventually be out-
grown by its urban development through buildings and infrastructures. Thus,
it imposes that Singapore will no longer be able to provide space for housing,
for industries and for parks and open spaces for its people in the future.
As shown in figure , the estimated population density of Singapore in 2018

is 7953 persons per sq. Km. which is 0.4% higher than last year which is 7916

persons per sq. Km. From 2010-2018, the graph shows that the population

density of Singapore is constantly increasing. Currently, despite its success

in urban development in the past years, Singapore is facing the problem of

the lack of public spaces. A world-class city must also contribute to the well-

being of its residents. It should provide them space not just for their housing,

industry and business needs but also for their wellness and leisure needs.

Singapore
9000
8000
7000
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
1990 2000 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Population Density per sq. km.

Figure # Population Density per sq. Km. of the Republic of Singapore

Source: The World Bank
 Currently, Singapore has continuously improved its housing, infrastructure

and economic conditions. Since two of the most pressing national concerns

following independence were unemployment and lack of public housing, two

government agencies were tasked with solving these problems, the Housing

and Development Board (HDB) and the Economic Development Board (EDB).

The HDB tackled the acute housing needs and implemented an urban

renewal programme while The EDB was placed in charge of Singapore's

industrialization programme. Their main objective was home ownership for all

Singaporeans which required a housing finance strategy. Public housing was

organized to be high-density and low cost. Both government agencies

worked together with the Ministry of National Development whose policy is to

give every Singaporean a stake in the country and through this aspect feel a

sense of ownership for the country. Today, this project has been highly

successful because 86% of Singaporeans live in public housing flats built by

HDB and these homes have also become assets, as 92% of HDB residents

own their flats. Along with it, schools, community centers, town centers,

health clinics, transportation infrastructure was built. Singapore’s port and

sea freight is currently handled by the Port Authority of Singapore (PSA)

which handles about one-fifth of the world's total container shipment

throughput and in 2006. Singapore has built a Mass Rapid Transit (MRT)

which is a comprehensive rail network is important a high density city.

Singapore also built is the Changi Airport which one of the best airports in the

world. However, The Republic of Singapore are facing problems on

depreciation and urban decay on these major projects. Some HBD houses

are becoming fully depreciated and some public infrastructures are becoming

obsolete. They are are continuously finding ways to further improve in this

regard.
References:
HUANG, S. (2001). Planning for a Tropical City of Excellence: Urban Development

Challenges for Singapore in the 21st Century. Built Environment (1978-), 27(2), 112-

128. Retrieved May 1, 2020, from www.jstor.org/stable/23287516

Lim, H. (2008), ‘Infrastructure Development in Singapore’, in Kumar, N. (ed.),

International Infrastructure Development in East Asia – Towards Balanced Regional

Development and Integration, ERIA Research Project Report 2007-2, Chiba: IDE-

JETRO, pp.228-262.

Master Plan 1999: Urban Redevelopment Authority. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.ura.gov.sg/

HOUSING A NATION, BUILDING A CITY. (n.d.). Retrieved May 1, 2020, from

https://www.psd.gov.sg/

Population Density: Singapore. (n.d.). Retrieved May 1, 2020, from

https://databank.worldbank.org/