AQ:

-don’t cherry pick/ cut up the author’s ideas unless really necessary, focus on the
larger ideas derived from all the examples

AQ singapore characteristics
Diverse/Multi-racial/Multi-cultural
→ population is made up of many groups of people who differ in age, race,
nationality, religious beliefs
Stressful
→ first-world problems such as Education, work-life balance, needs of family
members( sandwich generation), career progression, not content with what they
have
Expensive
→ high cost of living, high housing prices,petrol costs, gst (Singapore to raise GST
from 7% to 9% in 2023 & 2024, according to the Straits Times)
Competitive
→ in schools: compete for scholarship, grades, even non-academic aspects such as
leadership roles, for portfolio
→ in work: for comfortable and high-paying jobs/positions
Traditional/Conservative
→ located in SEA, so conform to Asian beliefs: filial piety, respect for elders etc.
Modern/Technologically advanced
→ SG has high digital penetration rate. Wifi and mobile networks and often the latest
and most up to date, info can be transferred quickly. SG is often the first few
countries to adopt new technologies.
→ SG becoming a Smart Nation1
● According to the Smart City Index, Singapore was ranked the number one
smart city in the world for 2 consecutive years (2019 and 2020)) e.g
National Digital Identity , Singpass, Myinfo.
● E-payment: paynow, NETS, EZ-link can be used at certain hawker centres
island-wide
● Smart Nation Sensor Platform(SNSP)which combines an array of sensors and
internet of things (IoT)-enabled devices to monitor everything from traffic to
water quality. E.g Smart Lamp posts powered with LED hence lower energy,
maintenance and manpower costs

What SG prioritises:
Unity/Harmony: important to respect the differences among different groups of
people in a diverse country like SG
Equity/Meritocracy: With an extremely diverse population, SG govt seeks to ensure
all are treated equally and have equal access to opportunities for education, jobs etc.

1
https://www.tech.gov.sg/media/technews/5-national-projects-for-1-smart-nation
Economic Growth: So that SG can stand independently and retain sovereignty. E.g
govt is opening up borders- Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) even though there are opp
costs such as endangering the health of citizens due to possible infections/diseases
brought into SG by foreigners
Developing people: lacks natural resources, most precious resource is thus
Manpower, the people. Develops the people so investors will be attracted to SG for
its talent pool