Singapore. Land of only 724.2 square kilometres. Home to 5.7 million people. High rise flats and skyscrapers now dominate their skyline, but this densely populated “Little Red Dot” in South East Asia was quite the opposite of a concrete jungle just 50 years ago.
They say that size doesn’t matter. Indeed, despite being one of the smallest nations in the world, Singapore is the 3rd richest country in the world. Unbeknown to many, the affluence and success the country enjoys now had been built from scratch. Singapore started out as a kampong (a village) but flourished into a cosmopolitan city quickly. Just how did they get so creative?
Existing cultural environment
When Singapore first gained independence, diversity was already at the heart of what the nation was – a melting pot of races and religions. There are 4 main ethnic groups in Singapore: Chinese, Malays, Indians and Eurasians and 10 different religions exist in the country. Each race, with their own unique traditions and practices established cultural diversity. This laid a suitable foundation for a creative industry to flourish.
Encouraging entrepreneurial activities
Ranked as the 3rd most innovative city in the world, Singapore’s innovation can be attributed largely to its government’s support. Startups have access to financial backing through grants and business loans. There was also the creation of Blk 71, a joint venture between the government and the private industry. Being the epicentre of Singapore’s startup ecosystem, it provides great networking opportunities for startups which was the gateway to a boost in entrepreneurial activities in the city.
Diving into technology
Singapore also strives to be a smart nation. The government invests heavily into the technological sector to develop their IT infrastructure. Technology is used as a way of bringing the public and private sectors closer and to improve lives. Now, 80 out of the world’s top 100 tech firms carry out their businesses in Singapore.
Education as priority
Education is of utmost importance to the country as seen from its world-class education system. With no natural resources, people are its only assets. The nation has a well-educated workforce of which an above-average proportion is employed in high-tech industries. Singapore consistently ranks highly for their results of the global Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).
After 50 years of nation building, the city has scaled unimaginable heights in such a short duration of time. The creative city is thriving in numerous aspects but there are some areas that still require improvement.
Tolerance
Although Singaporeans might boast of their ethnic diversity, they are still a largely conservative society where the LGBTQ community is not as recognised and accepted. Till today, 55% of them still support Section 377A of the Penal Code, which criminalises consensual sex between adult men. While there has been improvements in the recent years with more coming onboard with Pink Dot, more needs to be done for the LGBTQ community to feel welcomed.
Local talent
Talent crunch is a current issue that Singapore’s economy is facing. With the high demands for highly-skilled talent, it is becoming increasingly difficult to fill up job positions across several sectors, especially skilled labour. It is no secret that Singapore embraces foreign talent but importing talent is not sustainable in the long run. Its labour deficit can be overcome by upgrading the skillsets of their employees at a faster rate. Nurturing local talent and availing resources to ensure constant learning are areas Singapore should look into.
Singapore has been on the right track as a creative city but what can they learn from other cities to improve?
CREATIVE CONVERSATION 