Singapore Government Press Release
Media Relations Division, Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts,
MITA Building, 140 Hill Street, 2nd Storey, Singapore 179369
Tel: 6837-9666

Singapore is at a critical juncture of its history and how we responded to the challenges will decide our future survival as a nation. Four fundamental developments carried profound implications for our future.

Firstly, our current levels of success were due to certain strategic decisions that we took in the 1960s. However, China, India and our neighbours are adopting the same paradigm of development that we undertook thirty years ago. We recognized that unless we moved up the economic value chain and found a new niche, beyond being a cheap assembly plant for the world, Singapore’s development would stall and that we would quickly lose our relevance.

Secondly, during this period of restructuring, there was great risk that certain segments of the population will face structural unemployment. Many older Singaporeans, skilled and unskilled, would find themselves out of jobs, as many MNCs relocated to cheaper alternatives. Truth be told, the reality was that even with an upturn in the economy these jobs were not returning. Latest figures put Singapore’s unemployment figures at 4.5%.

Thirdly, we are all members of the same planetary tribe. This message was brought home through 9/11 and other iconic events, be it in New York, the Middle East or the remote mountains of Afghanistan. These tensions were having reverberations on the multi-racial and multi religious structure of Singapore. We did not control the ideological agenda overseas but it did not make us any less susceptible to the problems and divisions of the world.

Lastly, affluence and education increased the mobility of a considerable number of Singaporeans. Increasingly, a significant number of Singaporeans like you were spending a significant portion of their lives overseas, for business or educational reasons. At last count, about 150,000 Singaporeans lived overseas. There was a growing need to engage these globalised Singaporeans by providing them with a sense of participation and franchise in the affairs of Singapore.

Meek attempts to tweak the system were not going to deliver us from the problems that I have outlined above. Restructuring and remaking of the Singapore Inc was required. Hence, the establishment of the Economic Review Committee (ERC) and the Remaking Singapore Committee (RSC) to move Singapore up the value chain. At the economic restructuring level, we have been through considerable introspection. Prospectively, we still believe Singapore has a valid economic role to play, in particular as an interface between the developed world, SEA and the giant economies of China and India. We have negotiated a web of Free Trade Agreements with the USA, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, EFTA and are exploring possibilites with India, Canada, Mexico and Chile. China is keen on a FTA with ASEAN. We will enhance our competitiveness by cutting costs and upgrading the skills of our workforce. The ERC has proposed significant changes to taxes, CPF and other factors of production. The EDB continues to attract significant investments to Singapore, especially in high value added sectors like electronics, chemicals, engineering and info comms. We will be building new service sectors in education, biomedicine, healthcare, photonics and nanotechnology.

Economic strategies, however, do not exist in isolation. The economic rethinking can only flourish within a social, political and cultural context. To play a useful role as an interface, we laid our sights on becoming a global open city modeled like New York or London where our people are entrepreneurial, creative and are prepared to take risks. To become a cosmopolitan global metropolis, Singapore must be a hub for talents – not just for foreign talents but also for its own sons and daughters. It must not be just a safe and sterile place but a fun place in the fullest sense of the word without losing its inherent strengths. With a population that’s more educated and exposed to the world, Singaporeans will want to take more ownership and participation in the civic and political arena. In short, we are looking at a remade Singapore – a Singapore that is a better place in every sense of the word.

As Chairman of the Remaking Singapore Committee, my members and I spent almost 17-months pursuing this vision. We consulted widely, soliciting feedback and ideas from Singaporeans of all walks of life, locally and overseas. Their fears, hopes and dreams have been concretized into a 100-page report documenting about 150 recommendations and proposals. Specific recommendations have been put forth to rationalize the education system to meet the aspirations of Singaporeans and make us more adaptive. Proposals aimed at nurturing a culture of expression and participation, of graciousness and compassion, balancing the gender equation in Singapore and recommendations to strengthen family life deepen heritage and retain collective memories , are part of the report.

More importantly for many of you here, the report also includes recommendations to reflect the perspectives of overseas Singaporeans and recognition that you are full-fledged members of the Singapore society. We have included recommendations that call for parliamentary representation for overseas Singaporeans and ways to integrate returning Singaporeans into the society.

The final report was submitted to the Government last month for its deliberation. The winds of change are blowing and are irreversible.

Going forward, we have no intention of setting up another committee to look to the implementation of the proposals. Instead, our intention is to form a network of community champions – people who feel passionate about our proposals and have a vested interest in pushing it forth. This network will provide the connectivity and continuity by linking those who made the recommendations to those who will decide whether to accept or reject them.

You may be wondering what this has to do with you. Returning to Singapore may not be in your short-term or even long-term plan.

But overseas Singaporeans are a growing force and there are many ways in which you can play your part in contributing to Singapore. Many came together to contribute their ideas for the restructuring of the economy and Remaking Singapore. Many have raised funds for the Courage Fund set up to help the Sars victims.

My personal call is for you to step out and be one of the community champions for the Remaking Singapore. I am aware that the recommendations in the Remaking Singapore Report may not appeal to all strata of the Singaporeans in its totality. But I am certain that there are pet issues and topics in it that you can pick and pursue.

Before I end, I want to leave you with this message: Singapore may mean many things to each one of us. Some of us may not even be altogether happy with the way we conduct business there. But it is our Home. And, it is evolving. The pace of change might not be radical or revolutionary, but it is undeniable that changes are taking place. It is up to each one of us to keep the flag of change flying bearing in mind that the changes must take place without alienating any section of the society. This is a delicate balance that we must continue to strike.

Thank you.

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