Introduction

Development means
• the “process in which someone or something grows or changes and
becomes more advanced .
• multidimensional process involving change from a less to a more socially
desirable state. Cambridge Dictionary (2016) Cambridge Dictionary (2016)

Without any natural resources, limited capitals and poor infrastructure, Singapore as a
third-world nation had a very poor prospect of survival in the eyes of the world.

The study shall analyze critically Singapore’s strategies

to develop itself into an Asian Tiger and how development
as an International Political Economy (IPE) issue affected
Singapore on the issues of poverty and unemployment,
xenophobia & sustainable development issues
High unemployment,
poverty

The way out

EDB plan
- change Singapore
into an industrialized
economy
mStructuralist
- develop state & reduce poverty
mLiberalist- open economy
mMercantilist- Intervention
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF SINGAPORE: WATER

RESOURCE
• Singapore is a small country compared with other countries,
especially Malaysia and Indonesia.

• Singapore in order to ensure its equal standing with other

countries requires Singapore to improve development policies
and indirectly to maintain Singapore as a modern state.
• However, Singapore cannot ignore
the problems faced in terms of the
environment and water resources.

• The present population in Singapore

reached more than 5 million people.
• The increased number of people make the leaders to be
more concerned how they should working on the issue.

• Singapore is failed to meet the demand of water for the

domestic use.
• The Singapore government has signed
an agreement with Malaysia for
supplying water through pipes.
• Domestic water supply mixed with
contaminated material that causes the
Singapore government to bear the
huge cost of treating the water again.
International Political Perspective; Singapore Sustainable Development;

Mercantilism Water Resource

• Singapore’s government always make sure that the national
interests be protected.

• The government were funding millions of dollars to make

sure they can provide their own water without asking help
from other country such as Malaysia.

• The government funded money on research and

development in regard of its water problem-solution.

• Eg, NEWater initiative.

 ENERGY RESOURCES
• Singapore needs to manage energy with the same attention we have paid
to water. Global concern over climate change will increasingly see the
emergence of a carbon-constrained world.
• The exploitation of traditional energy sources such as oil and gas could be
curtailed by various geo-political and economic considerations.
• Many countries are today exploring the development of alternative
energy sources such as hydro, geothermal, wind and solar.
Although Singapore is also exploring clean or renewable energy, the
country also face many constraints in exploiting alternative energy
sources.
• Singapore's wind speed is too low for viability
• lack access to either hydro or geothermal sources.
Solar energy
• most promising renewable resource for Singapore.
• However, the cost of solar-generated electricity is still about
twice that of grid electricity generated from fossil fuels.
• Hence, the government’s approach is therefore to invest in solar
research and test-bedding, to prepare for wider deployment
when the cost of solar electricity falls.
• For example, the clean energy sector is projected to add S$1.7
billion to GDP and create 7,000 jobs by 2015 to providing
solutions for Singapore's energy needs.
 xenophobia
• Singapore heavily reliant on a foreign workforce
to fill the gaps in low wage, menial jobs.
• As of 2009, 40 percent of Singapore’s residents
were foreigners.
• The flooding of foreign workers emerge the
xenophobia and caused a lot of social problem.
• Little India area every weekend has created some
challenging issues.
• The long time disturbance finally caused the
violence between ethnic groups leading to deaths
and injuries in that place on 8 December 2013.
• Singapore’s dependence on low-skilled foreign workers
cannot continue to grow indefinitely.

• The employers of unskilled and semiskilled foreign

workers are responsible to apply for the work permit; pay
the foreign worker levy; arrange for the foreign worker’s
medical examination; pay the medical care and
hospitalization expenses.

• On the other hand, the foreign worker’s right still should

be protected and so the government has enacted the
Employment Agencies Act, which screens applications for
licenses for employment agencies to protect foreign
workers from exploitation by these agencies in Singapore.