The national flag of Singapore was adopted in 1959, the year Singapore became self-governing within

the British Empire. It was reconfirmed as the national flag when the republic gained independence on 9
August 1965.

Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister, is also recognised as Singapore's founding father.

The istana

Singapore is a parliamentary republic with a Westminster system of unicameral parliamentary

government representing constituencies. The country's constitution establishes a representative
democracy as the political system.[118] Executive power rests with the Cabinet of Singapore, led by the
Prime Minister and, to a much lesser extent, the President.[85]

Speakers' Corner. in Chinatown provides a public demonstration and "free speech" area usually
restricted in other parts of the island.

Amnesty International has said that some legal provisions of the Singapore system conflict with the right
to be presumed innocent until proven guilty"

An outline of Singapore and the surrounding islands and waterways

Singapore consists of 63 islands, including the main island, Pulau Ujong.[190] There are two-man-made
connections to Johor, Malaysia: the Woodlands 1st Link in the north and the Tuas 2nd Link in the west.
Jurong Island, Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin and Sentosa are the largest of Singapore's smaller islands. The
highest natural point is Bukit Timah Hill at 163.63 m (537 ft).[191] Under British rule, Christmas Island
and the Cocos Islands were part of Singapore, but were later transferred over to Australia in 1957.[192]
[193][194] Pedra Branca, an outlying island which now belongs to Singapore after the dispute, is the
nation's easternmost point.

Singapore Botanic Gardens is a UNESCO World Heritage Site – one of three gardens in the world, and the
only tropical garden to be recognised.

Singapore's urbanisation means that it has lost 95% of its historical forests,[199] and now over half of the
naturally occurring fauna and flora in Singapore is present in nature reserves, such as the Bukit Timah
Nature Reserve and the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, which comprise only 0.25% of Singapore's land
area.[19
The Singaporean economy is known as one of the freest,[212] most innovative,[213] most competitive,
[214] most dynamic[215] and most business-friendly.[216] The 2015 Index of Economic Freedom ranks
Singapore as the second freest economy in the world and the Ease of doing business index has also
ranked Singapore as the easiest place to do business for the past decade.[217

Marina Bay Sands is an integrated resort opened in 2010; one of the world's most photographed
buildings.

Singapore has the world's highest percentage of millionaires, with one out of every six households
having at least one million US dollars in disposable wealth.

The economy is diversified, with its top contributors—financial services, manufacturing, oil-refining. Its
main exports are refined petroleum, integrated circuits and computers[274] which constituted 27% of
the country's GDP in 2010, and includes significant electronics, petroleum refining, chemicals,
mechanical engineering and biomedical sciences sectors. In 2006, Singapore produced about 10% of the
world's foundry wafer output.[275]

Tourism forms a large part of the economy, with over 17 million tourists visiting the city-state in 2017.
[280] To expand the sector, casinos were legalised in 2005, but only two licences for "Integrated Resorts"
were issued, to control money laundering and addiction.[281

The Ministry of Communications and Information oversees the development of Infocomm, Media and
the arts.

Information and communications technologies (ICT) is one of the pillars of Singapore's economic success.
However, Singapore's mass communications networks, including television and phone networks, have
long been operated by the government. When Singapore first came online, Singaporeans could use
Teleview to communicate with one another, but not with those outside of their sovereign city-state.

Changi Airport continues to expand with the Jewel mixed-use complex and a 5th Terminal by 2030.

As Singapore is a small island with a high population density, the number of private cars on the road is
restricted to curb pollution and congestion

The world's first urban congestion-pricing scheme started in the city centre in 1975. Fully automated by
Electronic Road Pricing in 1998. A Global Navigation Satellite System will replace physical gantries by
2020[304]
Singaporean residents also travel by e-scooters,[305] bicycles, bus, taxis and train (MRT or LRT).

Singapore Management University is one of six autonomous universities in the city-state

The education system in Singapore has been noted to be one of the best in the world. Singapore
students excelled in most of the world education benchmarks in maths, science and reading.

National University Hospital is the second largest hospital in the city, serving one million patients yearly.

Singapore has a generally efficient healthcare system, even though health expenditures are relatively low
for developed countries.[388] The World Health Organisation ranks Singapore's healthcare system as 6th
overall in the world in its World Health Report.[

A street market in Chinatown during Chinese New Year holidays. In Chinese culture, red is the most
auspicious colour representing good fortune and happiness.

Despite its small size, Singapore has a diversity of languages, religions, and cultures.[397] Former Prime
Ministers of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong, have stated that Singapore does not fit the
traditional description of a nation, calling it a society-in-transition, pointing out the fact that
Singaporeans do not all speak the same language, share the same religion, or have the same customs.[39

Ornate details on top of Sri Mariamman Temple in Chinatown district, Singapore's oldest Hindu temple
since 1827

From 1819, it served as a trading port for British ships on their way to India. Being a major trading hub
and its close proximity to its neighbour Malaysia, Singapore was prone to many foreign influences, both
from Britain and from other Asian countries. Chinese and Indian workers moved to Singapore to work at
the harbour. The country remained a British colony until 1942.[401]

Kampong Glam was the 23-hectare home of Malay royalty from 1824. Conserved as a historic area, it
includes the Masjid Sultan Mosque and the Malay Heritage Centre.

Each Singaporean's behaviours and attitudes are influenced by, among other things, his or her home
language and his religion. Singaporeans who speak English as their native language tend to lean toward
Western culture, while those who speak Chinese as their native language tend to lean toward Chinese
culture and Confucianism.

Esplanade performing arts centre, fronting Marina Bay.

The Esplanade is Singapore's largest performing arts centre with many performances throughout the
year, including 5,900 free arts and culture events in 2016.[414][415] Some of the major music and dance
groups include the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Singapore Chinese Orchestra, Singapore Dance
Theatre

Literature of Singapore, or SingLit, comprises a collection of literary works by Singaporeans written

chiefly in the country's four official languages: English, Malay, Standard Mandarin and Tamil. It is
increasingly regarded as having four sub-literatures instead of one.

Stefanie Sun's wax figure was unveiled at Madame Tussauds Singapore in 2014

Singapore has a diverse music culture that ranges from pop and rock, to folk and classical. Western
classical music plays a significant role in the cultural life in Singapore, with the Singapore Symphony
Orchestra (SSO) instituted in 1979.

Lau Pa Sat hawker centre in the midst of the financial district. Satay cart-stalls rolls in after dusk, on a
side street

Prior to the 1980s, street food were mainly sold by immigrants from China, India and Malaysia to other
immigrants seeking a familiar taste. In Singapore, street food has long migrated into hawker centres with
communal seating areas. Typically, these centres have a few dozen to hundreds of food stalls, with each
specialising in a single or a number of related dishes. The choices are almost overwhelming even for
locals.[428][

The National Stadium's retractable roof holds the world's 'largest dome structure' record
The development of private sports and recreation clubs began in the 19th century colonial Singapore,
such as the Cricket Club, Singapore Recreation Club, Singapore Swimming Club, Hollandse Club and
others.[431]