MM Lee: Next 5 to 10 years the most promising for S'pore

July 12, 2008

MM Lee: Next 5 to 10 years the most promising for S'pore

By Bryan Lee

THE Singapore economy may be facing both immediate and long-term challenges but Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew thinks the next five to 10 years will be the most promising in the country's history.

In fact, the economy could still grow by as much as 8 per cent a year - a rapid clip for a developed nation - as efforts to transform Singapore into an international and cosmopolitan city pay off.

'We are moving to a new plateau, a new platform. You can see it visibly before your eyes,' said Mr Lee last night at the annual dinner of the Economic Society of Singapore.

'If there are no big recessions worldwide, growth can easily be 4 to 6 per cent, maybe 7 to 8 per cent.'

Mr Lee's optimism for the local economy comes even as gross domestic product growth in the second quarter slumped to its worst in five years.

A slowing US economy and accelerating inflation are taking their toll, while structural issues such as an ageing population and a widening income divide loom in the horizon. 'The point is that we have got enormous options,' he said.

He described to a packed Ritz Carlton Hotel ballroom his recent drive around the Marina Bay area, which is being developed as a new business district as well as the site for one of Singapore's two integrated resorts. 'It will be a beautiful city... in 10 years, it will be wonderful.'

Still, there is no room for complacency, given Singapore's lack of natural resources, he warned.

In fact, he said that retaining human talent is a big challenge: 'The biggest problem Singapore faces is that we have educated the Singaporean in English to the best of world standards. We have made him viable, employable anywhere in the world.'

This outflow is more than offset by an influx of 'even larger numbers of bright people from the region'. But a majority of 'born and bred Singaporeans' is still needed to ensure the new immigrants are rooted here.

'You need 65 per cent of the population to be born and bred Singaporeans, steeped with the culture, steeped with instincts of what a Singaporean is. They will slowly influence the migrants who join us to become like us.'

After Mr Lee's comments, prizes for an annual essay writing competition organised by the society and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) were given out.

National University of Singapore undergraduate Ishita Dhamani won first prize in the university category while former Anglo-Chinese Junior College student John Ying, who is in national service, came up tops in the pre-university category.

bryanlee@sph.com.sg



Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access