Singapore Travel Information

Background: Founded as a British trading colony in 1819, Singapore joined Malaysia in 1963, but withdrew two years later and became independent. It subsequently became one of the world's most prosperous countries, with strong international trading links (its port is one of the world's busiest) and with per capita GDP above that of the leading nations of Western Europe.
Government type: parliamentary republic
Capital: Singapore
Currency: 1 Singapore dollar (SGD) = 100 cents

Geography of Singapore

Location: Southeastern Asia, islands between Malaysia and Indonesia
Geographic coordinates: 1 22 N, 103 48 E
Area:
total: 647.5 sq km
land: 637.5 sq km
water: 10 sq km
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 193 km
Maritime claims:
exclusive fishing zone: within and beyond territorial sea, as defined in treaties and practice
territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate: tropical; hot, humid, rainy; no pronounced rainy or dry seasons; thunderstorms occur on 40% of all days (67% of days in April)
Terrain: lowland; gently undulating central plateau contains water catchment area and nature preserve
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Singapore Strait 0 m
highest point: Bukit Timah 166 m
Natural resources: fish, deepwater ports
Land use:
arable land: 2%
permanent crops: 6%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 5%
other: 87% (1993 est.)
Environment - current issues: industrial pollution; limited natural fresh water resources; limited land availability presents waste disposal problems; seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia.
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: focal point for Southeast Asian sea routes

More Geography

People of Singapore

Singapore is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. The annual growth rate for 2000 was 2.8% (including resident foreigners). Singapore has a varied linguistic, cultural, and religious heritage. Malay is the national language, but Chinese, English, and Tamil also are official languages. English is the language of administration and also is widely used in the professions, businesses, and schools.

The government has mandated that English be the primary language used at all levels of the school systems, and it aims to provide at least 10 years of education for every child. In 2000, primary and secondary school students totaled about 482,00, or 12% of the entire population. In 2000, enrollment at the universities was approximately 50,000 (full-time, part-time and postgraduate) and about 58,374 at the polytechnics. The Institute of Technical Education for basic technical and commerce skills has almost 16,000 students. The country's literacy rate is 93%.

Singapore generally allows religious freedom, although religious groups are subject to government scrutiny, and some religious sects are restricted or banned. Almost all Malays are Muslim; other Singaporeans are Hindus, Sikhs, Taoists, Buddhists, Confucianists, or Christians.

Population: 4,425,720 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 17.89%
15-64 years: 75.16%
65 years and over: 6.95%
Population growth rate: 3.5%
Birth rate: 12.8 births/1,000 population
Death rate: 4.24 deaths/1,000 population
Net migration rate: 26.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population
Infant mortality rate: 3.62 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 80.17 years
male: 77.22 years
female: 83.35 years
Total fertility rate: 1.22 children born/woman
Nationality:
noun: Singaporean(s)
adjective: Singapore
Ethnic groups: Chinese 76.7%, Malay 14%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4%
Religions: Buddhist (Chinese), Muslim (Malays), Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Taoist, Confucianist
Languages: Chinese (official), Malay (official and national), Tamil (official), English (official)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.5%
male: 97%
female: 89.8% (1999)

More about the Population

SOURCES: The World Factbook, U.S. Department of State