SINGAPORE
The Republic of Singapore is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, 137 km north of the equator.
An island country, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia’s Riau Islands by the Singapore Strait to its south.
Singapore is highly urbanised but almost half of the country is covered by greenery. Because of this, Singapore is also commonly known as the ‘Garden City’.
Singapore consists of 63 islands, including the main island, widely known as Singapore Island but also as Pulau Ujong. There are two man-made connections to Johor, Malaysia: the Johor–Singapore Causeway in the north, and the Tuas Second 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 166 m.
There are ongoing land reclamation projects, which have increased Singapore’s land area from 581.5 km2 in the 1960s to 704 km2 today; it may grow by another 100 km2 by 2030.
Once a colonial outpost of Britain, Singapore has become one of the world’s most prosperous places – with glittering skyscrapers and a thriving port. Its people enjoy one of the world’s highest standards of living.
Singapore is often referred to as one of Asia’s economic “tigers”. Its strong economy is driven by electronics manufacturing and financial services.
