Singapore richer, healthier than most English-speaking countries?
Photo: Depositphotos/Cloud7Days
SINGAPORE: Singapore is getting so accustomed to superlatives that not all of its achievements make the local news anymore. Perhaps, that's why the local media have been largely silent on the United Nations' (UN) latest Human Development Index (HDI) data, which places Singapore ahead of every English-speaking country except Australia.
A report published in The Economist shows Singapore tied 13th place with the United Kingdom, behind only two Asia-Pacific countries and territories — Australia (7th) and Hong Kong (8th). European countries occupy all the other top 10 spots, including the 11th (Ireland) and 12th (Finland). Canada ranks 16th, while New Zealand and the United States are tied at 17th. South Korea comes in at 20th, and Japan at 23rd. Iceland tops the list, with Norway and Switzerland sharing second place.
In view of the competition, Singapore ranking 13th — ahead of the US, Canada, Japan, and South Korea — is nothing to sneeze at. Yet, at the time of writing, there appears to be no mention of it on The Straits Times or the Channel NewsAsia website. Singaporeans can be so sniffy. Nothing will do but the very best — and coming in second to Hong Kong is unpardonable. My, my!
Well, I have news for you, folks. Singapore has missed one growth target. The young may not know this, but old-timers will: In 1984, then Deputy Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong declared that Singapore's goal was to reach the Swiss standard of living by 1999. More than 25 years have passed since that deadline, and while the goal is now within reach, it remains elusive. Close, but no cigar, as the saying goes: Switzerland ranks second, Singapore 13th on the HDI. However, a closer look at the data shows just how narrow the gap is.
The Index, published in The Economist, includes life expectancy at birth, expected years of schooling, and gross national income per person. Life expectancy is nearly identical for Singapore (83.7 years) and Switzerland (84 years). Expected years of schooling are also the same (16.7 years). Remarkably, Singapore outpaces Switzerland on average income. The gross national income per person is US$111,239 (S$148,746) for Singapore and US$81,949 for Switzerland, making Singapore the only country among the top 25 with a six-digit figure.
Sceptics may question how the UN arrived at such a high number, given that the median income in Singapore is considerably lower. According to the Ministry of Manpower, the median monthly income of full-time employees, including employer CPF contributions, is S$5,500. That's a puzzle for experts to solve. As for the rest of us, we can only go by the figures presented.
Incidentally, the top 10 countries, according to the index, are:
1. Iceland 2. Norway
2. Switzerland
4. Denmark 5. Germany
6. Sweden
7. Australia 8. Hong Kong 9. Netherlands
10. Belgium
The 2025 Human Development Report, titled A Matter of Choice: People and Possibilities in the Age of AI , which contains the 2023 HDI data, also highlights how Singapore is adapting to developments in artificial intelligence. 'Launched in 2019, Singapore's Model AI Governance Framework is paving the way for a strong AI ecosystem that balances innovation with concerns around security, privacy and accountability, among others,' it notes.
Singapore has always capitalized on the latest business trends, from developing shipbuilding and ship-repairing facilities in the 1960s to welcoming family offices today. That, more than anything else, has been the key to its prosperity.
The search for the next big prosperity aid continues to guide its leadership, and the majority of citizens appear content to be shepherded along. We saw that in the May 3 general election. The People's Action Party (PAP) was returned to power in a landslide, with an even larger majority than in 2020. Critics — and there are always critics — wondered how that could happen when the cost of living and housing prices are rising. Some pointed to the strong Singapore dollar, increasing income levels, and rising property values. Whatever the explanation, the HDI figures make one thing clear: Singapore is outperforming the vast majority of nations, ranking 13th out of 193.
Even the opposition Workers' Party (WP) didn't attempt to unseat the government, contesting just eight of the 33 constituencies. The party cited a lack of resources. But the fact is, you don't change horses in midstream — especially when they seem to be advancing steadily towards greater prosperity.
Featured image by Depositphotos (for illustration purposes only)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AsiaOne
27 minutes ago
- AsiaOne
Israel commits 'extermination' in Gaza by killing in schools, UN experts say
VIENNA — UN experts said in a report on Tuesday (June 10) that Israel committed the crime against humanity of "extermination" by killing civilians sheltering in schools and religious sites in Gaza, part of a "concerted campaign to obliterate Palestinian life." The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel was due to present the report to Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council on June 17. "We are seeing more and more indications that Israel is carrying out a concerted campaign to obliterate Palestinian life in Gaza," former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, who chairs the commission, said in a statement. "Israel's targeting of the educational, cultural and religious life of the Palestinian people will harm the present generations and generations to come, hindering their right to self-determination," she added. The commission examined attacks on educational facilities and religious and cultural sites to assess if international law was breached. Israel disengaged from the Human Rights Council in February, alleging it was biased. When the commission's last report in March found Israel carried out "genocidal acts" against Palestinians by systematically destroying women's healthcare facilities during the conflict in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the findings were biased and antisemitic. In its latest report, the commission said Israel had destroyed more than 90 per cent of the school and university buildings and more than half of all religious and cultural sites in Gaza. "Israeli forces committed war crimes, including directing attacks against civilians and wilful killing, in their attacks on educational facilities... In killing civilians sheltering in schools and religious sites, Israeli security forces committed the crime against humanity of extermination," it said. The war was triggered when Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people in Israel in a surprise attack in October 2023, and took 251 hostages back to the enclave, according to Israeli tallies. Israel responded with a military campaign that has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities. Harm done to the Palestinian education system was not confined to Gaza, the report found, citing increased Israeli military operations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem as well as harassment of students and settler attacks there. "Israeli authorities have also targeted Israeli and Palestinian educational personnel and students inside Israel who expressed concern or solidarity with the civilian population in Gaza, resulting in their harassment, dismissal or suspension and in some cases humiliating arrests and detention," it said. "Israeli authorities have particularly targeted female educators and students, intending to deter women and girls from activism in public places," the commission added. [[nid:718908]]
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Israel commits 'extermination' in Gaza by killing in schools, UN experts say
FILE PHOTO: Palestinians inspect the damage at a school sheltering displaced people, following an Israeli strike, in Jabalia refugee camp, in the northern Gaza Strip, May 12, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa/File Photo Israel commits 'extermination' in Gaza by killing in schools, UN experts say VIENNA - U.N. experts said in a report on Tuesday that Israel committed the crime against humanity of "extermination" by killing civilians sheltering in schools and religious sites in Gaza, part of a "concerted campaign to obliterate Palestinian life." The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel was due to present the report to Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council on June 17. "We are seeing more and more indications that Israel is carrying out a concerted campaign to obliterate Palestinian life in Gaza," former U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, who chairs the commission, said in a statement. "Israel's targeting of the educational, cultural and religious life of the Palestinian people will harm the present generations and generations to come, hindering their right to self-determination," she added. The commission examined attacks on educational facilities and religious and cultural sites to assess if international law was breached. Israel disengaged from the Human Rights Council in February, alleging it was biased. When the commission's last report in March found Israel carried out "genocidal acts" against Palestinians by systematically destroying women's healthcare facilities during the conflict in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the findings were biased and antisemitic. In its latest report, the commission said Israel had destroyed more than 90% of the school and university buildings and more than half of all religious and cultural sites in Gaza. "Israeli forces committed war crimes, including directing attacks against civilians and wilful killing, in their attacks on educational facilities ... In killing civilians sheltering in schools and religious sites, Israeli security forces committed the crime against humanity of extermination," it said. The war was triggered when Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people in Israel in a surprise attack in October 2023, and took 251 hostages back to the enclave, according to Israeli tallies. Israel responded with a military campaign that has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities. Harm done to the Palestinian education system was not confined to Gaza, the report found, citing increased Israeli military operations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem as well as harassment of students and settler attacks there. "Israeli authorities have also targeted Israeli and Palestinian educational personnel and students inside Israel who expressed concern or solidarity with the civilian population in Gaza, resulting in their harassment, dismissal or suspension and in some cases humiliating arrests and detention," it said. "Israeli authorities have particularly targeted female educators and students, intending to deter women and girls from activism in public places," the commission added. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
What is the High Seas Treaty to protect world oceans?
The third UN Ocean Conference is currently underway in Nice, with the High Seas Treaty only five signatures away from being ratified as of the conference's first day on June 9. PHOTO: REUTERS What is the High Seas Treaty to protect world oceans? LONDON - While many countries have agreed to take steps to protect the vast, ungoverned swathes of the world's oceans, they have yet to see the High Seas Treaty go into effect. This week's United Nations (UN) Oceans Conference in the French city of Nice hopes to change that. What is the High Seas Treaty? The treaty, signed in 2023, provides a legal framework for creating marine protected areas on the "high seas", or the ocean areas that lie beyond any national jurisdiction. Currently, less than 3 per cent of the oceans are under some form of protection, although altogether the world's oceans cover two-thirds of the planet. The treaty contains 75 points covering areas such as protecting, caring for and ensuring responsible use of marine resources, and includes a provision for requiring environmental impact assessments of any economic activities in international waters. The treaty also aims to ensure that all countries have fair and equitable access to the ocean's resources. While it is widely referred to as the High Seas Treaty, officially it is called the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Treaty. As of June 9, French President Emmanuel Macron said 55 countries had ratified the treaty, with 60 needed for it to go into effect. Separate to the High Seas Treaty, countries agreed under a 2022 UN biodiversity pact to put 30 per cent of their territorial waters under conservation. Why do we need an ocean treaty? Oceans support coastal economies and livelihoods through tourism, fishing, shipping, mining, offshore energy and more. Oceans also absorb about a third of the world's carbon dioxide, or CO2 - the primary gas driving climate change - while ocean-swimming phytoplankton provide about half of the world's oxygen. But marine life is now struggling, and human industry and development are almost entirely to blame. More than 1,500 ocean plants and animals are now at risk of extinction, and that number is expected to rise amid ongoing pollution, overfishing, ocean warming and acidification, according to scientists at the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Additionally, new threats to ocean organisms and ecosystems could emerge in coming years in the form of deep-sea mining for rare-earth minerals. In Nice, Mr Macron is expected to urge countries to support postponing seabed exploration while researchers work to understand deep sea ecosystems. Scientists are also concerned about the possibility that governments could look to modify ocean chemistry to boost its capacity for absorbing CO2 - a scenario that researchers say could help to limit global warming but could also have unintended consequences. What are the next steps for the treaty? Mr Macron's news on June 9 of 55 governments having ratified the treaty means it is still short by five signatures. The treaty will enter into force 120 days after 60 countries have ratified it. Work then begins on setting up institutions and committees to implement the treaty, while its signatories expect to hold a first conference within a year. Despite its involvement in the original treaty negotiations, the US under current President Donald Trump is not expected to ratify the treaty. What else is happening at the UN Oceans Conference? Mr Macron is co-hosting this third UN Oceans conference with Costa Rica, and with at least 55 heads of state, business leaders and civil society groups expected to attend the five-day event. Aside from discussions to advance the treaty, delegates are also expected this week to discuss overfishing, water pollution and other threats to marine life. They'll also be looking for fresh ideas on how to pay for it all - with ocean-linked financing lagging far behind other sustainable investment areas. For the five years spanning 2015 to 2019, ocean-related spending totalled US$10 billion (S$12.9 billion). By comparison, the UN estimates that every year at least US$175 billion is needed for marine protection. The last UN oceans summit was held in Lisbon and co-hosted by Kenya in 2022. The next, co-hosted by Chile and Korea, is set for 2028. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
