Page 13 - Education Change and Economic Development: The Case of Singapore Dr. Goh Chor Boon National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University

Education Change and Economic Development: The Case of Singaporec73

The Singapore Government put in place institutional measures aimed at

creating an innovative industrial policy and work environment. It champions
innovation-friendly rules, regulations and legislations to providing better
protection on inventions and guarantees to ownership issues. It rolls out

initiatives to attract professional talents from all over the world. It develops a
world-class information and communication infrastructure for individuals and
companies to stay connected to the world. Singapore’s scientists and research

engineers were kept busy as the Government poured billions into R&D projects,
particularly in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sector. Figure below
illustrates the key players in the national innovation system. 14
Singapore’s Future Economy is encapsulated in its “Smart Nation”

vision, characterized by the development of a digital infrastructure to harness
information flows. In a 2016 report, McKinsey Global Institute has redefined

globalization as “transmitting information, ideas, and innovation around the
15
world and broadening participation in the world economy”. The report ranks

the country’s innovation-led economic blueprint. Quality of research has also risen
substantially over the years. Singapore’s universities have steadily risen up in global
rankings and improved their research influence internationally. In 2018, the annual
World University Rankings placed the National University of Singapore (NUS)
and the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in the 11th and 12th positions
respectively. Seehttps://www,topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-
university rankings/2019
14 For a more in-depth understanding of the role of science and technology in
Singapore’s development, see Goh Chor Boon, From Traders to Innovators: Science
and Technology in Singapore since 1965 (Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian
Studies, 2016).
15 Quoted in Thomas Friedman, Thank you for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to
Thriving in the Age of Accelerations (United Kingdom: Penguin Books 2016), p.