SINGAPORE GEOGRAPHY Total area: 632.6 km2; land area: 622.6 km2 Comparative area: slightly less than 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC Land boundaries: none Coastline: 193 km Maritime claims: Exclusive fishing zone: not specific; 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 Natural resources: fish, deepwater ports Land use: arable land 4%; permanent crops 7%; meadows and pastures 0%; forest and woodland 5%; other 84% Environment: mostly urban and industrialized Note: focal point for Southeast Asian sea routes PEOPLE Population: 2,756,330 (July 1991), growth rate 1.3% (1991) Birth rate: 18 births/1,000 population (1991) Death rate: 5 deaths/1,000 population (1991) Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991) Infant mortality rate: 8 deaths/1,000 live births (1991) Life expectancy at birth: 72 years male, 77 years female (1991) Total fertility rate: 2.0 children born/woman (1991) Nationality: noun--Singaporean(s), adjective--Singapore Ethnic divisions: Chinese 76.4%, Malay 14.9%, Indian 6.4%, other 2.3% Religion: majority of Chinese are Buddhists or atheists; Malays are nearly all Muslim (minorities include Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, Taoists, Confucianists) Language: Chinese, Malay, Tamil, and English (all official); Malay (national) Literacy: 88% (male 93%, female 84%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.) Labor force: 1,280,000; financial, business, and other services 35.3%, manufacturing 29.0%, commerce 22.8%, construction 6.6%, other 6.3% (1989) Organized labor: 210,000; 16.1% of labor force (1989) GOVERNMENT Long-form name: Republic of Singapore Type: republic within Commonwealth Capital: Singapore Administrative divisions: none Independence: 9 August 1965 (from Malaysia) Constitution: 3 June 1959, amended 1965; based on preindependence State of Singapore Constitution Legal system: based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction National holiday: National Day, 9 August (1965) Executive branch: president, prime minister, two deputy prime ministers, Cabinet Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament Judicial branch: Supreme Court Leaders: Chief of State--President WEE Kim Wee (since 3 September 1985); Head of Government--Prime Minister GOH Chok Tong (since 28 November 1990); Deputy Prime Minister LEE Hsien Loong (since 28 November 1990); Deputy Prime Minister ONG Teng Cheong (since 2 January 1985) Political parties and leaders: government--People's Action Party (PAP), LEE Kuan Yew, secretary general; opposition--Workers' Party (WP), J. B. JEYARETNAM; Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), CHIAM See Tong; National Solidarity Party (NSP), SOON Kia Seng; United People's Front (UPF), Harbans SINGH; Barisan Sosialis (BS, Socialist Front), leader NA Suffrage: universal and compulsory at age 20 Elections: President--last held 31 August 1989 (next to be held August 1993); results--President WEE Kim Wee was reelected by Parliament without opposition; Parliament--last held 3 September 1988 (next to be held 31 August 1991); results--PAP 61.8%, WP 18.4%, SDP 11.5%, NSP 3.7%, UPF 1.3%, other 3.3%; seats--(81 total) PAP 80, SDP 1; note--BS has 1 nonvoting seat Communists: 200-500; Barisan Sosialis infiltrated by Communists; note--Communist party illegal Member of: APEC, AsDB, ASEAN, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WHO, WMO Diplomatic representation: Ambassador S. R. NATHAN; Chancery at 1824 R Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 667-7555; US--Ambassador Robert D. ORR; Embassy at 30 Hill Street, Singapore 0617 (mailing address is FPO San Francisco 96699); telephone 65 338-0251 Flag: two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; near the hoist side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent (closed portion is toward the hoist side) partially enclosing five white five-pointed stars arranged in a circle ECONOMY Overview: Singapore has an open entrepreneurial economy with strong service and manufacturing sectors and excellent international trading links derived from its entrepot history. During the 1970s and early 1980s, the economy expanded rapidly, achieving an average annual growth rate of 9%. Per capita GDP is among the highest in Asia. In 1985 the economy registered its first drop in 20 years and achieved less than a 2% increase in 1986. Recovery was strong based on rising demand for Singapore's products in OECD countries and improved competitiveness of domestic manufactures. The economy grew 8.3% in 1990. Singapore's position as a major oil refining and services center helped it weather the Persian Gulf crisis. GDP: $34.6 billion, per capita $12,700; real growth rate 8.3% (1990) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.4% (1990) Unemployment rate: 1.7% (1990) Budget: revenues $8.0 billion; expenditures $7.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.4 billion (FY90 est.) Exports: $52.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990); commodities--includes transshipments to Malaysia--petroleum products, rubber, electronics, manufactured goods; partners--US 21%, EC 14%, Malaysia 13%, Japan 9% Imports: $60.9 billion (c.i.f., 1990); commodities--includes transshipments from Malaysia--capital equipment, petroleum, chemicals, manufactured goods, foodstuffs; partners--Japan 20%, US 16%, Malaysia 14%, EC 13% External debt: $3.9 billion (1990) Industrial production: growth rate 9% (1990 est.); accounts for 29% of GDP (1989) Electricity: 4,000,000 kW capacity; 14,400 million kWh produced, 5,300 kWh per capita (1990) Industries: petroleum refining, electronics, oil drilling equipment, rubber processing and rubber products, processed food and beverages, ship repair, entrepot trade, financial services, biotechnology Agriculture: occupies a position of minor importance in the economy; self-sufficient in poultry and eggs; must import much of other food; major crops--rubber, copra, fruit, vegetables Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-83), $590 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $882 million Currency: Singapore dollar (plural--dollars); 1 Singapore dollar (S$) = 100 cents Exchange rates: Singapore dollars per US$1--1.7454 (January 1991), 1.8125 (1990), 1.9503 (1989), 2.0124 (1988), 2.1060 (1987), 2.1774 (1986), 2.2002 (1985) Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March COMMUNICATIONS Railroads: 38 km of 1.000-meter gauge Highways: 2,597 km total (1984) Ports: Singapore Merchant marine: 435 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 8,259,085 GRT/13,553,438 DWT; includes 1 passenger-cargo, 121 cargo, 66 container, 6 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 11 refrigerated cargo, 18 vehicle carrier, 1 livestock carrier, 118 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 5 chemical tanker, 3 combination ore/oil, 1 specialized tanker, 7 liquefied gas, 75 bulk, 2 combination bulk; note--many Singapore flag ships are foreign owned Civil air: 38 major transport aircraft (est.) Airports: 9 total, 9 usable; 9 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 4 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m Telecommunications: good domestic facilities; good international service; good radio and television broadcast coverage; 1,110,000 telephones; stations--13 AM, 4 FM, 2 TV; submarine cables extend to Malaysia (Sabah and peninsular Malaysia), Indonesia, and the Philippines; satellite earth stations--1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT DEFENSE FORCES Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, People's Defense Force, Police Force Manpower availability: males 15-49, 842,721; 625,546 fit for military service Defense expenditures: $1.7 billion, 4% of GDP (1990 est.)