The National Day of Singapore is celebrated every year on August 9, in commemoration of the Singapore's independence from Malaysia in the year 1965. This holiday features a National Day Parade, an address by the Prime Minister of Singapore, and fireworks celebrations.
The Singapore National Day Parade is a national ceremony that is usually held at the National Stadium or the Padang. For the first time in 2007, it was held at The float@Marina Bay in lieu of the National Stadium, and this arrangement is expected to be maintained until the new sports hub is opened in April 2014.
National Day celebrations also include fireworks celebrations. They feature several local and foreign teams which launch fireworks displays on different nights. First held in 2004 at Marina Bay, the event was initially known as the Singapore Fireworks Festival and organised by Unusual Productions. The amount of fireworks used has grown in magnitude over the past three years, from 4,000 rounds used in 2004 to over 9,000 in 2006. In 2012, a Mentos commercial encouraged procreation during the same time as the fireworks celebration.