The risks facing this nation at birth – the sense of political and economic vulnerability to larger countries and
global changes – created a sense of urgency which influences policy to this day. Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s first
Prime Minister, set out two overarching goals: to build a modern economy and to create a sense of Singaporean
national identity. He recruited the best and brightest people into his early government and sought to promote
economic growth and job creation. In the 1960s, the emphasis was on attracting labour-intensive foreign
manufacturing to provide jobs for its low-skilled workforce. In the 1970s and 1980s, a shift to more skill-intensive
manufacturing led to an emphasis on technical fields. From the mid-1990s on, Singapore has sought to become
a player in the global knowledge economy, encouraging more research- and innovation-intensive industry and
seeking to attract scientists and scientific companies from around the globe. The results of the government’s
economic policies have been stunning – rapid economic growth to reach developed country levels and a per
capita income in 2009 estimated at current market prices to be about SGP 52 000 (USD 39 000). One of the so-
called Asian Tigers, Singapore is a free market, business-friendly and globally-oriented economy, shaped by an
active and interventionist government.