The Orderly City

Using the video and Net Notes, make a list of five ways by which Singapore manages to be a tidy and well-organised city. Here are some suggestions to choose from:

• The city has frequent bus and train services at affordable prices, so traffic jams are rare.
• There are serious penalties for dropping litter or acts of vandalism.
• A large workforce is employed to clean up and improve the environment in public areas.
• CCTV cameras are very common, so anyone who drops litter, parks illegally, and so on, is likely to be caught.
• Police use regular house-to-house questionnaires asking about schemes to maintain clean streets and public parks.
• Shopkeepers and owners of offices take pride in attractive premises.
• Dogs have to be left in kennels at the edge of the city centre before any shopping trip.
• City planners make monthly trips to Bangkok to update their traffic management systems.

Activity 2

The Nerve Centre

1. Why is Singapore such an attractive city for financial, media and manufacturing companies to set up their Asian headquarters?
2. Use information from the video and Net Notes to list some firms based in Singapore.
3. Pick two of these companies. For each one, explain why you think Singapore is a good location. You should organise your argument under these headings:

• Singapore’s position relative to the rest of Asia
• Working conditions and levels of prosperity in Singapore
• Availability, quality and cost of Singapore’s workforce

You will also find useful information at the following website:

• http://www.users.nac.net/eoa/ecodevsing-kot.html

Activity 3

Lifestyle — Asian Yuppies

Imagine you are 25, single, and living and working in Singapore, though you come from Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. Two school friends write saying they like the idea of getting jobs in Singapore.

Write back giving them some advice about job opportunities, lifestyle, and the good and bad sides to life in this city.