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As we copy Singapore, we must also educate and innovate
Chris Burns
Monday, June 13, 2011
This column rejects the notion that Singaporean culture and social mores have nothing to do with its economic success and that its success is directly attributable to superior economic and financial management and nothing else.
I agree, however, that insight into many complex situations comes from analogy with situations or products that seem comparable and in many instances the hypothesis that is tested comes from insightful analogical thinking. Consequently, there is no disagreement, in principle or practice with looking at models that work and where feasible, adjust them for implementation. In fact, much of the value-added in technology and financial systems, for instance, came from analogical thinking.
Before we copy the Singaporean model, we should be mindful of the milieu in which its economic success is being realised - a model may not be adaptable to some settings. For this reason, I am unrepentant in the belief that social and economic advancement do not occur in a vacuum, but rely on other conditions such as cultural and political systems, legal structures, innate tendencies, socialisation, environmental factors, health and educational designs and so on. These are prerequisites that serve to harmonise, promote, encourage and facilitate the kind of economic advancements Singapore boasts and if there are doubts about this, particularly behavioural and cultural norms, go read Amy Chua's novel, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom. You'll discover why helping children to understand and apply Pythagoras' Theorem could benefit them and their country more than pushing the "Gully-Gaza" nonsense.
Singapore's economic success started with a vision that emanated from its political independence. Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew said at the time, "Let us create one nation for all Singaporeans. We are a young country, and we share one future together. Let us build among ourselves a sense of belonging, a feeling of common identity and shared destiny. Let us feel instinctly that we are, first and foremost, Singaporeans." Those who are fascinated by Singapore's economic accomplishments must do more than just look at the end results; they must also examine the context, particularly the socio-cultural dynamics, which support its achievements.
They must ask, will a majority of Jamaicans say we have "a feeling of common identity and shared destiny" in the economic management and ownership of our country? Can we say with a straight face that Jamaica's economic and financial structure is all-inclusive? Do we have a broad-based, multi-classed economic and social development model? Have we evaluated how our lopsided system of wealth creation and ownership in which about 100 families own about 80 per cent of the country's wealth, might have prevented us from achieving better and higher economic results? Is our financial risk-averseness and "misprioritisation" due in part or in whole to financial under-education? Would we have invested more and consumed less of the things we can do without?
On the one hand, and by way of context, Singapore broke away from the Malaysian Federation and became independent in 1965. It is now an economic trailblazer that many countries, including Jamaica, dream of becoming.
According to the 2010 CIA World Factbook, Singapore's Gross Domestic Product valued US$222 billion in 2010 and represented a 14.5 per cent increase over 2009. Its per capita GDP was US$62,000 and unemployment stood at approximately 2 per cent. In 2010, Singapore imported US$310 billion in goods and services and its exports were valued US$351billion.
Essentially, industry accounts for 27 per cent of the economy and services account for 72.8 per cent; of note is the absence of agriculture; this is not surprising, given that Singapore only has about 1.5 per cent of arable land.
Significantly, though, Singapore currently builds more than 70 per cent of the world's oil rigs and its industry-focus is primarily on pharmaceuticals and medical technology and 97 per cent of its population is literate.
On the other hand, and by way of comparison, Jamaica gained Independence in 1962, but still struggles economically. According to the 2010 CIA World Factbook, Jamaica's Gross Domestic Product valued US$13.69 billion in 2010 and represented a 1.1 per cent decline on 2009; bauxite and tourism accounted for 20 per cent of GDP while remittances accounted for 15 per cent.
Jamaica's per capita GDP was US$8,300 and unemployment stood at approximately 12.9 per cent. In 2010, the country exported US$1.48 billion in goods and services and imports were valued at US$5.39 billion. Essentially, services account for 65 per cent of the economy, agriculture accounts for 5.7 (despite having 16 per cent of arable land) and industry accounts for 29.7 per cent. Significantly, though, 16.9 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line and 88 per cent of the population is literate. Jamaica's public debt represented 123 per cent of GDP - the fourth highest, per capita, in the world.
Having laid the foundation for a sobering quantitative analysis of the economic performances of both countries, I hope we can look toward a set of initiatives and behavioural shifts that could bring us closer to achieving higher economic and social standards. Yet, before any wholesale acceptance of the Singaporean model, we must engage in a frank and rational country assessment. We must evaluate if our culture - political, social or economic - has held us back, but importantly, how we can use these challenges as opportunities to get closer to a Jamaican dream.
Finally, and as daunting as the economic numbers are for us, we must change course and we must begin by finding alternatives to the current education system that seems more interested in punishing failures and producing "information parrots" and less interested in educating students with the view to fostering critical-thinking skills and knowledge development, this is essential to laying the foundation for a nation of innovative thinkers. In Singapore, the mastery of math and language skills is top priority, from early childhood to high school. This single focus allows students to master almost every other subject, including the sciences, thus, giving them the edge to keep the country's economic expansion and social development going. I submit that it is through education and innovation that we are going to improve the value chain, create and apply technology to agriculture, make better products, reduce crime, improve services, create jobs, achieve sustainable economic growth and higher standard of living for our people.
Burnscg@aol.com
Chris Burns
Monday, June 13, 2011
This column rejects the notion that Singaporean culture and social mores have nothing to do with its economic success and that its success is directly attributable to superior economic and financial management and nothing else.
I agree, however, that insight into many complex situations comes from analogy with situations or products that seem comparable and in many instances the hypothesis that is tested comes from insightful analogical thinking. Consequently, there is no disagreement, in principle or practice with looking at models that work and where feasible, adjust them for implementation. In fact, much of the value-added in technology and financial systems, for instance, came from analogical thinking.
Before we copy the Singaporean model, we should be mindful of the milieu in which its economic success is being realised - a model may not be adaptable to some settings. For this reason, I am unrepentant in the belief that social and economic advancement do not occur in a vacuum, but rely on other conditions such as cultural and political systems, legal structures, innate tendencies, socialisation, environmental factors, health and educational designs and so on. These are prerequisites that serve to harmonise, promote, encourage and facilitate the kind of economic advancements Singapore boasts and if there are doubts about this, particularly behavioural and cultural norms, go read Amy Chua's novel, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom. You'll discover why helping children to understand and apply Pythagoras' Theorem could benefit them and their country more than pushing the "Gully-Gaza" nonsense.
Singapore's economic success started with a vision that emanated from its political independence. Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew said at the time, "Let us create one nation for all Singaporeans. We are a young country, and we share one future together. Let us build among ourselves a sense of belonging, a feeling of common identity and shared destiny. Let us feel instinctly that we are, first and foremost, Singaporeans." Those who are fascinated by Singapore's economic accomplishments must do more than just look at the end results; they must also examine the context, particularly the socio-cultural dynamics, which support its achievements.
They must ask, will a majority of Jamaicans say we have "a feeling of common identity and shared destiny" in the economic management and ownership of our country? Can we say with a straight face that Jamaica's economic and financial structure is all-inclusive? Do we have a broad-based, multi-classed economic and social development model? Have we evaluated how our lopsided system of wealth creation and ownership in which about 100 families own about 80 per cent of the country's wealth, might have prevented us from achieving better and higher economic results? Is our financial risk-averseness and "misprioritisation" due in part or in whole to financial under-education? Would we have invested more and consumed less of the things we can do without?
On the one hand, and by way of context, Singapore broke away from the Malaysian Federation and became independent in 1965. It is now an economic trailblazer that many countries, including Jamaica, dream of becoming.
According to the 2010 CIA World Factbook, Singapore's Gross Domestic Product valued US$222 billion in 2010 and represented a 14.5 per cent increase over 2009. Its per capita GDP was US$62,000 and unemployment stood at approximately 2 per cent. In 2010, Singapore imported US$310 billion in goods and services and its exports were valued US$351billion.
Essentially, industry accounts for 27 per cent of the economy and services account for 72.8 per cent; of note is the absence of agriculture; this is not surprising, given that Singapore only has about 1.5 per cent of arable land.
Significantly, though, Singapore currently builds more than 70 per cent of the world's oil rigs and its industry-focus is primarily on pharmaceuticals and medical technology and 97 per cent of its population is literate.
On the other hand, and by way of comparison, Jamaica gained Independence in 1962, but still struggles economically. According to the 2010 CIA World Factbook, Jamaica's Gross Domestic Product valued US$13.69 billion in 2010 and represented a 1.1 per cent decline on 2009; bauxite and tourism accounted for 20 per cent of GDP while remittances accounted for 15 per cent.
Jamaica's per capita GDP was US$8,300 and unemployment stood at approximately 12.9 per cent. In 2010, the country exported US$1.48 billion in goods and services and imports were valued at US$5.39 billion. Essentially, services account for 65 per cent of the economy, agriculture accounts for 5.7 (despite having 16 per cent of arable land) and industry accounts for 29.7 per cent. Significantly, though, 16.9 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line and 88 per cent of the population is literate. Jamaica's public debt represented 123 per cent of GDP - the fourth highest, per capita, in the world.
Having laid the foundation for a sobering quantitative analysis of the economic performances of both countries, I hope we can look toward a set of initiatives and behavioural shifts that could bring us closer to achieving higher economic and social standards. Yet, before any wholesale acceptance of the Singaporean model, we must engage in a frank and rational country assessment. We must evaluate if our culture - political, social or economic - has held us back, but importantly, how we can use these challenges as opportunities to get closer to a Jamaican dream.
Finally, and as daunting as the economic numbers are for us, we must change course and we must begin by finding alternatives to the current education system that seems more interested in punishing failures and producing "information parrots" and less interested in educating students with the view to fostering critical-thinking skills and knowledge development, this is essential to laying the foundation for a nation of innovative thinkers. In Singapore, the mastery of math and language skills is top priority, from early childhood to high school. This single focus allows students to master almost every other subject, including the sciences, thus, giving them the edge to keep the country's economic expansion and social development going. I submit that it is through education and innovation that we are going to improve the value chain, create and apply technology to agriculture, make better products, reduce crime, improve services, create jobs, achieve sustainable economic growth and higher standard of living for our people.
Burnscg@aol.com
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