Country's Full Name: Republic of Singapore

Brief History: The name Singapore is derived from Singa (Lion) and pore (place); given by Malay Prince after sighting a Lion shaped beast. Portuguese and then Dutch came at this island making it a part of greater Malaysia. Dutch lost this territory to the British; the island was a British colony since 1819-1962 with a brief Japanese occupation (1942-45). The country got independence from British rule in 1962 joining the Malay federation. It had severe ideological differences with the federation, finally breaking away as independent nation.


What is the country known for: Singapore is popularly called as "Lion city" and "the Garden City". The country is replete with trees, and flowering plants. The Bukit Nature reserve in Singapore contains more species of trees than the entire North American Continent.
Singapore has the busiest port in the world having more than 600 shipping lines in the business.
Singapore is well organized country.
Singapore is famous for world's largest bat having a wingspan of 1.5 meters.
Singapore is world's fourth-largest foreign exchange trading center.

Main Industries: Electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, rubber processing and rubber products, processed food and beverages, ship repair, offshore platform construction, life sciences, entrepot trade
Agricultural products: rubber, copra, fruit, orchids, vegetables; poultry, eggs; fish, ornamental fish

Main Trading Partners:
Export partners (2006): Malaysia 13.1%, US 10.2%, Hong Kong 10.1%, China 9.7%, Indonesia 9.2%, Japan 5.5%, Thailand 4.2%. Commodities: machinery and equipment (including electronics), consumer goods, chemicals, mineral fuels. Trade: $283.6 billion f.o.b.
Import Partners (2006): Malaysia 13%, US 12.7%, China 11.4%, Japan 8.3%, Taiwan 6.4%, Indonesia 6.2%, South Korea 4.4%; Commodities: machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs. Trade: $246.1 billion

Major Cities: Singapore

Location: It is the gateway to the South-East Asia in between Malaysia and Indonesia. The country consists of 63 islands
1 22 N, 103 18 E

Size:
Total area: 268 sq mi/693 sq km
Land Area: 264 sq mi/683 sq km
Water area: 4 sq mi/10 sq km

Time Zone: UTC/GMT 8 hours

Type of Government: It has unicameral parliament with 84 members elected fro five-year-term.
President S. R Nathan (1999)
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (2004)

National Holidays:

2010
1 Jan New Year's Day.
14 Feb - 16 Feb Chinese New Year.
2 Apr Good Friday.
1 May Labour Day.
28 May Vesak Day (Birth of the Buddha).
9 Aug National Day.
10 Sep Hari Raya Puasa (End of Ramadan).
5 Nov Deepavali.
16 Nov Hari Raya Haji (Feast of the Sacrifice).
25 Dec Christmas Day.

2011
1 Jan New Year's Day.
3 Feb - 4 Feb Chinese New Year.
22 Apr Good Friday.
1 May Labour Day.
2 May Vesak Day (Birth of the Buddha).
9 Aug National Day.
26 Oct Deepavali.
6 Nov Hari Raya Haji (Feast of the Sacrifice).
6 Nov Hari Raya Puasa (End of Ramadan).
25 Dec Christmas Day.

If a holiday falls on Sunday, subsequent Monday is treated as holiday.

Population and breakdown:
July 2007 estimate: 4,553,009

0-14 years: 15.2% (male 358,064/female 333,702)
15-64 years: 76.3% (male 1,692,817/female 1,780,982)
65 years and over: 8.5% (male 171,876/female 215,568)

Median age: 37.8 years (male 37.4 years/female 38.2 years)
Life expectancy: 81.8 years ( Male 79.21 years/female 84.59 years)

Religion: Buddhist 43%, Islam 15%, Taoist 9%, Hindu 4%, other 1.4%

Ethnicity: Chinese 76.8%, Malay 13.9%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4%

Language: Mandarin 35%, English 23%, Malay 14.1%, Hokkien 11.4%, Cantonese 5.7%, Teochew 4.9%, Tamil 3.2%, other Chinese dialects 1.8%, other 0.9%

Local Customs:
Singapore laws are strict, often criticized to traverse individual's freedom. People who do not obey the laws are fined or imprisoned. This includes spitting, littering, smoking in prohibited areas, chewing gum, jaywalking and neglecting to flush a toilet.
Drug trafficking is punishable by death.
Smoking in public places, air-conditioned area is banned.
Respect to the elders is expected.
The Chinese community in Singapore considers red to be an auspicious color, as are other bright colors, while black is frowned upon by the older generation, especially during festive occasions.
The group, rather than the individual, prevails in Singaporean business culture. Moreover, the individual identity is subsumed into the group. The oldest or most competent member usually assumes the leadership position.
Punctuality is important for all business appointments. It is considered an insult to leave a Singaporean business executive waiting.

Best Time to go: Singapore remains hot and humid all the time, anytime is best to make a visit. However, check the celebrations that happen year round. Chinese New Year is celebrated with spectacular fireworks. The end of Ramadan and Deepavali in November glitters the market.

Currency:
1 US Dollar = 1.51217 Singapore Dollar
1 Singapore Dollar (SGD) = 0.66130 US Dollar (USD)
1 British Pound = 3.04856 Singapore Dollar
1 Singapore Dollar (SGD) = 0.32802 British Pound (GBP)
1 Euro = 2.09777 Singapore Dollar
1 Singapore Dollar (SGD) = 0.47670 Euro (EUR)

Customs Regulations:
1 liter of spirits (brandy, whisky, gin, rum, vodka etc)
1 liter of wine
1 liter of beer

Items prohibited:
Chewing gum
Chewing tobacco and imitation tobacco products.
Cigarette lighter of pistol/revolver shape.

Tipping:
Tipping is not encouraged in Singapore but is found to be increasing. Most of the hotels and restaurants include service tax of 10%.