Singapore is only half the size of Beijing. Why is the economy so developed?

If you support the elderly, it must be Singapore, with a good environment and a high population quality. The legalization of social security can be regarded as a model of governance for small countries and few people.

The answer to the development question is as follows

Singapore established an autonomous government in 1959, merged into Malaysia in 1963, and was forced to establish its own country in 1965. After just 40 years of development, China has moved from poverty and backwardness to harmony and prosperity, which is closely related to China's development path, economic model and policy formulation.

In the newly established 1965- 1973, Singapore took advantage of its superior geographical position to increase its attraction to foreign investment by way of subsidies, focusing on developing entrepot trade and labor-intensive industries. The sustained growth of foreign direct investment has promoted economic development and created employment opportunities; Vigorously building government housing not only realizes "home ownership", but also effectively stimulates the domestic consumer market, which not only helps to live and work in peace and contentment, but also helps to expand and accumulate the national capital central provident fund, forming a unique benign circular economy development model.

With the change of the situation, although the policy has been adjusted, the basic model has not changed, but has been gradually improved on the original basis. For example, 1974- 1985, after the economic situation improved and entered the track of rapid development, the processing industry began to develop on the basis of trade entrepot, resulting in a shortage of domestic labor resources, and economic growth largely depended on the employment of foreign labor. On the one hand, the government uses cheap foreign workers to solve the contradiction of labor shortage in time by enacting immigration laws, on the other hand, it limits the growth rate of local labor costs by increasing the contribution rate of the central provident fund.

1986- 1997, in view of overheated real estate investment and rapidly rising labor costs, vigorously develop the service industry, regard the service industry as the second engine to promote economic development, especially the rapid development of financial and information services, and turn Singapore into a regional financial and information center with the ability to absorb and radiate trade and finance.

After 1998, the international situation has undergone tremendous changes after the Asian financial crisis. Facing the rise of China and India, as well as the high cost of land and labor, the original development model has encountered challenges. The focus of its economic policy adjustment is to make use of the mature economic system, actively develop knowledge-based economic industries, encourage citizens to innovate and start businesses, and the government strives to create a good environment.

The development of Singapore has gone through the initial stage (1965- 1973), high-speed growth stage (1974- 1985) and service industry development stage (1986- 1997). Throughout the development process, it is not difficult to find that the process of its rapid economic growth is the process of capital and labor capital accumulation. The development model can be simply summarized as "capital labor type", and Singapore considers itself "management type" for some reasons.

Policies formulated around the development model are more suitable to be described by applicability and compatibility than innovation. In a country like Singapore, poverty and backwardness and the dominant position of Confucian culture are growing rapidly and steadily from a macro perspective, but from a micro perspective, there are different views on whether to encourage innovation, whether to be dynamic and whether to operate efficiently. However, it is agreed that the policy structure is reasonable and has played a positive role in promoting economic and social development. From this perspective, it is also innovation. The strategy structure can be divided into the following aspects:

-Strict legal system and clean government;

-Individual restrictions on trade openness;

-High accumulation and prudent financial management;

-Attracting foreign investment and low-tax subsidies;

-improving the social security system;

Vocational training at all levels of education;

-Talent introduction and immigration law;

-Cultivate and develop industrial cluster chains.

(1) Strict legal system and clean government

Strict legal system and clean government are the most prominent features of Singapore. In the economic field, clear property rights (including the recognition and protection of intellectual property rights) and the unquestionable legal status of asset owners have played a positive role in attracting investors. Especially in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, political stability and strict laws have established the confidence of foreign investors in Singapore's long-term development.

When People's Republic of China (PRC) was founded, corruption was rampant, but the government was very determined to punish corruption. Lee Kuan Yew once said: "We must establish a completely transparent system. Otherwise, we will not be better than other cities. Because we are open and transparent, investors have confidence in us. In the evaluation, investors affirmed that this government system can move forward on a frank and efficient track. In the next 20 years, their investment here will continue to be profitable. "

The administrative efficiency of the Singapore government actually focuses on fairness and efficiency. Although it is not democratic, it is not very transparent in some aspects. Fortunately, democracy and transparency are processes, and justice and efficiency are results. Of course, process and result are closely related, and fairness and efficiency are relative.

(2) Trade is open and unrestricted.

Although the area of Singapore is only over 600 square kilometers, it has become an important trade port and logistics center in the region because of its superior geographical location and open trade and investment. Academics generally believe that Singapore has taken the road of "building a country through trade" and has a long history of trade exchanges, which can be traced back to Sir Raffles' discovery of Singapore in 18 19. Except cigarettes, alcohol and cars, all other imported goods are duty-free and unrestricted. Singapore is keen on bilateral free trade agreements, has signed contracts with the United States, Europe, Japan, New Zealand and other countries, and is negotiating with India, Canada, South Korea, Qatar and other countries, which has a great tendency to form a center of free trade agreements.

(3) High accumulation and prudent financial management

The perfection of the central provident fund system provides a source of funds for the introduction of foreign capital and the construction of residential housing. The government insists on prudent financial management, and the surplus for many years provides strong financial resources for direct participation in economic activities. Some people think that Singapore is a rare country with high accumulation in the world.

Temasek Holdings, an investment company under the government, owns 65,438+000% of the capital of the Ministry of Finance, and manages assets as high as S $90 billion, which is widely invested in important fields such as telecommunications, transportation, energy, finance, real estate and civil engineering. Major domestic companies are under Temasek Holdings, such as Singapore Telecom, Singapore Airlines and Singapore Development Bank. And their investment tentacles also extend to Asia. People vividly describe Singapore as a "big company", and government officials do not shy away from this statement. In their view, only by directly controlling investment can we concentrate on the will and orientation of the policy.

(4) attracting foreign investment and low tax subsidies

Singapore is famous for its pro-business, known as the "pro-business government", and pays attention to creating a good investment and business environment. The outstanding embodiment is the low tax system adopted by enterprise tax, which only collects income tax and the tax rate is 20%. In order to encourage enterprises to research and develop, double deduction of research and development expenses has been implemented to reduce the tax burden of enterprises. The tax exemption period of technology enterprises operating leading industries can be as long as 10 years. In order to encourage multinational companies to set up regional headquarters in Singapore, the tax relief for corporate headquarters is 0% ~ 15%.

Since Caltex Oil 1998 moved its headquarters from Dallas to Singapore and won the first headquarters award from the Singapore government, in just three years, 3,600 regional headquarters of multinational companies have settled in Singapore, of which 220 have been subsidized by the Economic Development Bureau, and the local consumption of foreign companies has increased by 10 times compared with eight years ago. The Economic Development Bureau plans to 20 10. In addition to low taxes on enterprises, in order to stimulate foreign investment, as mentioned above, the practice of the Economic Development Bureau also includes direct subsidies or joint ventures to bear operating costs.

(5) Improve the social security system.

The popularization and perfection of the central provident fund is not only the source of national capital accumulation, but also provides a sense of security for everyone who works hard. After all, the central provident fund is a personal savings, without social co-ordination, others can't take it away, which is an incentive measure and also conducive to the flow of talents. Government civil servants have lost their "iron rice bowls" and pensions, and all employees are on the same starting line, encouraging competition and mobility. For foreign talents, as long as they join permanent residents (similar to American green cards), they must establish individual central provident fund accounts, and the flow of talents is unrestricted.

(6) Vocational training of level education

Singapore advocates the so-called "elite ruling the world", and these elites are all government scholarship winners with excellent academic performance. The "elite" must work in the government for five years after studying abroad to ensure a certain proportion of talents in the civil service. Singapore is willing to invest in education, and the annual allocation for education accounts for more than 265,438+0% of the government budget (65,438+0,997-2003). According to the current consumer price level, the government pays nearly 6.5438+0 million for every "elite" overseas doctor who graduates.

Paying attention to the cultivation of "elite" has not neglected the popularization of education. Basic compulsory education10-1year, that is, 6 years in primary school and 4 or 5 years in secondary school, and children of citizens and permanent residents are free of tuition fees. According to the different situation of graduates, there are three levels of continuing education after graduation from middle school. The first choice is to enter a junior college and go to college two years later. Those who study well can get government scholarships and become "elites"; The second is to enter the polytechnic, which is equivalent to junior college; Finally, polytechnic is equivalent to technical school. The success of Singapore's education lies in that talents at different levels meet the different employment needs of society. The most striking feature is that the practical talents trained in three-year colleges have both theoretical foundation and professional skills; It not only has the foundation of in-depth study, but also can do a good job in a down-to-earth manner, which is well received by employers.

(7) Talent Introduction and Immigration Law

The survey results show that from 199 1 to 2000, the contribution rate of immigrants to Singapore's economic growth was as high as 4 1%, of which the contribution rate of intellectual and skilled immigrants was 37%. Although they only account for 1/4 of migrant workers, their contribution rate is 10 times that of non-intellectual immigrants. Take the field of R&D as an example: in 2002, there were 20,000 R&D personnel, 78% of whom were foreign talents. Attracting foreign talents for our use is a successful experience for Singapore to jump from poverty to developed ranks in a short time.

On the importance of foreign talents, Lee Kuan Yew once had an incisive exposition. He said: "If we don't welcome or attract foreign talents, or if they feel uncomfortable in Singapore, we can't become a global city. If we are not a global city, there is no hope. Singapore has a population of 4 million, of which 6.5438+0 million are foreigners. If you leave this 654.38+0 million, many people can't find a job. "

Singapore has incorporated talent legislation into the framework of immigration law, combining attracting talents with attracting investment, and properly handling the relationship between supplementing simple labor and restricting the entry of unnecessary personnel. Especially in creating a talent environment, there are many unique practices. We not only pay attention to attracting practical talents, but also pay attention to future development. Every year, we plan to attract outstanding students from China and other countries to study in Singapore, sign contracts and work in Singapore for six years after graduation.

(8) Cultivate and develop industrial cluster chains.

Singapore, which has just become independent, has almost no industrial base. The first thing to develop is fine chemical industry, mainly oil refining industry. Although Singapore does not produce crude oil, due to its superior geographical position, international situation at that time and subjective efforts, it has cultivated its own management and technical talents by using foreign capital. In 1980s, it completed the development of petroleum refining and chemical industry, and became the first pillar industry of manufacturing industry. Subsequently, in the 1990s and recent years, microelectronics and biopharmaceutical technology industrial clusters were developed, and two pillar industries were added. The added value of biopharmaceutical industry is obviously higher than that of other manufacturing industries, and the per capita annual output value is as high as 9 1 10,000, which is 6.5 times of the average value of other manufacturing industries, showing the vitality of knowledge economy industry.

It is an important strategy for Singapore's sustainable development to selectively cultivate and develop industrial cluster chains. Due to the limited land area and high labor cost, it is an inevitable choice to develop high value-added and high-tech industries. How to use foreign capital to promote the development of domestic processing industry and make local enterprises organically integrate into international industries has become one of them. In order to solve this problem, the Economic Development Bureau launched the local industrial renewal plan in 1986.

Through three steps, the plan will gradually improve the level of local processing industry, form a supplier or customer relationship with multinational enterprises, and finally achieve the goal of forming an industrial cluster chain locally. The first step is to improve the operational efficiency of local enterprises as a whole, such as production planning, warehousing and transportation, capital and technical management capabilities. The second step is to introduce new products and new processes into local enterprises; Finally, cooperate with multinational companies in research and development and become partners of foreign-funded enterprises.

The key to cultivating industrial cluster chain lies in enterprise managers. The Economic Development Bureau selects a group of competent management talents, sends them to work in multinational companies and pays them wages. These managers first find out the gap between local enterprises and multinational companies and the ways to improve it, and then gradually ask multinational companies to support some projects in the form of training and hand them over to local enterprises for contracting. In order to reduce costs, multinational companies are willing to subcontract processing and service projects to local areas. Managers constantly shuttle between multinational companies and local enterprises, solve management and technical problems in time, and finally make local enterprises integrate into the industry and become a part of it, forming the development of industrial cluster chain.

Author: Shen Huishui article Source: "Global Science and Technology Economic Outlook"