Today, 9 August marks the sixtieth anniversary of Singapore's independence. I would like to convey my best wishes to my fellow Singaporeans living in Bangladesh and my Bangladeshi friends on this historic occasion.
Singapore's 60th birthday is an opportunity to reflect on how we got to where we are today. Many good decisions and actions have contributed to Singapore's success over the last six decades of Singapore's existence as a sovereign state. For this article, I will focus on six.
First, I would like to highlight Singapore's establishment of the Economic Development Board in 1961, four years before Singapore separated from Malaysia. EDB was established to attract foreign investment and create jobs for Singaporeans.
In the last sixty years, the EDB has contributed to Singapore's success story not just by continuously attracting FDI but also coordinating efforts to help the Singaporean work force to move up the value chain. Today, EDB attracts world class companies to locate in Singapore such as like Hyundai which produces electric cars from Singapore and Dyson which produces innovative household products.
The second milestone I would like to highlight was our first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew's decision in the 1970s to relocate our civilian airport from the city centre to the eastern most part of the island at Changi. This was a bold choice since it was a costly move involving reclaiming land from the sea and went against the advice of foreign experts who suggested expanding the current airport. Today, Changi Airport is rated one of the best airports in the world.
A third notable milestone was Singapore's implementation of its "Total Defence" policy which conceptualised our defence as a battle on five fronts economic, civil (police, hospitals), social, psychological and military. The "Total Defence" policy fostered a shared sense of responsibility, social cohesion and resilience in the face of adversity.
A fourth noteworthy milestone was the passing into law of the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act in 1990 that empowers the government with tools to maintain religious harmony. Singapore is widely recognised as a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society. A key to this harmony is our continuous efforts to strengthen the bonds amongst our diverse population.
The second milestone I would like to highlight was our first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew's decision in the 1970s to relocate our civilian airport from the city centre to the eastern most part of the island at Changi.
The fifth milestone is Singapore's aggressive pursuit of Free Trade Agreements in the early 2000s. Singapore's FTA strategy was aimed at becoming a diversified, resilient and globally competitive economy. We now have 28 FTAs that strengthens our value proposition as a business hub.
The sixth milestone I am proud is the inscription of the Singapore Botanical Gardens as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015. The gardens epitomise Singapore's vision of being a "City in the Garden" and our overall conservation and sustainability efforts.
This brings me to our bilateral relations with Bangladesh. Singapore enjoys a strong and multi-faceted relationship with Bangladesh. Singapore has had close people-to-people linkages with Bangladesh since the establishment of our bilateral relations in February 1972.
The large number of Bangladeshis that live and work in Singapore has been a mainstay and important facet of our bilateral relations. Our bilateral relations have expanded over the years to include cooperation in trade and investment, energy, health, infrastructure development, port management and capacity-building.
In commemoration of Singapore's 60th birthday, the Singapore High Commission has organised several events to celebrate the occasion with Bangladesh in a meaningful way. In April 2025 we donated 60 books to Bangladesh's National Archives and Library collection. We also conducted a cooking workshop for students from Bangladesh's Hotel and Tourism Training Institute on Singapore cuisine.
We even took part in lectures for students from Dhaka University in April 2025 and North-South University in May 2025. In store for the rest of this year is a film screening of two famous Singapore movies and an art exhibition featuring renowned Singapore painters. I hope Bangladeshis will enjoy these upcoming cultural events
To conclude, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Bangladeshis for the strong friendship and cooperation over our 53 years of diplomatic relations. Looking ahead, we will continue to work closely with our Bangladeshi friends to expand our ties into new areas of cooperation in order to take both our countries to greater heights.
* Mitchel Lee is the Charge d'Affaires of the Singapore High Commission in Dhaka.