ASEAN: Singapore offers best environment for tourism development

Singapore offers the most attractive environment among ASEAN countries for developing the travel and tourism (T&T) sector, according to the ASEAN Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2012 released today at the Travel, Trade & Tourism Summit held in Bangkok prior to the World Economic Forum on East Asia.

Followed by Malaysia and Thailand and steps ahead of Cambodia and the Philippines, Singapore, the highest placed nation in ASEAN, ranks 10th out of the 139 countries, ranked accordingly to their performance in areas that make investment in developing the T&T sector attractive.

The report analyzes the relative strengths of the travel and tourism sector in ASEAN countries and makes recommendations on how to further unleash the potential of T&T in the region. The analysis is underpinned by the World Economic Forum's Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI).

ASEAN member countries span the entire rankings. While Singapore is ranked the 10th, Malaysia is at the 35th place and Thailand 41st, which do well despite some weaknesses. A third group, consisting of Brunei Darussalam (67th), Indonesia (74th) and Vietnam (80th), demonstrate clear strengths counterbalanced by weaknesses. Finally, both the Philippines (94th) and Cambodia (109th) present shortcomings in most dimensions.

The report stresses the critical role of T&T in accelerating the establishment of the ASEAN community. It reviews the efforts and initiatives by ASEAN member countries to collectively develop the sector.

“Travel and tourism is not only a critical driver of economic development and social progress. It also represents a formidable factor of regional integration,” said Borge Brende, managing director of the World Economic Forum. “By improving connectivity and mobility, travel and tourism contributes to creating a regional identity, a sense of ASEANness' among citizens.”

The rankings are based on data covering 14 areas: policy rules and regulations; environmental sustainability; safety and security; health and hygiene; prioritisation of T&T; air transport infrastructure; ground transport infrastructure; tourism infrastructure; ICT infrastructure; price competitiveness in the T&T industry; human resources; affinity for T&T; natural resources; and cultural resources.

Singapore remains top convention city in Asia

SINGAPORE - Singapore maintained its position as Asia's top convention city for the 10th consecutive year in the latest rankings by the International Congress and Convention Association, the Singapore Tourism Board said on Tuesday.

It is also the only Asian city in the top five convention cities worldwide alongside Vienna, Barcelona, Paris and Berlin, which took the top four positions.

Singapore welcomed a record 13.2 million visitors last year. Business visitors accounted for 24 percent of the total visitor arrivals in Singapore. Expenditure by these business travelers increased by 4.1 percent to an estimated 5.6 billion Singapore dollars ($4.4 billion) or 25 percent of the total tourism receipts.

The meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) industry saw a year-on-year growth of 46 percent in the number of conventions, conferences and trade shows held in Singapore last year.

Neeta Lachmandas, assistant chief executive of Singapore Tourism Board said Singapore's success can be attributed to factors such as a vibrant eco-system that nurtures business events of exceptional quality, the dynamic growth in Asia, and the dedication of the industry partners.

"Singapore aims to continue leveraging the growing opportunities in Asia and our strong knowledge network to further strengthen our position as a preferred MICE destination," she said. "Singapore strives to differentiate itself by co-creating and developing a strong network of business events within Singapore's key priority industries.

Madrid and London came in the sixth and seventh positions, respectively, while Amsterdam took the eighth position. Istanbul was ranked the ninth, followed by Beijing in the tenth position.

Singapore expects 10% increase in Gulf visitors this summer

Tourists from UAE visiting city state rise 18% in first quarter

Dubai: The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) expects a 10 per cent increase in visitors from the Gulf during the upcoming summer holiday months compared to the 2011 summer period, according to a senior Singapore tourism official.

"Thanks to recent investment in exciting new tourism infrastructure, the ‘new' Singapore offers a truly differentiated holiday experience to Gulf visitors," Mohammad Hafez Marican, STB's Area Director for the Middle East and Africa, said in a statement.

Outlook

He expects at least a 10 per cent increase in the number of visitors from the Gulf region to Singapore this summer season.

Meanwhile, the STB data reveal that 14,280 tourists from the UAE visited Singapore in the first quarter of 2012.

This marked an increase of more than 18 per cent over the corresponding period a year earlier.

During this time, Singapore also saw a 36.3 per cent increase in visitors from Saudi Arabia, data show.

Meanwhile, the Gulf region overall saw a general increase in visitors over the same period, the tourism board said in the statement.

It added that the growth in regional visitors to Singapore comes on the back of a number of new attractions being revealed as the existing ones are renewed.

New flights

Airlines have also begun to meet this increased demand through the introduction of new flights or services, according to STB.

Emirates offers 29 flights a week from Dubai to Singapore, and Qatar Airways offers 14 flights a week from Doha.

Singapore eyes Asia cruise market with new terminal

SINGAPORE (May 22, 2012): A multi-million-dollar cruise terminal capable of accommodating the world's largest luxury cruise liners will start operating this weekend, officials said Tuesday.

The opening of the Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore will allow the city-state to tap Asia's growing cruise industry, they said, while it will also provide thousands of new jobs.

On Saturday, the S$500 million (US$395 million) terminal will welcome its first ship -- the Royal Caribbean International's 138,000-tonne Voyager of the Seas luxury liner.

With a capacity of 3,840 passengers and 1,176 crew, the vessel will be the largest of its kind to dock in Singapore, terminal operator SATS-Creuers Cruise Services said in a statement.

This will "pave the way for the newer generation of larger cruise liners to dock in Singapore and Asia, including Oasis-Class ships," it said, referring to the world's largest passenger liners.

Situated at the edge of Singapore's waterfront downtown district, the ultra-modern terminal is expected to latch onto the city's booming tourism industry, which benefited from double digit growth in visitor arrivals to 13.2 million last year.

Tourism receipts came in at S$22.3 billion last year, up 18% from 2010.

Singapore's tourism authorities said it received close to one million cruise passengers in 2011, generating S$520 million in direct spending.

"Singapore's strategic location coupled with the terminal's state-of-the-art facilities and proximity to the city and Singapore Changi Airport will anchor the country's position as Asia's leading cruise hub," said Melvin Vu, chief executive of SATS-Creuers Cruise Services.

The terminal will be operated by a joint venture between Singapore Airport Terminal Services and Europe's Creuers del Port de Barcelona.

Singapore's second minister for trade and industry S. Iswaran said during a media tour of the facility on Tuesday the terminal's opening would create 3,000 jobs and other spin-off benefits.

"The hotels also stand to benefit to the extent that we become a turnaround cruise port... where people come to Singapore in order to board the cruise ship or to disembark in Singapore before going home," Iswaran added.

Other cruise operators such as Florida-based Celebrity Cruises and Italy's Costa Cruises are also scheduled to start deploying liners to the city-state in the next two years. – AFP

S'pore is 4th most Desirable place to live & work: survey By Linette Lim | Posted: 02 May 2012 1431 hrs

SINGAPORE: Singapore has moved up two spots to become the fourth most desirable place in the world to live and work, according to a survey by recruitment firm Hydrogen and business school ESCP Europe.

This is because Singapore has become an increasingly popular destination for multinational corporations over the past few years, said Hydrogen.

"We have seen companies from sectors as diverse as technology, energy, pharmaceutical and wealth management open offices here. The big question here is whether Singapore will become Asia's Silicon Valley or its Switzerland," said Simon Walker, Hydrogen's Asia MD.

While the three most popular places for survey respondents to live and work remain the US, the UK and Australia, their dominance is waning.

The report showed that 12 per cent picked the US as the top relocation destination, down from 18 per cent last year.

The UK and Australia each got 9 per cent of the votes, down from 10 per cent and 11 per cent respectively.

As Singapore becomes an increasingly attractive relocation destination for expatriates, Hydrogen said employers in the city state are finding that they have the pick of the world's top professional talent.

Mr Walker said: "Singapore has one of the lowest crime rates in the world, and it offers a clean and healthy environment free from traffic pollution.

"So it is not surprising that 88 per cent of those who have moved to Singapore feel that their living conditions have improved."

The report - which interviewed 2,353 people globally - also showed that the workforce was getting more internationalised. For example, 72 per cent of respondents said their employers see international experience as important or very important, up from 63 per cent in 2011.

WHY MORE MIGRANTS NEEDED IN SINGAPORE

SINGAPORE: Another study has been released in support of Singapore's need to attract new migrants to slow down the impact of an ageing and dwindling population.

Released by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), the report is the first to take into account the country's non-resident population.

This includes those on work permits, long-term social visit passes and foreign students.

In its report, the institute sets out three scenarios.

One, where the proportion of foreigners remains at 25 per cent (or one in four) of the total population.

Two, where this proportion drops to 20 per cent (or one in five).

And three, where the proportion is raised to 33 per cent (or one in three).

For all scenarios, it is assumed that Singapore will take in 30,000 new citizens or Permanent Residents every year, and the country's Total Fertility Rate remains at 1.24

The report states that a higher non-resident population will mean a larger total population, from the current 5 million now to 6.8 million in 2030, if the proportion of foreigners in the population is raised to 33 per cent.

And while the average population will still get older, a higher proportion of non-residents will slow this process down.

The same is said for the support ration between a working adult and an elderly.

While the ratio will still decline, with more foreigners in the midst, the impact will be somewhat mitigated.

Assuming the country's Total Fertility Rate remains at 1.24 and it brings in 30,000 new citizens or PRs yearly with non-residents, the support ratio now for every one elderly aged 65 and above to a working adult is 1:10.3.

In about 20 years, this will be halved at 1:5.1, if foreigners make up 33 per cent of the population.

If Singapore takes in no immigrants, there will be only about two working adults supporting each elderly person, by then.

So, even with more foreigners in the mix, there will be fewer Singaporeans supporting the elderly.

But the paper shows that the problem is exacerbated without taking in migrants.

With or without foreigners, the labour force will be hit.

Even with the bumped-up crop of foreigners, the report shows the growth in total labour force will dip from the average 3.6 per cent annual growth which Singapore has been enjoying since the 70s.

With the current proportion of one in four foreigners in the midst, the labour force will grow by 1.04 per cent over the next 10 years.

Raising the proportion to one in three will see the labour force grow to 2.47 per cent annually, over the same period.

The IPS report comes just a week after a similar paper was issued by the National Population and Talent Division.

Both papers present population projections based on certain assumption and are not meant to be forecasts or predictions.

Together, the reports will form the basis of a national discussion on populations’ issues that will culminate in a White Paper to be released by the end of the year.

The White Paper on Population will set out issues important to Singaporeans and map out strategies for a sustainable population.

This will cover areas such as housing, transport and land use.

- CNA/wk

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Singaporean student's dorm room a hit on YouTube

Singaporean student's dorm room a hit on YouTube

by Singapore Students Accommodation on Saturday, June 2, 2012 at 1:44pm ·

S'porean student's dorm room a hit on YouTube

Benita Aw Yeong | The New Paper | Sat May 5 2012

When he received acceptance letters to study at several US universities two years ago, Singaporean Derek Low began fantasising about "pimping" his dormitory room.

On Sunday, the first-year student at the University of California, Berkeley, put the finishing touches to his dream turned reality.

The result? A room fitted out with slick features such as voice-controlled lighting, automated curtains and room modes such as "party", "romantic", and "homework".

A video of his room, which he named Berkeley Ridiculously Automated Dorm (Brad), went viral after he uploaded it onto his Facebook page on Monday.

As of press time, it had attracted more than 110,000 views on YouTube.

The transformation began in February and was completed on Sunday. Mr Low does not know how many have requested to visit the room, claiming that there are "too many".

The most intriguing aspect of the room is its voice-control features, said the 21-year-old major in electrical engineering and computer science.

"You can voice control everything, from the lights to the sound. It's like talking to a buddy - the room."

He confessed spending three hours training a voice-recognition software on his laptop to adapt to his Singapore accent.

His efforts have paid off. Popular news agencies such as Time magazine, The Huffington Post and CBS News have also featured the room.

Life has not changed much for this humble undergraduate, however.

"I'm not some celebrity. Life goes on as normal, I just get occasional compliments," he said in a Facebook interview with The New Paper.

Taking technology and its applications to the next level - not laziness - is what motivated the project, maintained Mr Low, who stays in the room with two US schoolmates.

Getting started on the endeavour was the main challenge, said Mr Low, who hopes to start his own technology business in the future.

He said: "I'm in college and I don't have a lot of cash to throw around.

"Putting down US$200 (S$250) for a bunch of electronics for a project that may not work is quite a difficult step to take."

Most of the project's costs went towards buying the automation equipment, he said, adding that the lighting devices such as a disco ball, UV lights, and lasers were not expensive.

He built the room based on trial and error after reading up on automation technology.

Automating the curtains blinds, which draw open in the morning, along with a specially programmed alarm lock, was the most technically challenging part.

"It's a rather complex mechanism that moves it, unlike the rest of the setup which just involves switching on and off lights," he said.

Mr Low is so proud of the room that he has entered it for a competition which pits his project against others from his university.

The winner will get US$1,000 in cash.

The room is one of many experiments he has conducted over the years.

He began conducting science research projects when he was a student at Bukit Panjang Government High School and these experiments have put him in good stead for the future.

Computer magazine TechCrunch commented: "Getting an education is important, but something tells me that there are lots of start-ups and larger tech companies out there that are chomping at the bit to have more people like him (Mr Low)on their teams."

Time magazine concurred: "We're going to go ahead and say that Low probably hasn't hurt his chances at landing a great internship with this video, even if he's driving his RA (resident advisor) crazy."

Voice command

Saying the words 'sleep mode' will turn the lights in the room off and draw the curtains.

Saying the words 'romantic mode' will draw the curtains and dim the lights in the room gently till they are turned off completely.

Saying the words 'lights on' and 'lights off' can control all lighting devices within the room. UV & STROBE LIGHTS

These mobile devices are used to facilitate voice and remote commands.

Emergency party button

Punching this red 'emergency-party' button mounted on the side of the bed will transform the room into a club-like environment, complete with techno music and green laser lights.

Automated curtains

At a pre-set time every morning, the curtains will be drawn automatically and pop music will play loudly from speakers as part of an alarm system Mr Low designed.

Laser lights

The laser lights can be configured to display different patterns.

The frequency of the flashes and its movements are also customisable. Lasers can also be programmed to react to sound, so that they only flash when a beat loud enough is detected.

This article was first published in The New Paper.

Indian-American girl wins US spelling bee

Indian-American girl wins US spelling bee

by Study In Singapore (Official Information Page) on Saturday, June 2, 2012 at 3:15pm 

·

Oxon Hill, Maryland: A 14-year-old daughter of Indian immigrants clinched the 85th Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday by correctly spelling an obscure French word for ambush, snare or trap. "G-U-E-T-A-P-E-N-S," said Snighda Nandipati, an eighth-grade student from San Diego, California, to become the fifth American youngster of south Asian origin to win the venerable competition in as many consecutive years.

"I knew it. I'd seen it before," Nandipati, the daughter of a software consultant, confided afterwards as she collected the spelling bee's coveted gold cup and $30,000, which she plans to put aside for university.

As for what it's like to win, after going head-to-head for three rounds with runner-up Stuti Mishra, also 14, of Orlando, Florida, Nandipati -- sporting glasses and orthodontic braces -- simply replied: "It's a miracle."

Third place went to Arvind V. Mahankali, 12, a New Yorker who was thrown for a loop by a word he'd never heard before -- schvonoma, a form of nerve tumour. He vowed to study harder and return next year.

Some 278 youngsters took part in this year's three-day National Spelling Bee at a resort outside Washington, out of more than 11 million who competed in events at some level in the United States and several countries overseas.

This year featured the youngest-ever competitor, six-year-old Lori Anne Madison, of Woodbridge, Virginia, who suffered elimination Wednesday when she misspelled ingluvies, a noun that means the crop or craw of birds.

"I knew the word. It was just too bad that I misspelled the word," the precocious blonde crowd-pleaser -- one of 28 home-schooled contestants this year -- told reporters earlier in the day.

Sponsored by the Scripps media group, this year's National Spelling Bee also included competitors from as far afield as the Bahamas, Canada, Ghana, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.

Jamaica's Gifton Samuel Wright, one of Thursday's nine finalists, won a 30-second standing ovation after he faltered on the word harengiform, an adjective that means herring-shaped.

Organizers announced Tuesday that plans are afoot for a global spelling bee as early as December 2013, reflecting what they called "a fast-growing worldwide passion for the English language."

The tension in the cavernous ballroom of the Gaylord National Resort was palpable as anxious families hoped and prayed for their youngsters to get their words right and avoid the dreaded desk bell that signals a fatal error.

On stage, however, camaraderie prevailed among the finalists who high-fived and fist-bumped each other when they cleared such unusual dictionary entries as distelfink, chatoyant, luteovirescent and schwarmerei.

Nandipathi, an aspiring neurosurgeon, said she studied six hours every weekday -- and 10 to 12 hours on Saturdays and Sundays -- for the chance to attend the finals.

"She's a high-demanding kid," unlike her younger brother who prefers tennis and other sports, father Krishnarao Nadipati, a software consultant for mobile technology firm Qualcomm, told AFP.

But the schoolgirl was not without some cutting-edge help, in the form of a computer program that her father developed over two years just for her that included 40,000 virtual flashcards and a knowledge-testing function.

Her parents immigrated to the United States in 1995 from the southeastern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, her mother Madhavi Nandipati said.

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