I’m pretty sure we’re all proud of what our nation has become!
Singapore is no stranger to being highly ranked in polls or surveys conducted on a global scale.
The little red dot was placed first in terms of offering the best city infrastructure, competing with more than 200 cities in the world, including renowned cities Frankfurt, London, Sydney and Hong Kong.
Among the bottom ranked, is war stricken country Syria, with Damascus ranking 224 on the list. Majority of cities ranked bottom experience a toxic mix of political instability, poverty, crime and terrorism, leaving little room for development and economic growth.
However, in terms of quality of living, Singapore placed overall 25th, is top amongst Asian cities.
Tokyo, coming in second behind Singapore in the Asia-Pacific region, emerged as the 47th in the world.
This is the first time a city’s infrastructure is considered separately from quality of living on Mercer’s annual ranking.
According to the consulting firm, quality of living, considers political stability, healthcare, education, crime rate, recreation and transport. On the other hand, a city’s infrastructure assesses reliable electricity, drinking water, public transportation, traffic congestion and the availability of international flights.
What Is The Survey Used For?
According to Ilya Bonic, senior partner and president of Mercer’s Career business, “Economic instability, social unrest, and growing political upheaval all add to the complex challenge multinational companies face when analysing quality of living for their expatriate workforce”.
Mr Bonic added that it is vital for organisations with plans to venture into new locations to “ensure they get a complete picture of the city, including its viability as a business location and its attractiveness to key talent.”
And because there is a need to send staff over, Mercer explained that a city’s infrastructure is important in determining hardship allowances based on differences between a staff member’s home and host locations. For example, ‘difficult’ locations will result in higher allowances and incentives.
S’pore’s Infrastructure
“Cities that rank high in the city infrastructure list provide a combination of top-notch local and international airport facilities, varied and extended coverage through their local transportation networks, and innovative solutions such as smart technology and alternative energy,” said Slagin Parakatil, a principal at Mercer who is responsible for its quality of living research.
Singapore also scored high because of “internal stability, wide availability of consumer goods, availability and quality of housing and low incidence of natural disasters,” Mercer said.
In a survey conducted by London consulting firm Credo, our city’s transport received praise for its reliability and punctuality in service levels.
As for availability of international flights, according to Changi Airport traffic statistics, it serves more than 100 airlines flying to some 380 cities in about 90 countries and territories worldwide. Each week, about 7,000 flights land or depart from Changi, with more than 58.7 million passengers passing through the airport a year.
In spite of our exasperations with train breakdowns or the rising water prices, I’m pretty sure we’re all proud of what our nation has become.
