I am part of the baby-boomers generation in Singapore of those born after WWII and just before Singapore became a Republic in 1965.
I have been fortunate to have been a witness to so many significant events and this are the top 10 in my list which has shaped and continued to influence my outlook in life.
1. Lee Kuan Yew – Founding Prime Minister of Singapore
Singapore has been very fortunate to have strong, competent and committed leaders to come forward and take on the heavy responsibilities of leadership to shape the country.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Cambridge educated with a Double First (no less), fought for self-governance for Singapore from the colonial British masters, took Singapore to form Malaysia in 1963, only to break away in 1965 to make Singapore a Republic. Under his leadership and his outstanding team, Singapore rose from humble beginnings to rank in the Top 10 countries with highest GDP per capita, and amongst the highest safety, literacy and health levels globally.
2. Bill Gates – Co founder of Microsoft
In 1975, Bill Gates and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, envision every home having a computer. By 1990, 15% of homes in the Developed Countries had a PC which rose to 80% by 2010. Today, almost everyone carries a personal computer in their pocket. Bill Gates made the software widely available and created a robust infrastructure that have endured. His Bill Gates Foundation is now channeling the billions he made to help solve or mitigate the many health and societal challenges.
3. 9/11 – The definitive Terrorist Attack
On 11 Sep 2001, an Osama bin Laden planned suicidal attack comprising 19 Terrorists piloted 4 commercial airplanes into the World Trade Center in New York, Pentagon in Washington and a field in Pennsylvania, resulting in about 3,000 deaths, over 25,000 injuries and billions in infrastructure and property damage. That this took place in the very heart of the most powerful country showed no country is invulnerable to terrorist attacks.
4. Japan Fukushima Tsunami – Murphy’s Law in full swing
On 11 March 2011, a massive earthquake off the coast of North East Japan resulted in a huge Tsunami which flooded a Nuclear Plant in Fukushima, resulting in severe radioactive contamination of the surrounding vicinity. More than 16,000 people lost their lives and 230,000 people had to relocate after the disaster.
5. SmartPhone – A computer in our pocket
The SmartPhone is now so prevalent that many carry it with them wherever they go and the device is used so widely in our daily lives. It is now a natural extension of our very being as we use it to communicate, educate, verify and even pay.
6. Internet – The world at our fingertips
The world indeed is now made closer with the internet. We can check real-time on any topic wherever we are (almost) and the information is returned almost instantaneously for us to probe and verify to our satisfaction. It became mainstream at the Universities in the early 1990s & in our homes by late 1990s.
7. BREXIT – A splintering of European Union
The UK finally left the European Union on 31st Dec 2020 as it was what their people wanted based on a referendum in mid 2016. Nationalism won the day as the majority in the UK believed they could have a better future going alone and without being part of the European Union.
8. China – The Dragon Reawakens
China has today the 2nd largest economy globally and this was made possible within 40 years after Deng Xiao Ping led the opening up of the economy from the late 1970s. It has moved from an export-led economy where they produce for the world and intends by 2025 to become a high-end producer of goods. Its strategic Belt and Road Initiative aims to strengthen China’s connectivity with the world and connect no less than 138 countries with combine GDP of $29 trillion and some 4.6 billion people.
9. USA vs China – Great Power Competition
The USA has been the undisputed global leader since the collapse of the USSR in the early 1990s. It has been used to having its way after playing a key role in Word War 2 and many of the global institutions are US-led or US-funded. The rise of China has made the US uneasy as the Chinese economy is expected to overtake the US in this decade. The World Economic Forum projects that come 2030, the US would have to share the stage not only with China, but with India, Russia, Germany and Japan too.
10. COVID19 – Tiny Virus humbles Humanity
As at 10 Aug 2020, more than 20 million people globally have been infected by COVID19 with no less than 730,000 deaths attributed to it. This reflects how very contagious COVID19 is as in end Feb, WHO reported no more than 86,000 cases and 2,900 deaths globally.
COVID–19 pandemic has caused a severe disruption to global economic activity and the World Bank projects no less than a 5.2 contraction in global GDP in 2020.
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