Uploaded on 2015-05-27 by ImadBirkholz

I believe three important stocks and flows in the city of Singapore are *Food, People and Transportation*. **Transportation:** Government restrictions in Singapore mean that it is quite expensive to own a car in Singapore. It makes sense for the government to keep tight control in this sector, as land / space is limited, and if there were uncontrolled vehicle purchases, the island state would soon become a total gridlock. It is therefore in the government’s interest to provide a very detailed public transport network that encourages the use of travel, by making it easily accessible and affordable. I believe Singapore’s transport system is one of the world’s best. My family and I moved from Australia to Singapore a year ago. In Australia we had two cars. Here in Singapore we have no car! Transport services are very easily accessed, both physically and electronically. Physically- it doesn’t take much effort to find a bus stop, taxi rank or MRT station. Electronically- The amount of data available to users via the smartphone or computer on travel times and destinations is simply magnificent. There’s an app for everything regarding this. Pricing of transport is also very affordable. I include an example Taxi ride from our apartment here in Singapore to Changi International Airport: - Distance-30.91km Cost 27 SGD. The same distance travelled on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia: - Cost $71.47 AUD (74 SGD), (not including a 0.82/min wait time!) This makes travelling by Taxi in Singapore a viable transport alternative, especially considering that journeys in and around the city centre are significantly shorter in distance. This facilitates the movement of people through the city. This system will only improve with Singapore’s ability to harvest large data to map population travel through labs like the Future Lab Singapore. ![Singapore Taxi Fare][1] ![Gold Coast Taxi Charges][2] **Food:** The video presenters mentioned that over 90% of Singapore’s food comes from overseas. As it’s almost impossible for Singapore to become self sustainable with regards to food production (due to land shortages) it is vital that the flow of food products is maintained and that Singapore opens up as many connections to as many different countries as it can. This is important in case of instabilities caused by war, weather or other problems. Singapore needs to feed it’s people and it needs to continue to look for new partners. ![Singapore Food Sources][3] **People:** Singapore has it’s population both divided into stocks and flows. In total the population is 5.47 million. There are the Singapore Citizens, which make up 3.34 million, and then there are Permanent Residents and Non-Residents which make up 2.13 million. The 3.34 million Citizens can be considered stocks, as they are permanently located in Singapore. The Permanent Residents and Non Residents (2.13 mill) can be considered flows, as they may include people that were working, studying or living in Singapore but not granted residency. Permanent Residents such as ourselves may be in the country for several years, before returning back to our country of origin. When one considers that almost half of the Singapore population consists of people that have come from other countries and are here short term or semi-long term, one can see that this “transient” population has a significant impact on Singapore’s economy. Food, housing, transport and jobs are all affected by this. By continuing to encourage foreigners to visit Singapore, the country I think has built a great reputation as a nation that fosters foreign relations, and in return has made Singapore a prosperous nation. Many individuals as well as multinationals come to Singapore to seek further economic opportunities. These flows will continue, should the Singapore government encourage it. ![Singapore Population Trends][4] [1]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/143273658787552.png [2]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/14327366246577512.png [3]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/1432736670368188.png [4]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/14327367193424345.png