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It has been slightly more than 2 months since I havent been back to Singapore and it would be another 3 months before my return, just in time for CNY.
Seems like "home" is progressing as fast as it always would be, whether I am or not around.
City MRT? Is this how the MRT's look like now?
This would be the 2nd Xmas I am missing in 2 years. Nevermind that I am not a a follower of Xmas to begin with
I have never seen this angle of the Merlion before.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- If all the adults worldwide who Gallup surveys show
would like to migrate actually picked up and moved where they wanted,
Gallup's Potential Net Migration Index (PNMI) suggests many developed
countries could be overwhelmed and many developing countries could sit
relatively empty.
The Potential Net Migration Index is the estimated number of adults
who would like to move permanently out of a country subtracted from the
estimated number who would like to move into it, as a proportion of the
total adult population. The results are based on nationally
representative surveys of more than 260,000 adults worldwide. The
higher the resulting positive PNMI value, the larger the potential net
adult population gain. In Turkey, for example, subtracting the
estimated 7 million adults who would like to move abroad from the 2
million adults who would like to move to Turkey and dividing that
number by the total adult population (52 million) results in a PNMI
value of -10%. Across the 135 countries surveyed between 2007 and 2009, Singapore
posts the highest Potential Net Migration Index of all countries and
areas, with a net migration index value of +260%. Saudi Arabia (+180%),
New Zealand (+175%), Canada (+170%), and Australia (+145%) round out
the top five.
Interestingly, the United States, which is the top desired
destination among all potential migrants, does not make the top five in
terms of potential net population growth. The United States' net
migration value of +60% places it farther down the list, after Canada
and several other developed nations that dominate the top of the list.
One important caveat to consider, however, is that the population size
of a destination country is related to its ranking.
Developing countries, in contrast, dominate the bottom of the list.
The countries with the highest negative Potential Net Migration Index
values are the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa) (-60%),
Sierra Leone (-55%), and Zimbabwe (-55%), Haiti (-50%), and El Salvador
(-50%).
While Gallup's findings reflect people's aspirations rather than
their intentions, the implications of what could happen if hypothetical
desires became reality are serious considerations for leaders to think
about as they plan development and migration strategies now and in the
future. Gallup will continue to monitor trends in desired migration,
and will publish an updated index that includes more countries in early
2010.
Having lived in Singapore for all 28 years of my life, and having spent the last 14 months of my work life in and out of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on a monthly basis, I found this survey particularly interesting.
I would understand the high percentage of Singapore PMNI rating - given that a lot more foreigners including Phillipinos, Indians, Malaysians would welcome a move to Singapore, coupled with maybe 20% of the adult population in Singapore would might consider a move out of the country (and I still doubt it would be this big a percentage given how Kiasi Singaporeans are). What I found interesting is why Saudi has a 180% PNMI value. I would not think that the people interviewed would have rated KSA as a top 3 destination for migration. Although the other side of the equation (the number of adults wanting a move out of the country) would be low, given the fantastic welfare for local Saudi's by the govenrnment. The other highly likely reason for this 180% value would be the fact that the percentage of the adult population, the third factor of the equation, is extremely low in KSA. The population in KSA is 28 million; 38% of this population is between 10-14 years of age. Which means the population factor considered in the survey could only be less than the 59% of those aged between 15-64 yrs of age.
According to the United Nations Development Program's Human Development Report released on October 5, 2009, compiled on the basis of data from 2007:
Singapore ranked 23rd in the world, and grouped in the developed country category UAE ranked 35th, and also grouped with the developed countries KSA is ranked 59th, and in the developing country cluster.
Hmmmm
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