Port changed Singapore’s destiny

Essential for survival: Shipping containers stacked along the docking bay at the port in Singapore. The port has helped to put the republic on the world map by connecting it to far-flung, major centres of economic activity. — AFP

SINGAPORE’S port is a microcosm of its economic trajectory over the decades, mirroring ingrained outward impulses and forward-looking strategies, a sine qua non for survival.

As much as the port has anchored the economy for almost 200 years and now accounts for 170,000 jobs, it has been posited that many Singaporeans cannot fully fathom its critical role, particularly when couched in single-digit terms as contributing about 7% to the gross national product.