Demographics
The Singapore society has been a multicultural society due to its strategic location and other causes. The 1947 census highlighted that 56 percent of the population were born in Singapore. Further the Government also imposed restriction on immigrants by giving them temporary residence status in 1965. The population of Singapore according to the 1980 census 78 percent of the population was born in Singapore. The sex ratio as per the census is 1,042 males for 1,000 females. The Singapore Govt. (in 1960�f) through various programs had attempted to control the birth rate and in the 1970 voluntary sterilization and abortion made legal.

• Country name: Republic of Singapore
• Capital Name: Singapore
• Population: 4,608,167 (July 2008 est.)
• Nationality: Singaporean(s)
• Languages: Mandarin 35%, English 23%, Malay 14.1%, Hokkien 11.4%, Cantonese 5.7%, Teochew 4.9%, Tamil 3.2%, other Chinese dialects 1.8%, other 0.9% (2000 census)
• Ethnic Groups: Chinese 76.8%, Malay 13.9%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4% (2000 census)

Economy
Singapore has a highly developed and successful free-market economy. It enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable prices, and a per capita GDP equal to that of the four largest West European countries. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in consumer electronics and information technology products. It was hard hit from 2001-03 by the global recession, by the slump in the technology sector, and by an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003, which curbed tourism and consumer spending. Fiscal stimulus, low interest rates, a surge in exports, and internal flexibility led to vigorous growth in 2004-07 with real GDP growth averaging 7% annually. The government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less vulnerable to the global demand cycle for information technology products - it has attracted major investments in pharmaceuticals and medical technology production - and will continue efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech hub.

• GDP (purchasing power parity): $228.1 billion (2007 est.)
• GDP - real growth rate: 7.7% (2007 est.)
• GDP - per capita (PPP): $49,700 (2007 est.)
• Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.1% (2007)
• Exports: $450.6 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
• Imports: $396 billion (2007 est.)

Government
The Government of Singapore is formed by the political party which gains a simple majority in the general elections held in Singapore at least once every five years. It is part of Singapore's political system and supported by the Singapore Civil Service. The government of Singapore has been chosen by election since 1959 elections, when Singapore achieved self-governance. Before then, the government was mainly either a colonial administration solely or a mixture of colonial rule and a partially-elected assembly, such as the Legislative Council. The People's Action Party has formed government in every election since 1959.

• Administrative divisions: None
• Legal system: Based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
• Constitution: 3 June 1959; amended 1965 (based on preindependence State of Singapore Constitution)
• Independence: 9 August 1965 (from Malaysian Federation)

References
Government of Singapore - Official Website
Singapore International Chamber of Commerce
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) - The World Factbook
Nation Master - World Data Center
Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia Lonely Planet - Travel Guide