Royal couple in Singapore from Tuesday Posted: 10 September 2012 1840 hrs SINGAPORE: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will make an official visit to Singapore from 11 to 13 September. Prince William and his wife Catherine will be here to mark Britain's Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. The royal couple will meet President Tony Tan Keng Yam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. President Tony Tan and Mrs Tan will also host the Duke and Duchess to a welcome dinner in honour of their visit. The Duke and Duchess will visit the Singapore Botanic Gardens where an orchid will be named in their honour. They will also visit Gardens by the Bay, Queenstown HDB estate, the Rainbow Centre at Margaret Drive, Rolls-Royce Seletar campus and the Kranji War Cemetery and Memorial.- CNA/ck/al The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William (L) and Catherine (AFP/File, Adrian Dennis) Make a date with Britain's royal couple, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Catherine. (Channel NewsAsia's Digital Desk)
Prince William & Kate Middleton arrive in Singapore Published on Sep 11, 2012 The royal couple boards a green Jaguar car upon arrival at the Changi Airport VIP complex at about 2.45 pm on 11 September 2012. -- PHOTO: Seah Kwang Peng By Melissa Pang LATEST 4.04PM - The crowd goes crazy and cheers as the royal couple arrives at Raffles Hotel. Timeline [TABLE="class: timeline"] [TR="class: nongrey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]3.49PM [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]Prince William and wife Catherine have left the Botanic Gardens for their hotel. The duchess was dressed in a beautiful pale pink coat dress with orchid prints. She emerged with a bouquet of the orchids that were named after the royal couple. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: grey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]3.29PM [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have arrived at the Singapore Botanic Gardens - the first stop of their three-day visit here. The royal couple were ushered to the National Orchid Garden where an orchid will be named after them. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: nongrey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]3.12PM [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]Fans have begun to gather outside the Raffles Hotel, awaiting the arrival of William and Kate. Many did not know that the royal couple were going to arrive and were simply visiting the historic hotel. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: grey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]3.03PM [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]It's a really hot day. NParks and British High Commission officers are passing reporters and cameramen safari hats and bottled water. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: nongrey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]2.45PM [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]The royal couple boards a green Jaguar car upon arrival at the changi airport VIP complex at about 2:45pm. They are received by Dr Maliki Osman and his wife. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: grey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]9.30AM [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]Fans of Will and Kate begin gathering at the Botanic Gardens, which is the first stop on the royal couple's tour in Singapore. [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have arrived at the Singapore Botanic Gardens - the first stop of their three-day visit here. They were dropped off at the burkhill hall entrance. The Duchess is dressed in a pale pink coat dress with orchid prints on the front. The royal couple were ushered to the national orchid garden where an orchid will be named after them.
16,800 lanterns to light up Chinatown for Mid-Autumn Festival Four streets to be lit up in record display of lanterns at festival starting on Sunday Published on Sep 12, 2012 Lanterns lighting up Eu Tong Sen Street last night during a preview. This year’s Mid-Autumn Festival in Chinatown is expected to attract 1.2 million people. -- ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM By Jessica Lim Chinatown is about to see its brightest-ever celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, with a record display of street lanterns. Four streets - New Bridge Road, Eu Tong Sen Street, Smith Street and South Bridge Road - will be lit by 16,800 lanterns over 2km of road. Also being planned are giant lantern structures shaped like fruits - grapes and apples, for example. The display will be entered in the Singapore Book of Records for the "largest display of street lanterns". Announcing the details of this year's Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations, organiser Kreta Ayer-Kim Seng Citizens Consultative Committee said the event is expected to attract about 1.2 million people, 15 per cent more than last year's crowd.
A visit from the Royals Royal couple kicks off Diamond Jubilee tour, reaffirms close ties between UK and Singapore TODAY 04:45 AM Sep 12, 2012 SINGAPORE - With an orchid named after them and dinner at the Istana with President Tony Tan and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Britain's Prince William and his wife Catherine received a warm welcome in Singapore yesterday as they kicked off their South-east Asian and Pacific tour marking Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. Upon their arrival at Changi Airport in the afternoon, the royal couple were met by Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Defence and National Development Maliki Osman and his wife. Their first stop was the Singapore Botanic Gardens, where an orchid was named after them: The Vanda William Catherine. During the visit, Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge also viewed the Dendrobium Queen Elizabeth II and the Dendrobium Memoria Princess Diana. They were then taken to Raffles Hotel, where more than 100 people greeted the couple and took pictures as they emerged from their car. At the welcome ceremony at the Istana in the evening, the Prince and the Duchess met President Tan and PM Lee and their wives. In a speech at the dinner, President Tan affirmed the close ties between Singapore and the United Kingdom: "The relationship between our two countries has remained strong and tightly-knit over the years, underpinned by deep historical ties, a shared language and substantial mutual interests. "Our bilateral cooperation has grown steadily and now spans a broad range of fields." Prince William, who hailed Paralympics medallist Laurentia Tan and other Singaporean athletes at the recent London Games in his speech, said: "We are delighted that the relationship between the UK and Singapore is now as close as it has ever been ... Catherine and I greatly look forward to learning much more, and seeing much more, during our stay here." The couple leave for Malaysia tomorrow. Britain's Prince William attends a welcome ceremony at the Istana while on an official visit to Singapore on 11 Sep 2012. He is accompanied here by President Tony Tan. Photo by OOI BOON KEONG Prince William and Kate Middleton at the Botanic Gardens. It is the first stop on their tour of Singapore. -- ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM Straits Times Photo Gallery: http://www.straitstimes.com/breakin...-couple-arrives-singapore-3-day-tour-20120912 .
Royal couple starts day with visit to Gardens By The Bay Straits Times Published on Sep 12, 201219 The duke and duchess separated to shake hands with the crowd. A girl in the crowd asked prince William what superpower he would pick if he could have one, and he said invisibility. When the girl posed the same question to Kate, she said "I'd pick invisibility too so that William can't sneak up on me." -- ST PHOTO: JENNANI DURAI By Jennani Durai On day two of the royal couple's visit to Singapore, Prince William and his wife Catherine started their morning with a visit to the Gardens By The Bay, where they toured the Supertree Grove. A crowd gathered at the gardens, including around 50 schoolchildren from the Tanglin Trust school here who were decked out with Union Jack flags. Next, they will head to the Rolls Royce Seletar campus, and after that they will head to Queenstown for a slice of HDB life. The royal couple will watch some cultural performances at Strathmore Green HDB estate, and visit Rainbow Centre, a school for kids with autism and multiple disabilities.
Photo gallery: Royal couple arrive at Strathmore Green estate in Queenstown Published on Sep 13, 2012 http://www.straitstimes.com/breakin...e-strathmore-green-estate-queenstown-20120913 Prince William and Catherine will be given a taste of Housing Board life on their low-key visit to Queenstown's Strathmore Green. -- MY PHOTO: JAMIE KOH By Melissa Pang Prince William and his wife Catherine have arrived at Strathmore Green estate in Queenstown. A lion dance troupe greeted the royal couple, who were earlier at the Rolls Royce factory in Seletar.
It's going to get cosy at the Sports Hub By Low Lin Fhoong, TODAY | Posted: 12 September 2012 0728 hrs SINGAPORE: Working, playing and training together could be the future for a number of National Sports Associations (NSAs) when the S$1.33-billion Sports Hub officially opens its doors in April 2014. As the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) mulls over options to house the different sports at its Kallang facilities, which include the 55,000-capacity National Stadium, a 3,000-seater multi-purpose indoor aquatic centre, the Singapore Sports Institute, a multi-purpose arena and a water sports centre, it is also thinking of making these NSAs share various services. While details of the relocation plans have not been finalised, TODAY understands that the SSC's tentative proposal includes an open concept office for the NSAs, who could also share a secretariat, office equipment and supplies, to encourage interaction and the sharing of best practices. At present, NSAs' secretariat staff provide finance, administrative, high performance, marketing and sponsorship services. The proposal for the NSAs will also complement the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and the SSC's strategy - which is part of the Sports Facilities Masterplan - to transform the Kallang area into a sports city with major sporting, lifestyle and entertainment events. The sports city concept will also incorporate a tennis academy and new centre court. TODAY also learnt that the Singapore Sports School could be moving from its Woodlands campus to Kallang in future. Said Bob Gambardella, SSC chief of Sports Development Group, in response to TODAY's queries: "The SSC has allocated space in the Sports Hub for the NSAs. We have engaged the NSAs via focus group sessions to gather their thoughts on the proposed move and will continue to work closely with them to finalise relocation plans for those who are keen to move to the Sports Hub. "We are looking at housing NSAs which have the best fit in relation to the types of training and competition facilities. We are also looking at the synergies that can be tapped by co-locating the identified NSAs." While some NSAs welcomed cost-cutting ideas such as the shared services, others were concerned about issues such as rental cost and the logistics of working in an open plan office. Said Bobby Lee, chief executive officer of the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA): "The idea is good from the angle of economies of scale, greater interaction amongst the various NSAs and learning best practices from peers. However, there are issues of privacy and security that need to be addressed. "From the SBA's angle, we raised a few points, such as the proximity of our office to the training hall, instead of the main open office, our requirement of a store room for our equipment and dormitories for the players. "Rental rates are also a concern and we hope that the current Annual National Sports Association Grant Exercise funding will increase to cover any increase in the facilities rental and operational costs." Rental and revenue would be a factor for the Singapore Canoe Federation, as its president Chua Kee Huat said on Tuesday: "We are a small NSA and are very conscious about the kind of expenses we incur. Our NSA is also more unique in that we depend on offering programmes and courses to the public and affiliates to generate income, and we are not sure if we will be able to do that at the Sports Hub (water sports centre). It's still unclear so we will have to wait." Others like Netball Singapore were more concerned about the feasibility of working together in an open space with other sports. "Our feedback to the SSC is that we would prefer a small office partition for privacy rather than a big office space," said Cyrus Medora, its executive director. "It (shared services) would definitely help the smaller NSAs, but maybe not for the bigger ones that already have a secretariat." - TODAY
Big plans shaping up for Sports Hub opening Operator says football match, concerts could mark 2014 launch by Tan Yo-Hinn 04:45 AM Sep 13, 2012 SINGAPORE - When the Singapore Sports Hub opens in April 2014, one of the most anticipated events will be the inauguration of the S$1.33 billion facility. A slew of events, including a concert by rock band U2, have previously been mentioned as possibilities for opening the venue. However, TODAY has learnt it is "most likely" that a football match will be its first sports event. After launching the National Stadium Club - the first corporate hospitality programme of its kind in South-east Asia - yesterday, World Sport Group (WSG) Senior Vice-President (Stadiums and Arenas) Adrian Staiti told TODAY that given its status as the region's No 1 sport, a football match at the 55,000-seater National Stadium would be the logical choice as the Sports Hub's maiden sports offering. "The primary focus and key sporting piece of the stadium is football. So, will the opening sports event be a football match? Most likely," said the 37-year-old American. The WSG, part of Singapore SportsHub which will build and operate the Sports Hub on a 25-year lease from the Government in the world's largest Public-Private Partnership, will manage the National Stadium Club. Also being considered are a few other events at the Sports Hub before its official opening to get the facility fully operational. The official opening date of the Sports Hub has not been decided. One of the most high-profile matches of the Singapore national side in recent years was in July 2008 against Brazil's Olympic team which featured former AC Milan and Barcelona star Ronaldinho. Staiti said the Lions may be one of the teams for this proposed match, but remained coy if a top international side could also be involved. The American also indicated that a concert could be part of the opening festivities. "There could be another concert that opens the stadium, it could also be in conjunction with each other, a full-day festivity." Currently being built on a 35-ha site in Kallang, the Sports Hub will house, among others, the Singapore Sports Council and Singapore Sports Institute. Featuring 62 executive suites costing S$72,000 to S$272,000, the membership offers a range of VIP services, including a members-only car park, concierge service and a panoramic view of the arena. Photo by WEE TECK HIAN
Sports Hub launches exclusive membership club Updated 03:26 PM Sep 12, 2012 SINGAPORE -- In a first of its kind in South-east Asia, the Singapore Sports Hub has launched its executive suites as part of the National Stadium Club. Up to 62 executive suites, including a VVIP suite, will be available at the 55,000-seater National Stadium, complete with panoramic views of the arena and luxurious interiors, with members enjoying a range of services such as in-suite catering, members-only car park area, concierge services and priority to events all year round. Run by World Sport Group (WSG), which manages the sales and marketing of the membership programme, the suites range from eight to 30 seaters, and are priced between S$72,000 to S$272,000. "This is a world-class membership programme designed to give members the ultimate sporting and hospitality experience," said Adrian Staiti, WSG's senior vice-president (stadiums and arenas). The National Stadium will be the centrepiece of the S$1.33 billion Sports Hub, which is scheduled to be ready by April 2014.
No more banding of secondary schools Education Ministry to also look into concerns about homework, tuition, test standards by Ng Jing Yng 04:45 AM Sep 13, 2012 SINGAPORE - Sweeping changes to the Republic's education system, which will have far-reaching effects on mainstream schools here, were laid out by Education Minister Heng Swee Keat yesterday. The banding of secondary schools purely by academic achievements will be abolished starting this year, while the Ministry of Education (MOE) has pledged to raise the quality of teachers and reach out to parents to be supportive partners to "deliver the best for our children". Implemented in 2004, banding works by grouping schools according to their average O-level scores into nine broad bands, which some felt would perpetuate a single-minded pursuit of academic excellence. "The fact is there is no single yardstick to measure how 'good' our schools are," Mr Heng said to some 1,900 educators at the MOE Work Plan Seminar yesterday. Schools were also relieved of "chasing awards" - as some among the public may see it - by deconstructing the hierarchy of awards that schools aim for each year. The MOE has tackled issues over the past year at the two bookends of the education system - university places and pre-school - and Mr Heng yesterday set his sights on addressing the perennial feedback of an overly-stressful education system. MORE HOMEWORK NOT ALWAYS BETTER Schools have to better coordinate the amount of homework given to students, said Mr Heng. A one-size-fits-all guideline by the MOE will not work as children learn at different speeds and schools have to communicate to parents on their homework policy. "Schools should not be apologetic about giving homework," said Mr Heng. "But it does not follow that more homework is always better." Homework ought to be on the idea of quality rather than quantity, he added. MOE can play its part by not contributing to the need for tuition. "Our schools and our examinations must not be run on the basis that students will have tuition," said Mr Heng, adding that teachers should not tell their charges to seek answers from their tuition teachers. He cautioned against excessive tuition, which undermines the spirit of perseverance as students "look for ready answers rather than struggle to understand". Educators should also set realistic tests and examinations, said Mr Heng, who noted anecdotal feedback that schools have set a harder test to "wake up" their students who are underperforming. The MOE will be studying how assessments can be pitched appropriately and better guide schools in setting questions, he added. Even while addressing these concerns, Mr Heng stressed that the education system must have "sufficient rigour and strength". "The key for us is not to reduce stress to zero, but to strike the right balance," he added. PITCHING HOMEWORK TO SUIT STUDENTS Educators and parents TODAY spoke to welcomed Mr Heng's message. "It touched the heartstrings when he urged all to reflect on the crux of the matter - what do we really want for our students," said Edgefield Primary School principal Willy Tan, who agreed that examination standards and homework must be set according to each child's abilities. "There could be external pressures from societal or parents, schools will then need to communicate more to parents on the idea behind initiatives," added Mr Tan. Tampines Secondary School principal Balamurugan Krishnasamy noted the difficulty could come from balancing parents' expectations and implementing the measures effectively. To assure parents, he suggested an arrangement where the amount of homework is pitched according to students' learning profiles. Parent Jennifer Chow is glad to know that measures will soon be taken to ensure more meaningful homework and assessment practices. She noted how her two primary school sons were given scores of worksheets just before the start of school holidays or spelling tests just days apart from each other. "In the end, we just end up rushing through everything, then what's the point?," she asked.
Its so nice to see Prince William playing ball w the kids. Man, looking at these pics, I can't imagine how scorching hot it must have been for this lovely couple! Was nice to see him without his tie and his collar unbuttoned too. Makes it all real.
MOE's aim is to make every school a good school Awards system to be replaced, while excellence model to be cut by half, says Education Minister by Amanda Lee 04:45 AM Sep 13, 2012 SINGAPORE - A simpler framework to recognise excellence in schools, while sharpening their focus on student development, will be rolled out by the Ministry of Education (MOE), said its minister Heng Swee Keat yesterday. Currently, there are two schemes - the Masterplan of Awards and the School Excellence Model - to encourage schools to achieve excellence. The Masterplan of Awards will be replaced in 2014, and a new way of recognising schools in, for example, student all-round development, will be introduced. The number of performance measures covered in the School Excellence Model will also be cut by half. The two schemes have led to much administrative work for schools, and fuelled public perception that schools are chasing awards, said Mr Heng. "More importantly, the new framework helps sharpen our schools' focus on putting students at the core of their daily work, and on having educators and parents work together in this collective undertaking," he added. To achieve the ministry's aim of getting "every school to be a good school", Mr Heng urged educators to aim for diversity among schools, each with its own niche area and peak of excellence. Today, 191, or about half of all schools, have a niche area, such floorball, dancesport and environmental education. Going forward, the MOE will aim for every school to have a recognised niche. Over the next five years, the ministry has committed S$55 million to enable every school to build its own niche. The MOE is also reviewing how resources are allocated to schools. Currently, schools are allocated budgets and teachers in proportion to their student enrolment. To help schools better cater to every student, a needs-based approach to resourcing is being studied by the MOE to help low progress students and low enrolment schools. "For students with weaker foundations, more individual attention can help them," said Mr Heng. "We can give these schools the resources to pilot intervention strategies, especially for those who are weak in literacy and numeracy." Allocating more resources to low enrolment schools will also allow students to enjoy a wider range of school programmes and co-curricular activities. Details will be announced at a later date, said Mr Heng. To make all schools even better schools, Mr Heng felt that schools could collaborate and share best practices so that others can also improve. An online repository of good school practices will be set up by the MOE. Principals TODAY spoke to supported the move to streamline the awards. Mr Balamurugan Krishnasamy, Principal of Tampines Secondary School, felt that awards are an "affirmation", but stressed that good work has also been carried out by schools that do not receive any awards. Going forward, the MOE will aim for every school to have a recognised niche. TODAY FILE PHOTO
MOE to take firm stand against unreasonable demands on teachers by Monica Kotwani Updated 09:02 PM Sep 12, 2012 SINGAPORE - Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said a firm stand must be taken against unreasonable demands placed on teachers. Speaking at the Ministry of Education's (MOE) annual Work Plan Seminar today, Mr Heng said the majority of parents are supportive partners of teachers. But he highlighted instances of excessive demands made by parents on teachers. Mr Heng gave the example of the mother who filed a police report upon finding out that her son's teacher had cut his hair before his PSLE oral exam. The mother claimed it ruined her son's S$60 haircut. Mr Heng said: "The simple fact is that the son was reminded over and over again to trim his hair. And when that failed, the school sent a letter. And the mother's response was that her son was dyslexic, and therefore forgetful. "As one writer puts it in one of our media commentaries, by raising such a hullabaloo, 'the mother did herself and her son no favours'. Now, if parents do not show graciousness to others and respect for rules, our young will not do so either. Soon, discipline will be eroded. The tone in our schools will deteriorate, and the tone in our society too," said Mr Heng.
Royal couple ends S'pore tour, heads to Kuala Lumpur Published on Sep 13, 2012 Prince William and Catherine view the graves of fallen soldiers. -- ST PHOTO: JENNANI DURAI By Melissa Pang LATEST 9.52am - The royal couple have left Kranji War Memorial. They will head to Changi airport to catch a flight to Kuala Lumpur. Singapore was the first stop in their Asia pacific Queen's Diamond Jubilee tour. After Malaysia, they will head to Solomon islands and Tuvulu. Timeline [TABLE="class: timeline"] [TR="class: nongrey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]9.49am [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]Catherine and Prince William view the graves of fallen soldiers. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: grey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]9.46am [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]The royal couple view the graves of fallen soldiers. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: nongrey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]9.40am [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]Everyone scrambles to get a photo as the duke and duchess arrive at Kranji War Memorial. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: grey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]9.33am [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]A crowd of about 500 has gathered despite the heat and remote location of the war memorial. [/TD] [/TR] [TR="class: nongrey"] [TD="class: timeline_time"]8.49am [/TD] [TD="class: timeline_desc"]Prince William and Catherine are expected to be at Kranji War Memorial at about 9.45am. It is the last stop in the royal couple's Singapore tour. [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] Prince William and his wife Catherine have reached Kranji War Memorial, their final stop in the Singapore leg of their Asia pacific tour. The couple will lay a wreath during the short ceremony. The Last Post will be played, signalling the start of a minute's silence. At the end of the silence the Arouse will be played. The royal couple will also speak to some war veterans. From here, they will head to Changi Airport, where a flight to their next stop - Kuala Lumpur - awaits.
The Kranji War Memorial The Kranji War Memorial. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kranji_War_Memorial: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [TABLE="class: infobox vcard, width: 315"] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TD="bgcolor: #DCDCDC, colspan: 2"]Commonwealth of Nations and the Netherlands [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="colspan: 2"] The Kranji War Memorial during the Remembrance Day Ceremony proceedings on 13 November 2005 [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="bgcolor: #DCDCDC, colspan: 2"]For the dead of World War II [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]1946 [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]01° near Kranji, Singapore [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="colspan: 2"]On the walls of this memorial are recorded the good names of twenty-four thousand soldiers and airmen of many races united in service to the British crown who gave their lives in Malaya and neighbouring lands and seas and in the air over southern and eastern Asia and the Pacific but to whom the fortune of war denied the customary rites accorded to their comrades in death THEY DIED FOR ALL FREE MEN [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] The Kranji War Memorial (Chinese: 克兰芝阵亡战士公坟; Malay: Tanah Perkuburan Perang Kranji; Tamil: கிராஞ்சி போர் நினைவு) is located at 9 Woodlands Road, in Kranji in northern Singapore. Dedicated to the men and women from United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Sri Lanka, India, Malaya, the Netherlands and New Zealand who died defending Singapore and Malaya against the invading Japanese forces during World War II, it comprises the War Graves, the Memorial Walls, the State Cemetery, and the Military Graves.
Royal couple visits Kranji War Memorial http://www.straitstimes.com/breakin...e-ends-spore-tour-heads-kuala-lumpur-20120913 More pictures of the Royal couple's visit to the Kranji War Memorial from the Straits Times Photo Gallery: Britain's Prince William, and his wife Catherine, the Duke and the Duchess of Cambridge pay their respects to war dead of both WWI and WWII at the Kranji Commonwealth War Memorial on Thursday Sept 13, 2012 in Singapore. -- PHOTO: AP
New Singapore stadium to host top teams Published on Sep 13, 2012 This graphic illustration handout image made available on September 13, 2012 by SportsHub Pte Ltd shows the national stadium under construction in Singapore. Singapore's state-of-the-art new stadium will host an annual football tournament featuring top European teams as one of its cornerstone events when it opens in 2014, organisers have revealed. -- PHOTO: AFP/SportsHub Pte Ltd SINGAPORE (AFP) - Singapore's state-of-the-art new stadium will host an annual football tournament featuring top European teams as one of its cornerstone events when it opens in 2014, organisers have revealed. The 55,000-seat facility, centrepiece of a billion-dollar complex near the city centre, is also likely to hold international rugby and Twenty20 cricket, and is the confirmed venue for the 2015 South-east Asian Games, they said. The dome-shaped National Stadium, with a retractable roof and seating cooled by ducted air, is currently under construction along with two indoor arenas, an aquatics centre and watersports facility, plus a large shopping mall. Mr Andrew Georgiou, chief operating officer of commercial partner World Sport Group, admitted the roster of events was a "huge talking point" for the stadium, in a city with a patchy sporting calendar.
Singapore makes strides in making medical devices, equipment Published on Sep 13, 2012 By Poon Chian Hui Singapore is further boosting its strengths in making medical devices and equipment, even as manufacturing output has tripled in the past decade. The development of business parks such as the new MedTech Park in the Jurong Lake District next year will further cement the country's reputation. "Singapore's position as the next hot spot for medical technology creation is beginning to take shape," said Minister of State for Health and Manpower Amy Khor on Wednesday at a trade exhibition at the Suntec convention centre. She noted that the value of medical devices and equipment made here hit $4.3 billion last year, from $1.5 billion in 2000. She said established electronics and logistics sectors are among the reasons for the growth.
Rochor area's diversity attracts researchers Data will be used for planning, and comparing urban trends in region Published on Sep 14, 2012 Researchers Zhou Ying and Edda Ostertag from the Future Cities Laboratory mapping the Rochor area. Since June, the research team has been going door to door to study the buildings and interview people who live and work in the area. -- ST PHOTO: LIM SIN THAI By Feng Zengkun Researchers have started to map part of the Rochor area to analyse its urban use and identify changes in the neighbourhood. They began the survey in June, going door to door to study the buildings and interview people who live and work in the area. Conducted by the Future Cities Laboratory - a research centre jointly established by Singapore's National Research Foundation and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology - the study will allow the researchers to compare urban trends and design in Singapore with other cities in the region, like Shanghai, Shenzhen and Bangkok. The researchers said they chose to study Rochor because of its physical and social diversity. The area includes the historic Kampong Glam and Little India.
Singapore is once again the lucky country among the SEA country to host the mother of all Kpop concert..
