What this lesson teaches
I can explain what helps Singapore survive, adapt and thrive as a resilient city-state.
Syllabus K329, Topic 5.1, Key Question 4. What contributes towards Singapore's resilience?
Make a guess
After a flood cuts a key road, the government reopens it exactly as it was. Is that resilience?
- No, that is survival. Adapting means fixing what failed.
- Yes, because nothing more can be done.
- Yes, full resilience, because the road is open.
- No, because resilience means floods do not happen.
Show the answer
No, that is survival. Adapting means fixing what failed.
Reopening keeps essentials going. Adaptation uses lessons to add a backup route or better drains, and thriving builds a better place over time.
Resilience means getting through a crisis, adapting to change and building a better place to live over time.
Survival means getting through a national crisis while keeping essential services running. In the 2009 recession, the Jobs Credit scheme cut employers' wage costs. During COVID-19 in 2020, the Jobs Support Scheme helped pay local workers' wages. Both helped firms keep workers. They did not stop every job loss.
Adaptability means changing to fit new conditions. Strong infrastructure and good institutions make this possible. More suppliers, better drains and new work skills help Singapore cope with the next shock.
Thriving means more than surviving. It means building a liveable, sustainable city with opportunities and a healthy environment for everyone. One investment can do all three. A new water source keeps supply going, changes how water is made and improves future reliability.
Sort these
Does each action mainly help Singapore survive a crisis, adapt to change, or thrive over time?
Groups: Survive, Adapt, Thrive.
- Essential services keep running during a pandemic lockdown
- Building bigger drains after repeated flash floods
- Adding more food suppliers after a supply shock
- Investing in new skills so workers can take up future jobs
- Building a liveable, green city with chances for everyone
- The Jobs Support Scheme pays part of workers' wages during COVID-19
Show the answer
Survive
- Essential services keep running during a pandemic lockdown Keeping essentials going in a crisis is the core of survival.
- The Jobs Support Scheme pays part of workers' wages during COVID-19 It kept people in work through the crisis, which is about getting through it.
Adapt
- Building bigger drains after repeated flash floods Changing infrastructure to fit new conditions is adaptation.
- Adding more food suppliers after a supply shock It uses a lesson from disruption to make the system cope better next time.
Thrive
- Investing in new skills so workers can take up future jobs Opening new opportunities for the long term is part of thriving.
- Building a liveable, green city with chances for everyone Thriving means more than coping; it builds a better place to live over time.
- Survive
- Get through a crisis and keep essentials running.
- Adapt
- Change systems to fit new conditions.
- Thrive
- Build a liveable, sustainable city for the long term.
Step by step
Survive
Keep essentials going and support people.
Adapt
Fix weak systems using lessons learnt.
Thrive
Improve liveability and opportunities.
Worked example: Three tests for Singapore
The Jobs Support Scheme helped protect jobs in a crisis: survival. NEWater and desalination changed the water supply: adaptation. City in Nature links habitats and greenery to make the city more liveable: thriving.
Watch out for this
Resilience means disruption never happens.
Resilience is coping, adapting and recovering despite disruption.
Check your understanding
Which is the clearest example of adaptation?
- Restoring a service in exactly the same weak way.
- Treating a rare crisis as unlikely to return, and moving on.
- Using lessons from a disruption to add a backup route.
Show the answer
Using lessons from a disruption to add a backup route.
Yes. The system changes to cope better next time.