Established in 1999

Planners expect the population of Singapore to reach 5.5 million by 2040 or 2050, taking into account an expected increase in the number of foreigners working here. From just 3 million in 1990, the number has swelled to 3.9 million today, including 700 000 foreigners.

A high-level working committee is now looking at ways to encourage more couples to have babies. Demographer Saw Swee Hock says that if the fertility rate continues to stay below two, the population here, minus the foreigners, will peak at about 3.3 million in 2025 and then begin to drop.

Singapore's water is clean and safe to drink from the tap. There is no need to boil it.

The Editor

Raymond Han

You can e-mail him at editor@getforme.com

The WEATHER TODAY: Showers with thunder expected over many areas in the late morning and early afternoon. WATER TIDES High tide 8.18 am 2.2m 9.26 pm 2.4m SUN Sunrise 6.57 am Sunset 7.07 pm MOON Moonrise 3.41 am Moonset 4.02 pm PSI: 44 (healthy) TEMPERATURE: 24-32 degrees Celsius (updated daily at 6am Singapore time)

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Yesterday Apr 2000 Mar 2000 Feb 2000 Jan 2000 1999

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^{Gallup survey on retrenched workers}

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A Gallup Organisation survey conducted in February and March 2000 on 422 retrenched workers has found that four in ten retrenched workers had difficulty in getting a job or were rejected because of their age. A quarter of those surveyed were told they did not have the relevant skills for the jobs they were applying for.
42% of the retrenched workers had found permanent jobs while 21% held temporary jobs. 37% were not employed when surveyed. The profile of those surveyed is as follows:
          Age group 25 - 39        28%
          Age group 40 - 49        45%
          Age group 50 & above 27%
A worrisome point is that some of those retrenched may have dropped out of the job market. This does not augur well both for the worker and the economy. Singapore is already short of workers and has to engage foreign workers to make up for the shortfall. In the short term, we will not have enough Singaporean workers to keep our economy running at the pace we are accustomed to.
While Singaporean workers aged 40 and above may feel displaced in this ever changing environment, they must meet the challenge head on to survive this new Internet economy where being older means being a liability. As a fellow 40-something, I have been through this path but I hasten to add that we must think of our children first and put our emotions aside. Most of us Singaporeans marry late, and our children are still in the toddler stage when we reach our forties. There is still a long way to go in supporting our children. We cannot look back and think of the good old days. That's long gone. Retraining is the answer and the earlier we start the better for us and our economy. If we can muster our courage, adapt to the changes and put ourselves at the forefront of all these changes, I am sure we will outperform the young upstarts who have not got the benefit of our experience, for say what you may - it is experience that will eventually have an upper hand in whatever we undertake.
Besides, come 2025 when we will be in our sixties, for every one of us there are only three of them to support us and the economy. It's a burden they will have to bear in the future. So, for this reason alone, forgive them.
If you have any comments or questions, please e-mail us at editor@getforme.com .

NEW WEBSITES
bowtieAsia.com dedicates itself to linking e-angels to promising Internet & Infocomm Start-Up Companies.
AsiaBuilders.com provides comprehensive listings and product catalogues for the construction industry.
Moneycast.com.sg has an online stock game in which you can win a grand cash prize of S$10 000. The Game is divided into 6 weekly contests and starts on 17 Apr 2000.
Eyeball.com.sg or the print version, a morning tabloid, Project Eyeball, is a new newspaper set to hit the streets and the cyber-highways in the middle of the year. Coming to you from Singapore Press Holdings (SPH).
GettingHere.com, which offers listings of short-haul tour packages tour operators want to sell off quickly, will be launched on 17 May 2000. Click GettingHere.com for a preview.
SporesCity
The Singaporean website community Set up your company's website here. More...

We are now 488 pages thick and growing.
New! The new Cartier boutique has opened at Ngee Ann City #01-33 & #02-04. Tel: (65) 734 2427.
Renamed! The Lasalle International Design School is now Raffles Lasalle International Design School.

GOVERNMENT SNIPPETS
Singapore High Commission in London has launched its website.

NEW: Subscribe to our Weekly Internet Edition mailing list so that we can keep you informed of the latest happenings in Singapore. To subscribe, click SINGAPORE.

Please sign our guestbook... Thank you.
GOVERNMENT MATTERS
Singapore Government Website   Police Ministry Of Education Consular Matters & Migrating (known as permanent residency)
Setting up a business? Do a free Name Search first to see whether the name you want is available. Click RCB.
BUILDINGS TO BE PULLED DOWN
The 17-storey Cathay Building, which houses Cathay Cinema (opened on 3 Oct 1939), is to make way for a new 15-storey shopping-office-cinema complex. It was completed in 1941.

EscapeArtist.Com The website on overseas living for international job seekers and expatriates.
ExpatSingapore For expatriates planning to relocate to Singapore. Provides excellent information on Singapore.
ContactSingapore Step-by-step guide to applying for a job, getting an employment pass, remuneration structure and corporate culture.
Useful Services Relocating to Singapore?
     The Singapore Jewellers' Association (SJA) has advised tourists to buy jewellery from retailers accredited with the Singapore Jewellers' Association or who carry the Jeweller Trust or Case Trust logo. Its announcement follows a series of complaints by tourists from China who told the Chinese daily, Lianhe Zaobao that they were "ripped off" by jewellers in Singapore who sold them fake products.

TOURISTS
Tourism Board
Tourist Arrival Statistics
To get free copies of brochures on Singapore, including Singapore Official Guide, please click HERE.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Low Lying Areas In Singapore Lists the flood-prone areas in Singapore.
Things you should know Tells you things you need to be aware of.

The top ten fiction and non-fiction titles sold at these bookstores last week

Top Ten KINOKUNIYA Bestsellers

Top Ten BORDERS Bestsellers

Top Ten MPH Bestsellers

Top Ten TIMES Bestsellers

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Sunday 30 Apr 2000

Manpower Minister Lee Boon Yang said yesterday that DBS Bank should soncsider holding back on imposing a S$2 monthly charge on customers who have less than S$500 in their accounts. This way, he said, the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board will have time to work out a way to let lower-income members transfer CPF savings to long-term retirement accounts in banks.

Doctors have been told by the Health Ministry to stop prescribing antibiotics too freely. A Health Ministry survey of doctors released yesterday revealed that six in ten antibiotic prescriptions last year were given for upper respiratory tract problems.

Asia

Manila: The Philippine government yesterday rejected a demand by Muslim extremists to replace its chief hostage negotiator amid reports that the health of their 21 captives, including ten foreign tourists, had deteriorated.

Around the world

New York: A US Federal court has ruled that MP3.com Inc violated copyright law with the creation of a database in which users can store music and then access it via any computer connected to the Internet.

Courtesy of The Straits Times

News updated by 8.00 am daily.

SINGAPORE SLING

30ml Gin

15ml Cherry Brandy

120ml Pineapple Juice

15ml Lime Juice

7.5ml Cointreau

7.5ml Dom Benedictine

10ml Grenadine

A dash of Angostura Bitters

Garnish with a slice of pineapple & cherry

The Singapore Sling was created by Raffles Hotel bartender Mr Ngiam Tong Boon.

ECONOMY

The consumer price index (CPI) for March 2000 dipped by 0.3% compared to February 2000. Food prices fell by 1.6% due mainly to cheaper seafood, vegetables and fresh pork. The cost of transport and communications fell by 0.2% due to falling car prices.

The CPI is used as an inflation gauge by measuring the change in the prices of a fixed basket of goods purchased commonly by most households.

The Government has forecast that inflation will be within 2% this year.