SINGAPORE, which Trinidad and Tobago has been urged to emulate, has been adjudged as having the world’s most passport of 2023.
T&T is ranked 28th.
The 5.5 million people of the city-state of Singapore could visit 193 destinations of 227 around the world visa-free.
The latest Henley Passport Index reveals that Singapore has knocked Japan into third place.
Germany, Italy, and Spain are jointly second.
Austria, Finland, France, Japan, Luxembourg, South Korea, and Sweden were named third.
The worst passports to hold are citizens of Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
In T&T’s early years of political independence, there were calls for national development to be modelled after Singapore, a tiny country without any natural resources.
Even water is limited in the compact country of 278 square miles, with much of the precious commodity imported from Malaysia.
Singapore, which is in Southeast Asia, has powered itself into a developed country, on the strength of its manufacturing financial, tourism, and other services, and on strict national discipline.
Machinery, equipment, and chemicals are produced, with significant exports.
The country has a strong economy, with 7.6 per cent annual growth, low taxation, minimal unemployment, high literacy, skilled nationals, and one of the least corrupt in the world.
Singapore has been described as the most food-secure country in the world, with a heavy emphasis on agro-technology.
The country’s rapid development has been termed by experts as a miracle since it got independence from Britain in 1965.
There are ongoing measures to promote innovation and entrepreneurship.
The visionary and firm leadership of Lee Kuan Yew has been seen as a factor, along with the country’s strategic location, considered an ideal hub for international trade.
Singapore’s story of success has been studied around the world, with several leaders seeking to model their country after the small Asian land.
Trinidad and Tobago’s narrative has been dramatically different.
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