If I may comment abit about this...
I think Singapore is not attracting enough of the risk-taker entrepreneurial people.
I want to share an experience....
When I was young... (now Im old)
I went to Australia. Met with an older distant cousin. Stayed there with his family for abit.
He immigrated to Australia straight from PRC. He got Australian citizenship after 6 years. He opened printing shop, initially 1, then 2, and now I believe 3 branches.
He had no relevant background, actually studied computing in uni, those obsolete types like PASCAL from the old days, but he once worked in printing industry, so he opened a printing business.
Every morning wake up so early, he went to exhibitions, look at printing machines. Later talk to customers. He is very hardworking, his wife is helping in the business, and he was trying to get his brother to immigrate to join him and his parents.
His business was successful, alot of orders when I was there because it was some election time.
Then I got the chance to work in a bakery.
The bakery shop was opened by another immigrant family. Chinese Cambodians. They were also a family business. What strikes me was when I saw the hand of the bakery owner. He picked up hot metal plates with thick gloves and insert them to a hot oven. As a result of doing this for a long time, he got overblown/ swollen looking hand, because of the heat. It is actually abit deformed you know?
I still remember, it seem like a sacrifice, a mark of steel will and hard work.
That bakery shop was very successful, every morning people line up to buy bread/ cake/ etc.
So......moral of the story is...
Singapore here.....got let in such risk taker, entrepreneurial immigrants or not? People with steel will...people who want to embetter themselves.
Not just students on government scholarships, or people who already 'there' such as management expats, bankers.
Talent.....the real talent are people with steel will, with imagination, with drive....with entrepreneurship...they are the real driving force that can energize the wider society.
But I think Singapore focus so much on 'skilled' immigrants such as scholars and professionals, and not enough attention towards 'can-do' immigrants.
Meat Pao.
