Dynamics of the Singapore Success Story: Insights by Ngiam Tong Dow

Ngiam Tong Dow served in the Singapore Administrative Service for more than forty years. He became Singapore's youngest permanent secretary ever in 1972 at the age of 35. He served in key government ministries, including the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Ministry of National Development, and the Ministry of Communications.\n\nHe worked closely with the founding political leaders of Singapore including the late Dr. Goh Keng Swee, former deputy prime minister, and the late Hon Sui Sen, former finance minister. He also served under Lee Kuan Yew, the founding prime minister and Goh Chok Tong, the succeeding prime minister.\n\nNgiam was chairman of various statutory boards and government linked companies, including the Singapore Economic Development Board, the Development Bank of Singapore, the Central Provident Fund Board, and the Housing Development Board. He received various national public service awards, namely the Public Administration Medal (Gold) in 1971, the Meritorious Service Medal in 1978, and the Distinguished Service Order in 1999.\n\nNgiam graduated from the University of Malaya (in Singapore) in 1959 with a Bachelor of Arts (First Class Honors) in Economics. He obtained a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from Harvard University in 1964. In 1985, he was awarded the Eisenhower Exchange Fellowship. He is the author of A Mandarin and the Making of Public Policy: Reflections by Ngiam Tong Dow (2006) and Growing Pains of Economic Development: the Singapore Experience (in Chinese) (2007).