Zeng Qingwen, CEO of Singapore’s Surbana Jurong Pte Ltd, shared his thoughts on city planning at the 37th session of the Liangjiang Forum on Jan 26, liangjiang.gov.cn reported.

Zeng noted that forward-looking, sustainable city planning is an advantage of Singapore and worth the attention of Liangjiang New Area and the Chongqing municipality.

Singapore is an international financial center similar to New York, London and Hong Kong. Although it has a high population density, its living standards and quality of life have been ranked at the top of cities around the world.

Singapore has an area of only 700 square kilometers. Back in the 1960s, when it had just gained independence, it used to be crowded due to lack of housing, and offered poor living conditions.

"How to make the city livable in such a highly populated environment was a tough question for the then government," said Zeng.

They noticed that only through forward-looking plans could the country be “l(fā)ivable” in such a crowded area. Beginning in 1971, Singapore revised its city planning every ten years. It has become a "garden city" with decades of effort.

In the 2001 planning version, the city set a goal of being a livable city based on the principle of sustainable development.

Singapore combined development with protection. In 1989, the country wrote “Protect the history and culture of Singapore” into its guideline for city development.