The Republic of Singapore has a total land area of about 720 sq km comprising one main island and a number of offshore islands. The larger offshore islands are Pulau Tekong, Pulau Ubin and Sentosa.
Singapore has a population of about 5.5 million. There are three major ethnic groups, namely Chinese, Malays and Indians. Other races include Caucasians, Eurasians and Asians of different origins. The four official languages are Malay, Mandarin, Tamil and English. English is the common language of the nation and is the language of business, government and medium of instruction in schools.
Major industries of Singapore includes electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, processed food and beverages, ship repair, offshore platform construction, life sciences and entrepot trade.
Singapore is a republic with a parliamentary system of government. Singapore adopted the Westminster system of government after it gained independence on 9 August 1965. The Constitution lays down the fundamental principles and basic framework for the three branches of the Government of Singapore, namely the Executive, the Legislative and the Judiciary.
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