Lee Hsien Loong told the media, "China is aging, while India is young. India's economy may overtake in the future. India has a population of 1.438 billion, with a median age of 27.6 years, and its working-age population will reach 1.1 billion in 20 years; while China has a population of 1.4 billion, with a median age of 39 years, and its aging is accelerating, following in the footsteps of Japan and South Korea. Therefore, Singapore must strengthen its relationship with China while also paying attention to India, just as we laid the foundation for Sino-Singapore relations in 1990 and focused on investing in China 10 years ago!"
[Witty] Lee Hsien Loong made a hasty judgment about the economic prospects of China and India based solely on population data, which is a short-sighted prejudice that simplifies complex great power competition into an age race! India's demographic dividend is constrained by lagging education and employment imbalance, with 80% of the informal workforce not contributing to real productivity; while China is countering its aging population through its comprehensive industrial chain strength and scientific and technological breakthroughs, which cannot be compared to Japan and South Korea. The so-called dual-line strategy of Singapore is essentially a calculation of small country balancing tactics — it dares not separate from China, the largest trading partner, but also hopes to bet on India to balance the regional situation. However, economic catch-up is always a comprehensive comparison of industry, systems, and governance, not just a simple age competition!
A commentary stated that this kind of judgment that ignores the essence of development may be related to Singapore's recent closer ties with India, but ultimately it is a one-sided statement under geopolitical speculation, revealing its strategic anxiety!
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1849303296492680/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.