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Buildings originally intended for one family were made to house 10 or more without privacy, lighting and modern sanitation. In most of the areas elementary communal facilities like schools, proper markets, open spaces or children's playgrounds were not provided.

As the population continued to grow in the post-war period, mainly due to the natural increase and the migratory surplus from the Federa- tion of Malaya, not only the central area was crowded to its capacity but also the vacant lands within and around the city were occupied by un- authorised buildings constructed of timber, planks and corrugated iron and other old scrap materials. This belt of squatters' settlement provided accommodation for more than 14 million people at the end of 1959.

In 1927 the Colonial Administra- tion established a Singapore Improve- ment Trust in an attempt to solve part of the growing housing pro- blem. From 1927 to 1941 the Trust completed slightly more than 2,000 units of public housing.

During the post-war years from 1947 to 1959 the Singapore Improve- ment Trust made a bigger effort in public housing and completed slightly more than 20,000 units of public housing at an average of about 1,700 units per annum. However, the housing problem was so massive that this effort was less than 20 per cent of the requirement.

When Singapore's first self-govern- ment took office in the second half of 1959 the solution to the housing

problem was given top priority in the tasks ahead and the Housing & Deve- lopment Board was formed in early 1960 to replace the Singapore Im- provement Trust.

The Housing and Development Or- dinance which came into force on February 1, 1960 gave the Board the following functions:—

(a) to prepare and execute propos- als, plans and projects for:

(i) the erection, conversion, im- provement, and extension of any building for sale, lease, rental or other purpose; (ii) the clearance and redevelop- ment of slum and urban areas;

(iii) the development or redeve- lopment of areas designated by the Minister; (iv) the development of rural or agricultural areas for the resettlement of persons dis- placed by operations of the Board or other resettlement projects approved by the Minister:

(b) to manage all lands, houses and buildings or other property vest- ed in or belonging to the Board: (c) to carry out all investigations and

surveys necessary for the per- formance of the functions and duties of the Board:

(d) to provide loans with approval

of the Minister, to enable per- sons to purchase any developed land or part thereof upon a mortgage of such developed land or part thereof at such in- terest as may be prescribed:

(e) to do all such other matters and

things as are necessary for the exercise and performance of all

or any of the functions and duties of the Board.

In addition to all this, the Minister for National Development was em- powered under Section 14 of the Or- dinance, to assign other functions to the Board and, in fact, the Board has undertaken a number of jobs not specifically allocated to it under the Ordinance, during its first five years.

A survey was conducted by the Board immediately on the extent of the housing problem and it was es- timated that 150,000 units of per- manent housing would be required from 1961 to 1970 to provide for the deficiency of accommodation of the following:-

(1) relieve the overcrowding in

the urban areas:' (2) provide accommodation for the new families to be formed during the 10-year period: (3) provide alternative accom- modation for resettlement of the people affected by deve- lopment projects;

(4) the requirements for the mo- derate programme of urban renewal in the central areas: (5) requirements for accommoda- tion in the clearance of the slums.

To meet the target of housing re- quirements at least 15,000 units of permanent houses must be construct- ed annually and it was considered that private enterprise would be able to provide about 3,000 to 4,000 units

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MacPherson Road housing estate, covering 120 acres, has 10,113 flats to house some 60,000 people. About 30 acres of the estate is zoned for primary and secondary schools

Far East Architect & Builder December, 1967

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