The majority of Pakistanis in Singapore enter the country as university students. More than 100 Pakistani students study in the National University of Singapore alone.[2] In 2009, 22,300 Pakistanis visited Singapore[3] for tourism. Pakistanis living in Johor Bahru also use Singapore for their transit route for international travel, because of cheaper travel cost and shorter travel time duration travelling from the Singapore Changi Airport, as opposed to the nearest major Malaysian international airport in Kuala Lumpur, the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
Culture
Pakistanis in Singapore generally come from a middle-class background, with the majority working in engineering and business fields. Most Pakistani groceries, foodstuff, and restaurants can be found in Little India.
Pakistanis in Singapore sometimes speak the Singaporean Malay language, in addition to English and Urdu.
There is also a Singapore Urdu Development Centre offering classes in Urdu language to the children of Pakistanis, whereas Singapore Pakistani Association [4] promotes Pakistani culture in Singapore in collaboration with the Pakistan high commission in Singapore.[5] Singapore has also named one of its roads after Pakistan, the Pakistan Road in Sembawang.[6]
Pakistanis in Singapore follow similar religious affiliations as the people of Pakistan. Two of the masjid in Singapore controlled by MUIS have been named after Islamic personalities also revered by Muslims in Pakistan, namely Masjid Moulana Muhammad Ali,[7] named after Maulana Mohammad Ali Johar the famous South Asian leader and prominent figure of Khilafat Movement, and Masjid Abdul Aleem Siddique, named after Maulana Abdul Aleem Siddiqi, a prominent Barelvi scholar of South Asia. The Tableeghi Jamaat have weekly gathering at the Angolia Masjid, while the Pakistani Bohra visit the Anjumane Burhani Singapore Jamaat. However, the majority of Pakistani Sunnis frequent whichever masjid is close to their locality.
Ustaz Mohammed Iqbal Abdullah, a renowned Islamic scholar from Singapore, is a graduate of International Islamic University Islamabad,[8] and is currently the director of Azizah Chishty Quranic Centre.
Notable people
Saad Janjua - Cricketer in Singapore National Cricket team.
Shauket Aziz - Former Pakistani PM, spend several years working in Singapore Citibank in 1990s.[9]
