A NEW nature-themed attraction will be coming to Singapore by 2015. Minister of State for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran on Tuesday announced that the Government will be releasing a 30-hectare site in Mandai for tourism development.
The new site will be close to the Singapore Zoo, Night Safari and the Mandai Orchid Garden. Together, they will form a new tourism cluster for those who want to experience nature and get away from the urbanised environment.
Mr Iswaran said at the official opening of the new cheetah habitat at the zoo: 'Beyond shopping, fine dining and spa treatments, an increasing number of tourists are keen to commune with nature, visit natural habitats and see wildlife. Singapore Tourism Board, therefore, plans to develop a cluster of attractions at Mandai to make it one of Asia's top nature destinations.'
Investors and developers will be invited to submit their tender proposals for the new cluster, which is about half the size of the Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, in the middle of 2008.
The tender will be awarded by the end of the year.
At the same time, the Zoo and Night Safari will be spending $70 million over the next five years to improve their facilities, upgrade animal habitats and improve prove visitors' experience by adding more trams and eateries.
Wildlife Reserve Singapore, which owns the Zoo and Night Safari, is also in the midst of planning a third attraction to complement its current facilities.
Zoo executive director Fanny Lai said that the new cluster will probably be about 10 ha in size and will focus on freshwater flora and fauna.
Currently, the Zoo and Night Safari attract 2.5 million visitors annually. With the addition of the third attraction by Wildlife Reserves Singapore and the development on the new site, STB aims to double visitorship to five million annually.
This will help to help Singapore to achieve its tourism targets of 17 million visitors spending $30 billion here.
News of the new Mandai attractions did not go down well with nature lovers like the Nature Society, which is concerned that any development there may upset the fragile ecosystem of the neighbouring nature reserves.
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