The Singapore Prize is an annual literary award presented by the National Library Board of Singapore. It comes with both a cash prize and specially commissioned trophy; winners are chosen by a jury composed of judges and readers from an annual shortlist. This prize honors writing about Singapore that speaks directly to its people and history.

The inaugural Singapore Prize was established in 2014 as part of commemorating SG50, and has since been won by American Professor John Miksic for his book entitled Singapore and the Silk Road of the Sea: 1300-1800 which offers a groundbreaking reinterpretation of our nation’s history and its position within Asia. A four-member jury led by NUS East Asian Institute chairman Wang Gungwu selected him.

Prince Mohammed of Jordan brought up President Kennedy’s 1962 “moonshot” challenge of sending astronauts to the Moon by the end of the decade as an analogy for Earthshot prize’s goal: finding practical solutions to our planet’s most pressing issues within one generation. “I believe we can make history together, and I thank each of you for embracing the extraordinary challenge of speeding up innovation globally,” the prince declared.

At a ceremony at MediaCorp theatre, prize winners were revealed. Attending celebrities included actor Yen and actress Mbatha, wearing dresses by designer Stella McCartney renowned for its commitment to sustainability, as well as bands One Republic and Bastille who performed for this event co-hosted by actors Hannah Waddingham and Sterling K Brown; Singapore Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan as well as New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern also joined in.

At this year’s Singapore Prize ceremony, other literary awards were also handed out, such as the Singapore Book Council Achievement award going to Singapore poet Edwin Thumboo; for the first time in its history an author had been shortlisted in three categories and two languages for this prestigious prize.

Clara Chow won in English fiction; Leluhur: Singapore’s Kampong Gelam by Hidayah Amin; and Into the Blue by Yen Yong were awarded prizes and recognized as prominent voices within Singapore literature scene. Their prize citation highlighted these authors as prominent voices. The Singapore Literary Society will host an awards dinner next month to recognize writers. Winning entries will be published in an anthology. This prize was established to honour Christopher Bathurst KC Viscount Bledisloe who died earlier this year. The winner will receive a certificate and citation honoring them as authors, while all finalists received S$25,000 each to help further their writing careers. Winning authors also had the chance to visit Singapore to forge relationships with local business and government – this event would also be open to the public.