Lee Kuan Yew

Legacy

🇸🇬Singapore

Rank #35

Score: 74

About Lee Kuan Yew

Lee Kuan Yew (1923–2015) was Singapore’s founding Prime Minister (1959–1990). He led Singapore from a colonial port to a wealthy, highly-managed city-state with strong institutions and rapid economic growth, while exercising tight political control — a foundational and contested legacy.

Scoring Breakdown

Detailed analysis of the politician's score.

HDI

Singapore HDI ≈ 0.946 (long-term improvement during Lee Kuan Yew era)9/10

Source: UNDP — Human Development country insights (2023)

GDP per capita

Singapore GDP per capita (historical growth since independence)9/10

Source: World Bank — Singapore country data (2023)

Gini coefficient

Historical inequality series (various sources)3/10

Source: World Bank — Gini (SGP) (1990)

Employment rate