Designed to help a disadvantaged community in Singapore, the project was chosen as the winner of this year’s prestigious prize for its exemplary use of architecture as a tool for social progress. Among other things, the design integrates public facilities, a community space and over 100 apartments for senior citizens. The winning design also topped hundreds of other submissions from around the world, including Russia’s football stadium and Qatar’s National Library.
The prize, which is given annually to people or organisations that have done extraordinary things to improve life in Singapore, has been praised for being “revolutionary” and for putting the “emotion into the city”. Its organiser, the Economic Development Board, says the award “is one of the most coveted awards in the region”, adding that the prize’s recognition will help to drive the economy and make a difference to the lives of citizens.
Until now, only authors of fiction, non-fiction and poetry were eligible to win the biennial prize, which recognises outstanding published works by Singaporeans in any of the nation’s four official languages. But from 2024, translators, comic-book writers and debut authors will be able to compete for the top award as well. In announcing the new categories, Singapore Book Council chief executive Kishore Mahbubani said they were introduced to ensure that more works by locals could be considered for the prestigious award.
For Ms Hidayah, the move to include history as a separate category is especially significant because it means “that you don’t need to be a historian to write a history book”. The NUS Singapore History Prize – which was mooted by Mahbubani, a distinguished fellow at NUS’ Asia Research Institute – was launched in 2014 to celebrate SG50 and “to demonstrate that a nation’s identity is founded on a shared imagination of its past”.
Mahbubani, who is also chairman of this year’s jury, added that his panel had decided on Ms Hidayah’s work for the NUS prize mainly because it combines synthesis with primary sources. It also contains a wealth of photographs, maps and sketches. This, he said, made it stand out from the 26 other entries in the competition, which led judges to give two special commendations, without cash prizes, this year.