SINGAPORE — From local politics to the origins of chilli crab and whether Singapore’s conservation efforts led to the reappearance of otters on our shores, topics related to “what makes Singapore, Singapore” will be addressed in 50 books to be launched by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) next year to commemorate the Republic’s 50th year of independence.

The Singapore Chronicles will be authored by renowned researchers, scientists, engineers, writers and policy practitioners, such as former Permanent Secretaries Peter Ho and Bilahari Kausikan, as well as food writer Sylvia Tan, who will take charge of books on governance, Konfrontasi and food respectively. Each book in the series is expected to delve into the history, issues and future outlook of its respective subject.

IPS special research adviser Arun Mahizhnan said the chronicles would record, explain and offer insight into what makes Singapore, Singapore. While the books will be penned by experts in their field, they will be written for the public, from A-level students and lay people to business leaders and foreign diplomats, he said.

IPS director Janadas Devan described them as extended Wikipedia entries.

Mr Ho, former head of the Civil Service and one of the 50 authors, said he chose to write about governance as he felt “it’s important that we have a record of how governance in Singapore has evolved”.

“This is not just for the Singapore public, but also for our civil servants because our civil servants need to know … how governance has evolved through the years,” he added.

The topics were whittled down from more than 70 suggestions that the IPS had received from its staff and experts. “We shortlisted the final 50 based on whether the subject was important, whether it added to the comprehensiveness of the coverage and whether we could find the right author,” said Mr Arun.

Ideas that were tossed out included subjects such as government-linked companies and fashion, which Mr Arun said were not as important.

Government-linked firms, for example, he said, were “too narrow a focus and did not help with the diversity as we’re already doing a book on economy, finance, trade and so on”.

The IPS is in the midst of commissioning the authors, with 47 on board so far. Likely to be launched in batches over the course of next year, the Singapore Chronicles will be sold individually or in box sets at major bookstores and promoted in schools.