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Annual parade in Singapore that celebrates the country's independence

The National Day Parade (NDP) is an annual parade held in Singapore to commemorate its independence. Held annually on 9 August, it is the main public celebration of National Day, and consists of a parade incorporating contingents of the Singapore Armed Forces, Ministry of Home Affairs, local institutions and community groups, followed by a cultural presentation featuring music, dance displays, parachuters, and a fireworks show. First held on 9 August 1966 to mark the one year anniversary of Singapore's declaration of independence from Malaysia, it has been held annually since then. The parade had historically been held at the Padang, but were occasionally held at the former National Stadium, and in a "decentralised" format across the country to encourage wider public participation. Beginning in 1984, the Padang began to host the parade on a regular cycle (initially once every three years, and then every five years beginning 1995) and during all years marking anniversaries of national significance, with the event otherwise hosted by the National Stadium. With the closure of National Stadium in 2007, it would be replaced in the rotation by The Float @ Marina Bay—a temporary, floating venue on Marina Bay designed to host events of national importance while the new National Stadium was under construction. Even with the completion of the new stadium, it would only host the parade once in 2016, after which The Float was designated as the event's "primary" venue. In 2023, the parade began a three year tenure at the Padang due to the reconstruction of The Float as NS Square.

Singapore celebrated its first National Day as an independent nation in 1966, one year after Singapore's separation from Malaysia on 9 August 1965. The inaugural National Day Parade was started in the morning at 9:00 a. m. that day. However, people came as early as 7:00 a. m. in order to get good vantage points. Singapore's first President, Yusof bin Ishak and Singapore's first Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, were seated with members of the government at the grandstand on the steps of City Hall. When the parade began, six military contingents (including the Singapore Infantry Regiment, Singapore People's Defense Force, the Volunteer Naval Reserve and PDF Sea and the then Republic of Singapore Police), a mobile column from the SIR, and various schools and civil contingents marched past City Hall and then into the city streets. Three military bands accompanied the parade inspection and later the march past with military music. The Singapore Fire Brigade also took part in this first parade with its firetrucks included in the mobile column. Rounding it all was a massed lion and dragon dance performance from drum and dragon troupes nationwide. In 1967, the contingents increased to 76, including those of the then established Singapore Armed Forces, the RSP and more cultural groups, with the addition of more civil marching groups. The reason is partly due to the introduction of the National Service program in the military and police forces, and later extended to the Fire Brigade (Renamed to Singapore Fire Services in the 1980s). Street performances by various groups and choirs also debuted in that year's parade. The 1968 parade, although held on a rainy morning that surprised even the marching contingents and the dignitaries, saw the first ground performances on the Padang as the weather improved – a prelude to today's show performances. 1969's parade, the one where the Mobile Column made its first drivepast, commemorated the 150th year of the city's founding and had Princess Alexandra of the UK as principal guest. The fifth NDP edition in 1970 introduced the Flypast of the State Flag and the Republic of Singapore Air Force Flypast, as well as the combat simulation performance by Singapore Army personnel was one of the new highlights for that year. The 1971 NDP included iconic mobile parade floats from various organizations, 1973 was the first parade to be held from late afternoon to early evening time in order to promote the parade with better attendance and marked the official debut of the 1st Commando Battalion. The 1974 parade was the first domestic television programme to be broadcast in colour by Channel 5, following a previous pilot broadcast of the FIFA World Cup final. In 1975, to commemorate the Decennial anniversary of independence, the Parade was, for the first time, decentralised into 13 parade venues for more public participation. Almost all of the venues lasted for an hour and all of them even had route marches on the streets to the participating venues. By the time the NDP was held at the National Stadium (for the first time) in 1976, the NDP Guard of Honour, composed of officers and personnel of the SAF and the Singapore Police Force made its first appearance, followed after the parade proper by the first evening presentations by various groups, a prelude to future evening NDPs in 1980 and from 1984 onward. The 1976 parade dance performers were mostly female students from the country's schools, since that year marked the start of the United Nations Decade for Women. 1977's parade was a decentralised event like two years before (and like 1968's was affected by wet weather) while 1978 returned to Padang. 1979's parade saw another decentralised site, this time being held in many high schools and sports stadiums nationwide. The decentralised format would later be used until 1983, which was the final time NDP was held in multiple venues until 2020. The 15th installment in 1980 was the first parade to introduce the feu de joie of the Guard of Honour contingents. The following year, SPF Civil Defense Command, presently the Singapore Civil Defense Force, later combined with the SFS in 1989, made its inaugural appearance, followed by the SCDF in 1982. The 1981 parade was held in both Jurong and Queenstown Sports Stadiums for further increase public attendance and participation in the celebrations. In 1982, the parade returned at Padang, marking the first time the mobile column drove past after the marchpast had concluded, thus making it a predecessor to the parades at the Padang from 1995 onward, once every five years. The 1984 installment featured many firsts in commemoration with the Singapore's Silver Jubilee of self governance, which for the first time, introduced a theme song "Stand Up for Singapore", and included a bigger Mobile Column, the first appearance of the popular Silent Precision Drill Squad from the Singapore Armed Forces Military Police Command and the first evening fireworks display. The 1986 edition was the first parade held in the late evening, and the first to use flashlights for audience use. Other introductions were featured over the years such as the first appearance of the massed military bands of the SAF (1987), the card stunt (1988), and the Red Lions parachute team and the daylight fireworks (1989). In 1989, the parade was held in the afternoon but the 1991 edition returned to the evening format used since 1986. In 1993, interactive participation by the public debuted in that year's edition to increase public participation and awareness of the parade as an important part of Singaporean life and as a symbol of national unity and identity. In 1997, a National Education Show was also introduced where Primary Five students from a selected number of schools attended in one of the rehearsals. In 2003, due to overcrowding of tickets, the electronic ballot ticketing system was introduced as a countermeasure, and a ballot was conducted where citizens stand a chance at winning the tickets by registering their e mail addresses or mobile numbers such as the NDP websites or phone lines. In 2005 and 2010, aside from the main parade being at the Padang, it was also held at the heartland areas. On 16 October 2005, it was announced that due to the planned closure and replacement of the National Stadium as part of the Singapore Sports Hub project, the parade would be held there for the last time in 2006, and would move to The Float at Marina Bay—a temporary 27,000 seat grandstand and 130 m × (430 ft × 330 ft) floating platform in Marina Bay —for 2007. Despite offering a seating capacity almost less than half the capacity of the National Stadium, there was a vast area for approximately 150,000 additional spectators along the Marina Bay waterfront. The 2014 installment also featured its first female Red Lion parachutist to jump at the NDP, Third Warrant Officer Shirley Ng, after their initial performance in 2013 was cancelled due to weather conditions. The 2014 parade was notable as it was the last parade with the attendance for the first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, who was the only member to have attended in every installment of NDP since 1966, as he died on 23 March the following year. For 2015, portions of the festivities were held at Marina Bay, with screens simulcasting the parade at the Padang (held as part of the traditional five year cycle, and to mark the 50th anniversary of independence), and the fireworks scheduled to be held at Marina Bay and the Marina Reservoir. After returning to the venue for 2017, in October 2017 it was announced that The Float would remain the "primary" venue of the NDP when not held at the Padang every five years, and would be redeveloped as a permanent venue known as NS Square. The decision raised questions over whether the costs of renting the National Stadium would diminish the legacy that the former National Stadium had as a site for community events. Contrarily, it was argued that not hosting the NDP at the new National Stadium would free up its schedule for major international sporting events, especially during the summer months. The 2019 parade would be held at the Padang to commemorate the bicentennial of the founding of modern Singapore. Due to the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic in Singapore, the 2020 parade was replaced by a series of broadcast only events, beginning with the Prime Minister's National Day Message and a downsized parade at the Padang. Appearances by the Mobile Column, Red Lions, and flyovers by F 15SG fighters were scheduled across Singapore, while the traditional Funpacks given at the parade were shipped to each resident. Online programming, home activity ideas, and social media campaigns were also organized. A cultural segment took place at the Star Performing Arts Centre in the evening, reduced to only around 100 performers with social distancing enforced. The organizers stated that they wanted to bring the event "across the island into every Singaporean's home". In July 2021, it was announced that the 2021 parade would return to The Float in a downsized form. The event would be closed to the public and capped at 30% capacity, with tickets provided exclusively to "everyday heroes". On 22 July 2021, due to the temporary reimplementation of Phase 2 "Heightened Alert" restrictions, it was announced that the parade would be postponed to 21 August 2021. A closed "ceremonial" parade would be held on 9 August at The Float, which was stated to be similar in format to the previous year's parade. It was announced that the 2022 parade would return to full capacity, with a goal to "involve as many Singaporeans" as possible. Some safety protocols would remain in place, such as a requirement for all attendees over 12 years of age, and all performers, to be fully vaccinated. The parade would be the last edition held at The Float before its reconstruction as NS Square (which was expected to begin construction in 2023, and be completed by 2026); the 2023 parade would be held at the Padang, and plans were discussed to possibly hold the parade at National Stadium again in 2024. In September 2023, it was announced that the parade would continue to be held at the Padang for 2024 and 2025, with these two editions marking the 40th anniversary of Total Defence and 60th anniversary of Singapore's independence respectively. Both parades are expected to include satellite events in Marina Bay and the heartland.

Since 1998, a unique logo design was selected to represent NDP on all fronts (including social media). Even though there had been logos for some previous years' parades, the logos were used exclusively for years of special commemoration, such as silver jubilee of Nation Building (1984) and Independence (1990). Slogans have also been used, such as "Our Singapore, Our Future", first used in the 1997 celebrations. With the introduction of NDP logos for 1998, every logo henceforth would be designed to suit the themes, in particular the foundation theme of the parade for the year. A tagline, which was previously known as a slogan, was usually added to the logo design. An example was in 2005, where the tagline for NDP 2005 was "The Future is Ours to Make", was placed on the theme "40 Years of Nation Building". These taglines are usually taken from previous National Day Rallies for the purpose of rallying the nation together on 9 August to meet the challenges ahead. The tagline "Together We Make The Difference" was introduced in 1999 due to the launch of the Singapore 21 project, and was replaced by "Together, A New Singapore" in 2002 when then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong proposed the "Remaking Singapore" initiative in the National Day Rally 2001.

The pre parade segment today may include mass displays, choir performances, school band displays, sky diving displays, and other light hearted performances to entertain the crowd prior to the parade proper, with the added positive effect of encouraging parade attendees to be seated earlier. Initially introduced on an ad hoc basis as an informal filler, it has since become an integral part of the parade particularly when live television coverage was extended to this segment in recent years. As audience participation has become a part of the parade, the pre parade segment also becomes an opportunity for the hosts to lead and rehearse with the audience actions they may have to do when the parade proper begins. Motivators from TOUCH Community Services were introduced to the pre parade in 2002 (then called Anchor Talents). TOUCH Community Services has since moved on to mentoring students from the various Institutes of Technical Education (ITEs) and various Polytechnics since 2003 until the present, under the Leadership & Mentoring programme. Colourful costumes and dance moves have been designed for the motivators.

The parade has been a traditional segment of the National Day Parade. Participants of the parade include members of the Singapore Armed Forces, Singapore Police Force, Singapore Civil Defence Force, representatives of the People's Action Party, different labour unions (including members of the National Trades Union Congress) and Ministries as well as students in uniformed groups (such as the National Cadet Corps, National Police Cadet Corps, National Civil Defence Cadet Corps, the Singapore Red Cross, the Boys' and Girls' Brigades, the Scouts Association, Girl Guides Singapore and St. John Ambulance Brigade) and representatives of various Singapore business entities. Participants are split into two main sections: the Guard of Honour contingents and the Supporting Contingents. The five Guard of Honour contingents are made up of members from the four arms of the Singapore Armed Forces (the Singapore Army, represented by the Best Combat Unit, for many years the 1st Commando Battalion of the Singapore Army; the Republic of Singapore Navy; the Republic of Singapore Air Force; and the Digital and Intelligence Service) as well as the Singapore Police Force. All members of these contingents are dressed in their respective ceremonial uniforms, known as the No. 1 uniform. Behind the Guard of Honour contingents stand the Regimental Colours Party, where the 37 SAF regimental colours are held by a group of officers, known as ensigns, from the Singapore Armed Forces, with their armed escorts (until 1997 Service Regimental Colours from the SAF's three services led the colours party). The 4 State Colours are in between the Navy and Air Force Guard of Honour contingents and are formed by Escorts (Specialists/Junior Military Experts) and Ensigns (Junior Officers/Subaltern ranked Military Experts). The parade's military bands are from both the SAF and SPF, and in recent years, the marching bands of both services' cadet organizations (the Singapore National Cadet Corps Command Band from Swiss Cottage Secondary School, and the National Police Cadet Corps Band from Yishun Town Secondary School) have joined them as well, with the Singapore NCC Command Band being part of the combined band since 2010. Before the 1994 creation of the SAF Bands the different service arms of the SAF fielded their own bands, and the massed bands for the parade were, since the early 1970s, from a select band of the SAF and the Singapore Police Force Band (inter service massed bands would only happen in 1987). The parade traditionally starts with the Parade Regimental Sergeant Major (Parade RSM) forming up the parade on either the Padang, the field of the National Stadium or in front of the NS Square grandstand. The command of the parade is handed over to the Parade Commander once the parade has been formed up and properly dressed accordingly. Typically, both the Parade RSM and the Parade Commander come from the SAF, and usually hold a minimum rank of Master Warrant Officer, and Lieutenant Colonel respectively. Upon sizing and forming up the parade to full formation, the Parade Commander will wait for the arrival of the members of Parliament, members of the Cabinet and the Prime Minister of Singapore, in that order (the salutes were dropped partially in 2008, and the Prime Minister's salute was dropped the next year). Upon the arrival of each group, the parade will present its salute and present arms, except for the Parliament and Cabinet members, upon which they stand at attention and only the PC salutes them. Lastly once the President of Singapore has arrived (after the playing of the Presidential Fanfare by the Fanfare Trumpeters of the SAF), the Parade Commander will call for a full (Presidential) salute, during which the National Anthem, Majulah Singapura, will be played accompanied by a fly past of the State Flag, and from 2011, would also require raising it as well on a separate flagpole. After that (and the following aerial salute by the RSAF), the Parade Commander will request that the President inspects the parade. During this inspection, the President will be accompanied by the Chief of Defence Force and the Parade Commander, and the Army GOH Contingent Commander would later join them once they approach the Guard of Honour (recent parades have seen a motorized inspection by the President while riding a Land Rover). A presidential 21 gun salute is also given to the President during this time by a select battery from the Singapore Artillery. It is customary that the President speaks to some members of the Guard of honor contingents as he/she passes by. After the inspection ends, the President will return to the podium before the Guard of honor contingents presents a Feu de Joie led by the Parade Commander. At the end of it (with the GOH contingents now at shoulder arms), the Parade Commander will ask the President for permission for the Parade Marchpast to start. 2012's edition formally included an Advance in Review order to the proceedings for the first time.

The Parade Commander will command the Parade contingents to prepare for the Marchpast, and will then march out of the Parade Grounds, with the massed bands bringing the rear. Since the 1990s, Tentera Singapura is the first march played in this segment. In the National Day Parade 2009, there was a City Marchpast where the contingents marched around the Central Business District, with the march ending at the F1 Pit Building. In the National Day Parade 2010, the City Marchpast made its second appearance and this time the Marina Bay area was the venue for this, with the Marina Padang as the final stop on the march past. 2011 saw the reinstatement of the march through the stands moment of the supporting contingents of the SAF, SPF and SCDF (previously done in the 2002 edition and now called the Onward March), and that year the participants of the youth uniformed groups and the civilian contingents marched out in a different way, only for all of them to reunite for the City Marchpast later on. The 2012 edition of the parade, the first National Day Parade officiated by the President Tony Tan Keng Yam, had the Onward March which was now done for the second time by all of the youth uniformed groups present while the military and civilian supporting contingents marched out in a different way similar to the march pasts during the 2000 and 2010 editions with all of them rejoining for the City Marchpast to be done later with the GOH contingent battalion to Marina Bay Sands where the march ended. The Onward March made yet another appearance in the 2014 edition alongside the City Marchpast after the parade proper towards the MBS complex. The City Marchpast made its sixth consecutive appearance in the 2015 edition and was carried on in 2016 together with the Onward March from the new National Stadium and again from Marina Bay in 2017 and 2018. In recent years the order of the march past of the supporting contingents out of the grounds has been altered, with the military and civil uniformed services first to march out, followed by the economic firms, social organizations and the youth uniformed organizations which march last out and then into the platform or parade stands.

In the 1966 NDP, a prototype of the mobile column took part with 25 pounder saluting guns, signals equipment and police vehicles. The first true Mobile Column was organized in 1969 which displayed the then newly acquired armour vehicles of the SAF, the RSP's police vehicles and the SCDF's fire trucks. In 1990, after a three year hiatus since the parade of 1987, the Mobile Column returned as part of the silver jubilee of Singapore's independence with veterans from the Indonesia Malaysia confrontation and retired personnel from the 1967–68 NS intakes first up, transported on trucks. It has been on show during the more important milestone anniversaries of the nation's birthday, on parades held in Padang every five years, including in 2019, 2020, 2023 and 2025. In 2019 and 2020, the vehicles forming the column drove across various areas of the city state, letting residents and visitors see the equipment upclose in their communities as the column would drive thru their homes and workplaces. Almost every NDP since 1971 (except 2016) has had a flypast segment featuring jet and training aircraft, transports and helicopters from the Republic of Singapore Air Force. Whenever the NDP is held at The Float in Marina Bay/NS Square the Mobile Column and flypast both evolve into the multi platform and multi service Dynamic Defence Display (D3), with a display of the military defence and public security capabilities of the uniformed services. In lieu of the 2018 D3, as part of the parade and ceremony segment of the program, a special flypast of the RSAF was held in that year's edition to mark its golden jubilee. The 1980 parade marchpast segment in the Former National Stadium ended with a small civilian mobile column featuring classic cars, bicycles and motorcycles seen on Singapore's roads in the past.

The spectacular show segment follows the traditional parade and ceremony, and lasts normally for 45 minutes. Following the theme of the parade that year, the Show will feature (aside from a Prologue in recent editions) three to four (sometimes up to six) main Acts that culminates in a Grand Finale, that will usually feature the theme song of that year's parade, followed by the much anticipated fireworks display. The entire parade will end in a chorus of voices singing familiar National Day Songs, mass pledge taking (from 2009 expanded into a national activity) and the singing of the National Anthem. In 2007, the parade broke tradition for having a fireworks display that synchronized with the Sing Singapore medley in the finale. In 2009, for the first time ever, all the segments of the NDP have been merged into one integrated program; this would later be repeated in 2015. It has its origins in early NDPs as various mass display items put up by community groups or schools to add colour to the otherwise military parade. These items revolved around the themes of racial harmony, ruggedness among youths etc., which are represented by ethnic dances and mass gymnastics displays. This section evolved over the years to become more theatrical, from the massive card stunt displays that complemented the parade in the 1980s to multimedia projections in recent Shows, as well as the theatrical show segments of the 1996, 1997 and 2011 editions, which featured local artists. In recent parades, the performances have been interspected with short movies produced for the parade by local film makers, in 2021 the short movie segments became animated, a first in the history of the show segment. Float displays also featured prominently in the Show segments of the 1970s and 1980s where floats were designed to promote government campaigns or highlight the works of various public and private companies. This returned in the editions of 1991, 1993 and 1998 and in NDP 2005 as a visual representation of Singapore's past 40 years of nation building, with further reappearances at NDP 2009 and at NDP 2010 to symbolize the mixture of peoples that make up Singapore today. Floats would return in the 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2023 editions. Boats and floats on the Marina Bay area in view of the crowds were one of the highlights of the 1993 and 2018 show segments. Parades today, held from dusk to night, end in the climax of fireworks displays which have become a prominent feature in every parade, which followed by a medley of songs and then reciting the pledge and singing "Majulah Singapura". However, in the early parades that were held in the day (from 1965 to 1972) and later afternoon to evening NDP editions from 1973 to 1980, 1982 and 1984, mass lion and dragon dance displays are actually the parade finale. Lion and dragon dance troupes from various community centres and clan associations would gather on the field to the resonating sound of drumbeats to put on a fiery display that end the parade on an auspicious note, joined by flag dancers. These troupes later became integral parts of the 1985, 1990 and 1993 NDPs.

Though every show would see the participation of an assortment of public and private companies, there are three main anchors taking on each Act in the show segment. They are the Peoples' Association and the PA Youth Movement (which involvement started in 1984, and one of the founding participants), the Singapore Soka Association (SSA) (active since the 1970s) and the Ministry of Education, which would be represented by an individual institution or a cluster of schools, and also a founding participant of the parades since the first in 1966. The latter also provides the Combined Schools Band and the Combined School Choirs, another regular part of the NDP itself, and since the 1980s has been part of the national celebrations. The CSC became a virtual pre recorded segment of the parade from 2020 onwards. The Ministry also provides the School Display Band for the pre parade segment of the programme, coming from one of the many schools in the island country pre selected for performance in the event. Occasionally the SDB is made up of select bands from Singapore high schools. Since 2016, volunteers from Team Nila are also involved as Precinct Ushers, Safety Management Aides and, most recently, as pre show Active Health Ambassadors.

Various types of high tech multimedia equipment are used during the actual show segment since 2003. Various technologies notable include the Projecteur d’Images Géantes Informatisées in 2003, a water curtain visualization in 2007, and LED Mash in 2008.

Post parade parties was first televised in 1997 and featured celebrities and performers to celebrate the success of the parade while providing entertainment to the audience awaiting to leave the venue. The afterparty celebrations usually last for an hour and ends with the Chief of Defence Force, the Chairman of that year's NDP EXCO and the organisers to cutting a cake to commemorate the efforts with the participants as well as speeches of gratitude to the audience for another great performance. The party is now normally anchored by the SAF Music and Drama Company.

Under the Sing Singapore Festival, which inaugurated in 1984, numerous community songs have been composed. Nonetheless, only few National Day songs which struck a chord among Singaporeans continue to be sung annually in the parade. They are collectively known as the Sing Singapore Medley which comes after the fireworks display during the Grand Finale segment, or since 2008, forming the final part of the display. Other National Day songs continue to be featured during the parade, either in the Pre Parade segment, Parade and Ceremony segment or used as tunes to accompany the mass displays during the show part of the celebrations. In particular, for the Parade and Ceremony segment, in between the arrivals of Members of Parliament, Cabinet Ministers, the Prime Minister and the President, four songs each of one official language (English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil) will be performed. In previous years, the final song in English (before the President's arrival) has always been the NDP theme song (in 2007 this was not the case) while in NDP 2008, all the songs performed in the P&C segment (in between arrivals) were all previous NDP theme songs in recent years. (The song tradition would return in 2017, but only in the pre parade portion and in a different language order, while past theme songs were played during the arrivals.) The music performed during the parades have evolved over the decades, reflecting not just the change of musical influences and styles, but also the country's multi ethnic character. The 2010 P&C songs were three in number, due to the fact that the arrival of the Parliament deputies happened before the parade, and were unique because all the songs sung were in English (one song even had lyrics in the three other major languages). In 2011, there was the "Fun Pack Song" which went along to the tune of Lady Gaga's 'Bad Romance'. The song was shortly scrapped. The 2013's medley saw a record number of NDP songs that featured in this medley, with ten and lasted about five and a half minutes: "Stand Up For Singapore", "We Will Get There", "What Do You See", "One United People", "Turn Up The Love" (not including NDP songs), "Home", "One People, One Nation, One Singapore", "Count On Me Singapore", "We Are Singapore" and "One Singapore" (that year's theme song). In 2014, it was announced that there would be no new songs produced for National Day for the 2nd time in its long history, and in a historic move by the organizing committee, the classic NDP songs will be sung again. That year's edition saw past NDP theme songs being played during the arrival segments, and broke tradition by having the Sing Singapore Medley sung as the epilogue after the national anthem was played. The Sing Singapore Medley finale was repeated again in the 2015 event, after the Pledge Moment ends. Both cases have now included the 1998 theme song "Home" as part of the medley, just as it was the case in 2013. 2016 will see the medley also accompanied by special needs students provided by the seven Voluntary Welfare Organisations of the island country hand signing for the deaf and hard of hearing who will take part, yet another first. The 1998 theme "Home" was sung as well. (Since 1989, a deaf Representative has been present to sign the Pledge for deaf viewers of the event.) The 2023 medley included in a departure from the past the theme songs from 2021 and 2022.