SL up 5 positions to rank 68th in Global Competitiveness Index

Sri Lanka has moved up five positions to rank 68th in a global index of world’s most competitive economies for the year 2015/16. Switzerland topped the table for the seventh consecutive year and Singapore remaining at number two.

The Global Competitiveness Report 2015/2016 assesses the competitiveness of 140 world economies.

In the previous year’s ranking Sri Lanka was placed 73rd out of 144 countries.

In contrast, no member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) features in the top 50. India leads the way at 55th, followed by Sri Lanka (68th, up five). Nepal (100th, up two), Bhutan (105th, down two), Bangladesh (107th, up two), and Pakistan (126th, up three) all rank 100th or below.

The index assess a wide range of factors under basic requirements (institutions, infrastructure, macroeconomic environment and health and education, efficiency enhancers (higher education and training, labour market efficiency, financial market development, technological readiness) and innovation and business sophistication.

Behind Singapore (2nd), the five largest members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Malaysia (18th, up two), Thailand (32nd, down one), Indonesia (37th, down four), the Philippines (47, up five), and Vietnam (56th, up 12)-all rank in the top half of the overall GCI rankings.

Emerging and Developing Asia has been the world’s fastest-growing region since 2005 and looks set to retain this status in the medium term. The region now accounts for some 30% of global GDP, with China alone accounting for 16%, the report stated.