Jamaica has improved eight places on the Global Competitiveness index and is now ranked 86 out of 144 countries for 2014/15.
The country ranked 94 out of 148 countries in the 2103 to 2014 report and 97 out of 144 the previous year.
The report, which was released on September 2 by the World Economic Forum, assesses the competitiveness landscape of 144 economies, providing insight into the drivers of productivity and prosperity.
Economist and University Lecturer, Dr. Andre Haughton, in an interview with JIS News, says this is a very significant improvement and comes as a result of the gains being made through the country’s Economic Reform Programme (ERP), under the Extended Fund Facility with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
He says this is evident in the Government’s efforts to remain fiscally disciplined with the overall IMF programme. “So, it is as a result of us making an effort to get more competitive, and it is a very significant improvement,” Dr. Haughton said.
The report defines competitiveness as the set of institutions, policies and factors that determine the level of productivity of a country.
The Global competitiveness index is captured under 12 pillars – Institutions, infrastructure, macro-economic environment, health and primary education, higher education and training, goods market efficiency, labour market efficiency, financial market efficiency, financial market development, technological readiness, market size, business sophistication and innovation.
