PH now ranks 59th in competitiveness index

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines jumps a total of 26 places since 2010 in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index. What does this mean?

Cherrie Regalado reports.

ROBERTO DE OCAMPO
VICE-CHAIR, MAKATI BUSINESS CLUB
he Philippines is getting more in the radar screen of the entire global community in terms of becoming a better investment destination.

Thanks to the anti-corruption drive of the Aquino government the world still thinks the Philippines is the one of the places to be.
The World Economic Forum highlights this in its 2013 Global Competitiveness Index.
The Philippines rises six notches to rank 59th out of 148 countries.
It’s been a steady climb since 2010.
The Philippines jumps a total of 26 places as the fight against corruption becomes the government’s battlecry.
This is reflected in institutions, one of the measures of a country’s competitiveness and where the Philippines makes its biggest leap.
Corruption has been one of the biggest drags on competitiveness.
There are a lot of gains, but sustaining a corrupt free Philippines remains a concern.
Hogging the headlines lately is Janet Napoles, the alleged queen of the pork barrel scam which involves questionable releases of the development fund.

GUILLERMO LUZ
CHAIR, NATIONAL COMPETITIVENESS COUNCIL
It can be a temporary set back, depends on how we fix it. If we come out of it with solid reforms and fixes and then we can bounce back from it.

But corruption is no longer the biggest hindrance to competitiveness.
According to the report, that has been replaced by poor infrastructure.
The survey notes a slight improvement in the country’s infrastructure, but other countries are doing better and may leave the Philippines behind.

GUILLERMO LUZ
NATIONAL COMPETITIVENESS COUNCIL CHAIR
With the country growing the way it is we have to remember with the economy as it is 7.5 percent year-on-year, there’s a lot of strain in infrastructure. We need more of it. When you’re in non competitive position, you can’t attract investments and create the jobs you need to create. There’s no way to inclusive growth and beat poverty if we are uncompetitive.

The Philippines wants to step up its game and intends to be among the top 1/3 of all competitiveness indices by 2016.
Experts say it is more crucial to look beyond the numbers.
These ratings and rankings should translate to something more tangible this means jobs, education and improved quality of life.
Cherrie Regalado, Rappler, Manila – Rappler.com