Malta ranks 52nd

Malta has been ranked 52nd in the Global Competitiveness Report 2009 - 2010 published by the World Economic Forum, the same position it was given last year. The competitiveness index is based on 12 pillars namely institutions (Malta ranked 33),...

Malta has been ranked 52nd in the Global Competitiveness Report 2009 - 2010 published by the World Economic Forum, the same position it was given last year.

The competitiveness index is based on 12 pillars namely institutions (Malta ranked 33), infrastructure (38), macroeconomic stability (81), health and primary education (32), higher education and training (37), goods market efficiency (40), labour market efficiency (93), financial market sophistication (13), technological readiness (27), market size (121), business sophistication (46) and innovation (53).

According to the World Economic Forum's Executive Opinion Survey, conducted among business , inefficient government bureaucracy is the most problematic factor for conducting business in Malta.

Switzerland tops the overall ranking followed by the United States, which fell one place to second position. Singapore, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Japan, Canada and The Netherlands came next.

Xavier Sala-i-Martin, professor of economics, Columbia University, US, and co-author of the report said: "Amid the present crisis, it is critical that policy-makers not lose sight of long-term competitiveness fundamentals amid short-term urgencies. Competitive economies are those that have in place factors driving the productivity enhancements on which their present and future prosperity is built."

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