For another year, T&T is at position 89 out of 144 countries on the Global Competitiveness Index. Planning and Development Minister Camille Robinson-Regis says this reflects how stagnant and uncompetitive the country has becomes.
“Before the rigor mortis of our uncompetitiveness sets in itself we must act with determination and alacrity. The time for hiding behind the excuses of the past is long gone,” she said yesterday at the launch of the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2015 to 2016 at the Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business, Mt Hope.
T&T’s low levels of productivity, corruption and government bureaucracy were among factors blamed for its low ranking in competitiveness. The top position was taken by Switzerland for the second straight year.
Robinson-Regis said: “I will continue to ensure that the doors of government are not open only to a select few but rather will be thrown wide open to ensure that, like Arthur Lok Jack himself, the country’s best and brightest are afforded every opportunity to create, to think, to develop and lead.
“It is no secret that ours is a small open island economy that must export to prosper in the 21st century. Our success will be dependent on building international competitiveness in a global arena that is a constant state of flux and uncertainty.”
The minister said the reliability and accuracy of data is important in developing a competitive economy. She said the Central Statistical Office (CSO) has been neglected over the last few years and “has been left in such a parlous state that the published data from this once respected institution has been found to be unreliable and is often of questionable quality leading to a lost of confidence in this very important institution.”
“I give you the assurance that this government understands the critical importance of data-driven decision-making in both the private and public sectors. Additionally, we undertake to bring to the Parliament in quick time the draft Statistical Act and create an independent statistical Institute with a board comprised of representatives drawn from the public sector, including the Central Bank, the private sector, the universities, market research organisations and professional statisticians.
Robinson-Regis expressed concern that the contribution of the manufacturing sector to the economy has been in steady decline since 2012.
She said: This stands in stark contrast to the 2002 to 2010 period, when real output in the sector grew by 100 per cent from US$4 billion in constant prices to US$8 billion.
“Undeniably then, the re-emergence of the manufacturing sector as a major economic force to be reckoned with will depend on the Government being able to ensure that appropriate strategies are developed in partnership with local manufacturers to create and sustain a more enabling environment to facilitate increased global competitiveness of local businesses.”
The Global Competitiveness Report, a comprehensive assessment of national competitiveness, presents the rankings of the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) based on 12 pillars that provide a comprehensive picture of the competitiveness landscape in countries around the world at different stages of economic development.