Palace cites PH improvements amid drop in IMD competitiveness report

Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/ JOAN BONFDOC

Malacañang on Tuesday highlighted improvements in the country’s business efficiency following the release of the World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) ranking.

According to the International Institute for Management Development’s (IMD) WCY report, the country went down a notch to 42nd in the world rankings, from 41st last year. It also went back to 12th place in the Asia-Pacific region from 11th last year.

READ: PH improves ranking in IMD’s world competitiveness report

The ranking covers 61 countries and involves 342 criteria under four broad categories: economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure.

“We note the WCY report stated the Philippines registered marked improvements in business efficiency and infrastructure and remained stable in government efficiency, while the country’s workforce emerged as the economy’s most attractive feature,” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a statement.

He described the country’s ranking as “stable and resilient in the face of a general decline among most Asian economies such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan and mainland China.”

Despite the slight drop, Coloma said the country has been making “significant gains” in the WCY “surging by more than 43 places from 85th place in 2010 buoyed largely by the social and economic reforms anchored on good governance that President (Benigno) Aquino (III) has instituted during his term.”

“And as the Aquino administration prepares to step down from power, we prepare to step down, we shall pass on a stronger, more competitive and broad-based and inclusive economy to the next administration,” he said. RAM

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