According to the World Economic Forum, Lebanon ranked 113th out of 144 countries, with a score of 3.7 out of 7 in the Global Competitive Index (GCI) for 2014-2015, compared to a score of 3.8 and a rank of 103 out of 148 countries in GCI 2013-2014.
The GCI is a comprehensive tool that measures the microeconomic and macroeconomic foundations of national competitiveness. Competitiveness is defined as “the set of institution, policies, and factors that determine the level of productivity of a country.” The aim of the Global Competitiveness Report is to recognize strengths and weaknesses of each of the economies covered, in order to improve the world economy through identifying economic growth drivers that may be used to influence policymaking and economic reform decisions.
According to the report, competitiveness is measured using 12 pillars divided in 3 sub-indices: the Basic requirement sub-index which includes “Institutions”, “Infrastructure”, “Macroeconomic environment”, and “Health and primary education” pillars. These pillars are important for factor-driven economies. The Efficiency enhancers sub-index, which is key for efficiency-driven economies, includes the following pillars: “Higher education and training”, “Goods market efficiency”, “Labor market efficiency”, “Financial market development”, “Technological readiness” and “Market size”. The Innovation and sophistication factors sub-index, which is crucial for innovation-driven economies, consists of “Business sophistication” pillar and “Innovation” pillar.
Lebanon remained to be highly competitive in its Efficiency Enhancers sub index where it scored 3.9. However it had the lowest score of 3.3 in Innovation and sophistication factors sub-index. Lebanon’s most competitive pillars continue to be in health & primary education, Goods market efficiency, Higher education & training, as well as financial market development. Meanwhile, major policy reform is required to promote economic stability, develop infrastructure, create an institutional friendly environment, and encourage innovation.
Finally, the inadequate supply of infrastructure, corruption, and inefficient government bureaucracy are considered to be the three most problematic factors for doing business in Lebanon.
Global Competitive Index 2014-2015
Rank (out of 144) | Score (1-7) | |||
Global Competitive Index | 113 | 3.7 | ||
Basic Requirements | 127 | 3.5 | ||
Institutions | 139 | 2.7 | ||
Infrastructure | 122 | 2.6 | ||
Macroeconomic environment | 143 | 2.6 | ||
Health and primary education | 30 | 6.3 | ||
Efficiency enhancers | 85 | 3.9 | ||
Higher education and training | 67 | 4.4 | ||
Goods market efficiency | 71 | 4.3 | ||
Labor market efficiency | 123 | 3.7 | ||
Financial market development | 102 | 3.7 | ||
Technological readiness | 86 | 3.5 | ||
Market size | 76 | 3.6 | ||
Innovation and sophistication factors | 101 | 3.3 | ||
Business sophistication | 75 | 3.9 | ||
Innovation and sophistication factors | 119 | 2.8 |
Source: World Economic Forum