RP retains 32nd spot in competitiveness survey

If it's any comfort, the Philippines held on to its 32nd slot for the second year among 47 countries surveyed by a Swiss firm in terms of global competitiveness.

The Lausanne-based Institute for Management and Development (IMD) said it was an improvement from the Philippines' previous ranking of 36th in 1995, but slightly lower than its 31st position in 1996 and 1997.

Results of the survey were published in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, a copy of which was presented yesterday to journalists by former President Fidel Ramos.

Covered by the survey were countries ranging from industrialized to developing. Among them were the United States, Japan, Germany, Russia, Greece, Brazil, Argentina, China, India and Slovenia.

The IMD survey indicated that among the key points of the Philippines were quality of skilled labor and availability of senior managers, availability of information technology skills, and growth in export goods and commercial services.

On the other hand, the country's weaknesses were listed down as low cost--the lowest among the 47 nations--in international telephone calls, medical assistance and final consumption expenditures of the private sector.

"We must build on these strengths and try to re-enforce the weaknesses," Ramos said.

The IMD also noted that not only did infrastructure development in the Philippines remain weak, it even deteriorated over the past three years despite slight growth in investments.

The IMD said the finding is true in both basic infrastructure which covers transportation and energy, and technological infrastructure which involves telecommunications. The Philippines ranked higher than Russia and India in this respect.

The Swiss think-tank group also opined that poverty was still prevalent in the Philippines as showed by low levels of final consumption and a weak retail market.

"This points to the lack of domestic market for local goods," the IMD said.

It also noted that the Philippines has one of the lowest gross domestic product per capita as evinced by the shortage of medical assistance, housing and potable water.

"Low expenditure on education and a poor pupil-teacher ratio also threaten the country's future performance in the services industry. The brain drain also affects the ranking on people," the IMD survey stated.

It viewed the overall productivity as another threat as indicated by "very low rankings across all sectors: services, labor, agriculture and industry."

"Low levels of investment in research and development will also affect future competitiveness rankings," the survey noted.

Ramos, who heads his own RP DEV Foundation which he organized after stepping down from the presidency in 1998, bared the IMD survey in a bid to belie grim predictions by prophets of doom and critics of the Estrada administration.

Ramos said RP DEV was also engaged in research and other think- tank services needed by businessmen and investors.