MSBM hosts Global Competitiveness Report for fifth year

The World Economic Forum (WEF) selected Mona School of Business and Management (MSBM) as its partner institution for administering the Global Competitiveness Survey for Jamaica.

The report series remains the most comprehensive assessment of national competitiveness worldwide. The announcement came at an event themed Raising Awareness WEF Global Competitiveness Report Jamaica's Relative performance over the years 2010-2015. The launch was held at the MSBM in December.

SUCCESSFUL PARTNERSHIP

Dr William Lawrence, director, Professional Services Unit, MSBM, said the school was pleased to announce the successful partnership with the WEF survey.

"This report provides an index which can be used to identify weaknesses of countries and track the fluctuation of national products," he said.

WEF publishes a comprehensive series of reports which examine, in detail, the broad range of global issues it seeks to address with stakeholders as part of its mission to improve the state of the world.

In this particular report, Professor Densil Williams, executive director, MSBM, made clear the importance for the private and public sectors' role in achieving the most accurate outcome for the report.

"I implore the business sectors of Jamaica to participate in the documenting and entering data, so as to reflect the most precise ranking of Jamaica 's position in the global competitiveness index," he said.

In his presentation, Professor Williams also highlighted the works of Krugman and Porter, whose school of thought was heavily based on the idea of productivity and its direct relation to global competitiveness.

NATIONAL COMPETITIVENESS

The Global Competitiveness Report assesses the competitiveness landscape of economies, providing insight into the drivers of their productivity and prosperity. It measures national competitiveness, defined as the set of institutions, policies and factors that determine the level of productivity.

Notably, the report's Global Competitiveness Index finds a close link between competitiveness and an economy's ability to nurture, attract, leverage and support talent.

Dennis Chung, CEO, Private Sector of Jamaica, noted that the report was important, "because it reflects the benchmark we need to move the economy forward. This project, in particular, highlights the fact that Jamaica lacks data, which is critical in moving the economy forward."

In closing, Chung pledged the support of the PSOJ to the Mona School of Business in the quest for accurate data for the global index.

Data collection for 2016 starts on February 1 and ends in April.