South Africa has improved its ranking and remains the highest-ranked country in sub-Saharan Africa on the World Economic Forum (WEF)'s Global Competitiveness Index, released on 7 September.
Switzerland tops the overall rankings. Singapore overtakes Sweden for second position. Northern and Western European countries dominate the top 10 with Sweden (3rd), Finland (4th), the United States (6th), Germany (6th), the Netherlands (7th), Denmark (8th) and the United Kingdom (10th). Japan remains the second-ranked Asian economy at 9th place, despite falling three places since 2010-11. Two Asian giants -- India and Pakistan -- were placed at 56th and 118th positions, respectively. Their positions in last year were 51st and 123rd, respectively.
South Africa moves up by four places to attain 50th position this year, remaining the highest-ranked country in sub-Saharan Africa and the second-placed among the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) economies," according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012.
The report found that South Africa benefits from the large size of its economy, particularly by regional standards -- it is ranked 25th in market size. It also does well on measures of the quality of institutions and factor allocation, such as intellectual property protection (30th), property rights (30th), the accountability of its private institutions (3rd), and its goods market efficiency (32nd)."
The report stated that South Africa's financial market development -- in which it ranked fourth -- was particularly impressive" and showed "high confidence in South Africa's financial markets at a time when trust is returning only slowly in many other parts of the world.
Labor Market Efficiency
South Africa also does reasonably well in more complex areas such as business sophistication (38th) and innovation (41st), benefiting from good scientific research institutions (30th) and strong collaboration between universities and the business sector in innovation (26th). This made South Africa the most competitive economy in the region. The country would, however, need to address some weaknesses, particularly on labor issues, to improve its competitiveness.
South Africa ranks 95th in labor market efficiency, with rigid hiring and firing practices (139th), a lack of flexibility in wage determination by companies (138th), and significant tensions in labor-employer relations (138th).
The report said university enrolment rates were too low. Efforts must also be made to increase the university enrolment rate of only 15 percent, which places the country 97th overall, to better develop its innovation potential. Infrastructure was good by regional standards, but needed upgrading.
Crime and Violence
The poor security situation remains another important obstacle to doing business in South Africa. The business costs of crime and violence (136th) and the sense that the police are unable to provide protection from crime (95th) do not contribute to an environment that fosters competitiveness. The report also found that the health of the workforce, which is ranked 129th out of 142 economies, was concerning.
In compiling the report, the WEF's Centre for Global Competitiveness and Performance looks at the business operating environment and competitiveness of over 130 economies worldwide.
Switzerland tops the overall rankings. Singapore overtakes Sweden for second position. Northern and Western European countries dominate the top 10 with Sweden (3rd), Finland (4th), the United States (6th), Germany (6th), the Netherlands (7th), Denmark (8th) and the United Kingdom (10th). Japan remains the second-ranked Asian economy at 9th place, despite falling three places since 2010-11. Two Asian giants -- India and Pakistan -- were placed at 56th and 118th positions, respectively. Their positions in last year were 51st and 123rd, respectively.
South Africa moves up by four places to attain 50th position this year, remaining the highest-ranked country in sub-Saharan Africa and the second-placed among the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) economies," according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012.
The report found that South Africa benefits from the large size of its economy, particularly by regional standards -- it is ranked 25th in market size. It also does well on measures of the quality of institutions and factor allocation, such as intellectual property protection (30th), property rights (30th), the accountability of its private institutions (3rd), and its goods market efficiency (32nd)."
The report stated that South Africa's financial market development -- in which it ranked fourth -- was particularly impressive" and showed "high confidence in South Africa's financial markets at a time when trust is returning only slowly in many other parts of the world.
Labor Market Efficiency
South Africa also does reasonably well in more complex areas such as business sophistication (38th) and innovation (41st), benefiting from good scientific research institutions (30th) and strong collaboration between universities and the business sector in innovation (26th). This made South Africa the most competitive economy in the region. The country would, however, need to address some weaknesses, particularly on labor issues, to improve its competitiveness.
South Africa ranks 95th in labor market efficiency, with rigid hiring and firing practices (139th), a lack of flexibility in wage determination by companies (138th), and significant tensions in labor-employer relations (138th).
The report said university enrolment rates were too low. Efforts must also be made to increase the university enrolment rate of only 15 percent, which places the country 97th overall, to better develop its innovation potential. Infrastructure was good by regional standards, but needed upgrading.
Crime and Violence
The poor security situation remains another important obstacle to doing business in South Africa. The business costs of crime and violence (136th) and the sense that the police are unable to provide protection from crime (95th) do not contribute to an environment that fosters competitiveness. The report also found that the health of the workforce, which is ranked 129th out of 142 economies, was concerning.
In compiling the report, the WEF's Centre for Global Competitiveness and Performance looks at the business operating environment and competitiveness of over 130 economies worldwide.
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