•Ghana, Cameroon, Rwanda ranked better
By Amechi Ogbonna
Nigeria has moved two steps up in the competitive economies in the world, according to the latest ranking by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
In the latest ranking, the country rose to 125th out of the 137 economies covered in the survey after it occupied 127th position in last year’s ranking. This was the first time the country’s ranking had gone up since 2012, according to the WEF’s Global Competitiveness Report released on Tuesday.
The report, however, noted that the country’s macroeconomic conditions worsened, having gone 12 step-downward to 122nd position while inflation remained high at 15.7 per cent. On this front, the country is ranked 131st. The report also put Nigeria’s budget deficit at 4.4 per cent and ranked the country 99th in this regard.
“Institutions (in Nigeria) appear more fragile (125th, down seven places), adding uncertainty to the business environment,” the report stated.
Commenting on the effect of the drop in oil prices, WEF noted that “Nigeria is struggling to adapt to lower commodity prices, with the potential for structural change impeded by low scores on infrastructure (132nd), technological readiness (112th, down seven), higher education (116th), and innovation capacity (112th).
“However, new prudential requirements have strengthened the banking sector’s soundness and the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) for 2017–2020 contains much-needed reforms on transport and power infrastructure, the business environment, and education investment,” the report stated.
From the WEF ranking, Nigeria has only fared a little better than a few sub-Saharan African countries like Democratic Republic of Congo (126th), Burundi (129th), Sierra Leone (130th), Chad (135th) and Liberia (134th), while several other sub-Saharan African countries like Cameroon (116th), Ghana (111th), Gambia (117th), and Uganda (114th) are better off than Nigeria.
Mauritius and Rwanda at 45th and 58th positions respectively, are ranked higher than South Africa (61st).
Switzerland maintains its number one spot as the most competitive economy in the world. The 10 most competitive world’s economies are Switzerland, US, Singapore, the Netherlands, Germany, Hong Kong, Sweden, the UK, Japan and Finland.
China and Russia are ranked 27th and 38th respectively.
WEF said this year’s report came out in the context of recovering global growth but that many countries were still facing challenges such as disruptive inequalities; rising protectionism and a backlash against globalisation; and the challenges and uncertainties of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, with its innovation and technological change.