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Tribune News Network
Doha
Qatar is in the top 20 percent of countries world-wide and the top 5 percent of countries in the Middle East and Africa (third) in terms of productivity potential, KPMG's Growth Promise Indicators (GPI) index has found.
The index assigns a GPI rating (from zero to 10), based on information taken from global data sources, on 15 individual categories including education, transport quality, tech-readiness and financial services.
According to the study, wider trends in the analysis suggest that the real strides made by countries have been driven by improvements in infrastructure and tech-readiness both of which have featured prominently in Qatar's development in recent years.
On the ranking, Ahmed Abu-Sharkh, Country Senior Partner at KPMG in Qatar said."The GPI report explores how individual countries can grow sustainably and fulfil their potential. I was delighted to see that Qatar ranks 34th of 181 countries in the report, placing it within the top 20 percent world-wide for potential growth, representing Qatar's standing on the world's economic stage and commitment to developing a sustainable future for the country's citizens and residents."
The report shows that a number of countries are accelerating development through smarter investments in technology or infrastructure. However, it is important that countries also invest in the right education and training to equip future generations with the skills they need to thrive in the future.
"Qatar's National Vision 2030 makes it clear that the government is committed to the country's future and addresses many of the critical success factors raised in the GPI including education, infrastructure, health and trade," Abu-Sharkh said.
The study found institutional strength, which covers performance in areas such as government effectiveness, regulatory quality, and business rights, to be the most important category amongst the GPI components and this is the category which Qatar scored highest on.
Latest data shows high scores on institutional strength are not dependent on income level, with lower income countries like Rwanda and Bhutan having higher scores than higher income peers.
Western European countries top the GPI league table, with the Netherlands ranking first, followed by Switzerland (second), Luxembourg (third) and Norway (fifth). Hong Kong (fourth), a jurisdiction added to the report as a comparator, and Singapore (seventh) were the only non-European countries and jurisdictions to make the top 10.
Despite Brexit, the UK ranking remains unchanged at 13th, just behind Canada, which is up two places to 12th as a result of institutional and infrastructure improvements. However, through policies such as the Industrial Strategy there is everything to play for to move the UK higher up the rankings.
