Switzerland leads the way for digital competitiveness.
Switzerland ranks in first place globally in the World Digital Competitiveness Ranking compiled by the World Competitiveness Center of the IMD. The USA follows in second place, with Singapore in third. The fragmentation of global trade is making regulatory clarity a key factor in digital competitiveness.
Switzerland has claimed top spot in this year’s World Digital Competitiveness Ranking compiled by the World Competitiveness Center (WCC) of the Lausanne-based business school IMD, as detailed in a press release. The IMD ranking assesses the digital competitiveness of 69 nations on the basis of three main factors: Knowledge, Technology and Future Readiness. The country rankings are calculated using data analysis from regional, national and international sources, as well as a worldwide survey of executives.
Switzerland owes its ranking at the top of the table to its global leadership in the area of Knowledge, which comprises the sub-factors Talent, Training and Education and Scientific Concentration. Switzerland also performs strongly in terms of Future Readiness (with the sub-factors Adaptive Attitudes, Business Agility and IT Integration), for which it ranks in second place. It is only in the area of Technology that the top-ranked nation falters slightly, slipping to seventh place. The report puts this decline down to a weaker technological legal framework and reduced capital availability.
The rankings home in on the current fragmentation of global trade, which is placing the digital competitiveness of nations under pressure. On the basis of this year’s rankings, Arturo Bris, WCC Director, explains that three main impacts of this fragmentation can be observed.
In this regard, the first impact is related to the fact that national digital infrastructure plays a central role, with countries that have invested in telecommunications, the internet and technology applications over recent years being seen as comparatively resilient due to reduced dependence on foreign countries. Secondly, uncertainties in global trade restrict talent mobility, Bris explains. Domestic political instability, which leads to a brain drain, hinders digital competitiveness. Thirdly, regulatory advantages for companies will be a particularly decisive factor in determining digital competitiveness.
These factors also affect the frontrunner Switzerland. In terms of digital legislation, Arturo Bris is concerned by the razor-thin majority in favor of e-ID (50.4 percent), which makes it clear that “the Swiss aren’t as prepared as we might have hoped to embrace the challenges of technology today”, as the WCC Director explains.
The USA is ranked in second place, with Singapore in the bronze medal position.
Source: swisstrade
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