Jordan ranks 53rd in global competitiveness

AMMAN—Jordan ranked 53rd among 61 countries in the 2016 IMD World Competitiveness rankings, in which economies are ranked from the most to the least competitive.

China and Switzerland achieved the two highest scores, followed by the US in third place. 

Jordan’s ranking was one notch lower than its score in 2015, according to the report, published by the IMD, a Swiss-based institute that releases competitiveness rankings annually.

In the report, issued since 1997, scores are based on a country’s economic achievements, infrastructure, and government and corporate efficiency, according to the IMD’s website. 

Among Arab countries covered by the IMD study, Jordan was preceded by Qatar (13th globally) and the UAE (15th place).

Commenting on the report, economist Hosam Ayesh said: “The world suffers from decreased competitiveness due to several crises, including the drop in oil prices, rising debt, slow economic activities in Asia, and weak economic growth in the US. Jordan is affected by this and suffers from decreased competitiveness in general.”

“Our imports are three times more than our exports, which affects our competitiveness. Our ability to attract investment is also affected due to the global decline. Therefore, our competiveness is weak in this regard,” he added.

The economist said there is a need for more work to amend some business-related laws.

“We need more stability on legislation related to taxes… We need more efforts to enhance governance, business climate and legislation,” he said, besides improved labour-related regulations.