The State of Philippine Competitiveness 2007
Getting to C: Competencies. Clusters. Communities. Convergence. Competitiveness.

The Philippines has seen its lowest ranking in global competitiveness in five years, placed at 45 th out of 55 countries for 2007. The competitive landscape of the Philippines shows both highs and lows among specific factors. Among economic performance indicators, prices of goods remain competitive. However, the state of our domestic economy , including economic diversity and GDP growth rates per capita , should be improved to support a favorable business environment for enterprises.

The 2007 State of Philippine Competitiveness is the second of such national conference organized by the National Competitive Council, the AIM Policy Center and Konrad Adenauer Foundation. This year’s conference was well-attended by participants from a variety of sectors, 25% from private sector, 25% from national agencies and LGUs, 15% from the academe, 10% from civil society and 10% from the diplomatic community.

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The State of Philippine Competitiveness 2006
The Creative Industries - Interplay of Art, Business and Innovation

December 2006

2006 marks the 10 th year of the AIM Policy Center’s engagement as Partner-Institute to the Institute of Management Development (IMD) for the World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY).

Throughout our decade-long tracking and monitoring for the WCY, we have seen that the challenges underlying the Philippines’ competitiveness, or the lack of it, are recurring and, on the whole, remain unchanged – in the areas of infrastructure, governance, education, population management and transaction costs.

Notwithstanding the many challenges facing the country, there continue to be bright spots. One sector that holds much promise is the Creative Industries, especially given the Filipino’s strong predisposition for “activities which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent and which have a potential for wealth creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property”. From artisanal products and design to the performing arts to animation and even cultural festivals, the Filipino ingenuity and creativity has been recognized the world over. With policy sweeteners, the country should be able to get its slice of the global creative pie.