The first ever report on the State of Pakistan's Competitiveness will be launched here on Monday. The report has been prepared by the Competitiveness Support Fund (CSF), a joint initiative of the Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan and the US Agency for International Development (USAID).
The economists and industry experts, both in and outside Pakistan, have been eagerly waiting for such a document, which can shed light on Pakistan's competitiveness. The report is expected to identify the current strengths and weaknesses in Pakistan's competitiveness standing.
It is believed that the report will be highlighting areas where Pakistan has improved as well as lagged behind in the nine pillars of the World Economic Forum, namely institutions, infrastructure, macro economy, health and primary education, higher education and training, market efficiency, technological readiness, business sophistication and innovation.
The report also compares Pakistan's progress in terms of other countries in the region. The World Economic Forum recognised the economic achievements of Pakistan in its latest Global Competitiveness Report, in which Pakistan ranked 66th on the Business Competitiveness Index, showing its market efficiency.
In the 2006-07 Global Competitiveness Report, it ranked 91st out of 125 countries on the Global Competitiveness Index that includes governance, health and education. Sources at the ministry said that the ceremony will be attended by cabinet members, corporate and business leaders, legislators, senior civil servants and intellectuals from academia and research institutes.
This will also provide a platform to address the competitiveness issues to the key stakeholders in Pakistan. The report will be available to the general public through the Competitiveness Support Fund's website www.competitiveness. org.pk.