Some 90 students from 15 universities from all over Pakistan, including Lahore University of Management and Technology (LUMT), Lahore College for Women University (LCWU), Kinnaird College, Lahore, Punjab University and Government College Lahore have been an integral part of the World Economic Forums Executive Opinion Survey 2009-10, organised and conducted by the Competitiveness Support Fund (CSF).
The survey was facilitated and assisted by Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), Lahore Chamber of Commerce, Karachi Chamber of Commerce, Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Pakistan Business Council.
Rehmatullah Javed, chairman of the competitiveness committee of the FPCCI in Lahore noted: "FPCCI is pleased to be part of this initiative, which we have been part of in the past two years as well. It is an excellent opportunity for students to get an insight into the real business world and how chief executive officers function and give direction to their businesses as well as for the students to be part of an initiative that plays a very important national role."
Daud Sharif, Chief Operating Officer of CSF, highlighted the work being done by CSF to bring Pakistans economy on a more global competitive level throughout Pakistan. He said the Executive Opinion Survey was an integral part of CSF work and was also a tool to create awareness about the state of Pakistans economy and thereby bring about accurate data that could provide a true picture of Pakistans economy.
The 2009-2010 survey started with a series of workshops which CSF conducted in Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi in February 2009 to educate students and share information on the World Economic Forums Global Competitiveness Report which presents a countrys ranking across a range of socio-economic variables. As part of capacity building, CSF engaged students from all over Pakistan to help conduct the survey as volunteers.
The Executive Opinion Survey, the Voice of the Business Community, is a major component of The Global Competitiveness Report and provides the key ingredient that turns the report into a representative annual measure of a nations economic environment and its ability to achieve sustained growth. The survey gathers valuable information on a broad range of variables for which hard data sources are scare or non-existent. High level business executives operating in Pakistan will be surveyed to capture their opinion on the business environment in which they operate.
The Competitiveness Support Fund (CSF), a joint initiative of the Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is the country partner institute of WEF in Pakistan. CSF was launched in 2006 to reposition Pakistans economy on a more competitive global footing.
The Global Competitiveness Report has been the World Economic Forums flagship publication since 1979 and is widely recognised as the worlds leading cross-country comparator of factors affecting economics competitiveness and growth. Its coverage has expanded each year, now extending to 134 countries.
A sample of company executives from a cross-section of the private sector, including the financial sector, were asked to complete this important and confidential survey. Arthur Bayhan, Chief Executive Officer of CSF, noted that it is important that each executive sampled should complete the survey to insure that Pakistan has accurate and reliable data in the Global Competitiveness Report.
The World Economic Forum every year issues its Global Competitiveness Report in October, which is the most comprehensive and authoritative assessment of the comparative strengths and weaknesses of national economies, used by governments, academics and business leaders. The World Economic Forums rankings give a holistic view of the economies in comparison with each other. The rankings are calculated from "Soft Data" gathered by the Executive Opinion Survey; a comprehensive annual survey conducted by the World Economic Forum together with its network of Partner Institutes in the countries covered by the Report. The Global Competitiveness Report of 2008-2009 polled over 11,000 business executives world-wide.
This year, CSF polled over 300 business executives in the EOS. CSFs strategy follows its triple helix model, which involves engaging the government and the private sector along with the media and the academia for long term economic growth in a knowledge based economy. CSF supports Pakistans goal to have a competitive economy by providing input into policy decisions, working to improve regulatory and administrative frameworks and enhancing public-private partnerships within the country.