你的祖国的竞争力如何?

AS IT IS 2015-10-05 How Competitive Is Your Country? 你的祖国的竞争力如何?

The Swiss-based World Economic Forum¹ released its latest Global Competitiveness Report this week.

The report rated Switzerland as the world’s most competitive country for the seventh year. Next on the list were Singapore and the United States. Others among the top 10 were Germany, Netherlands, Japan, Hong Kong, Finland, Sweden, and Britain.

The report said countries need to accept the reforms needed to improve productivity. They also need to support entrepreneurs. If not, the report says the countries will be less competitive. It says promoting productivity is important for growth, and to lower unemployment.

Most countries report economic growth. But growth is weaker than before the 2008 financial crisis, the report says. The report warns developing countries which fail to compete enough will not be able to deal with future shocks to the world economy.

Margareta Drzeniek-Hanouz is head of Global Competitiveness and Risks at the World Economic Forum. She says digital technology in machinery² and manufacturing is important worldwide.

But, it is the “human factor” that is critical to competitiveness, she says.

“The human factor includes two broad categories of issues. One is education and everything related to education. So how do countries nurture³ talent, but also the flexibility⁴ of the labor⁵ market, so the ability of the business sector⁶ to adapt to changes in the country.” 

The 2015-2016 report used 12 pillars, or groupings, to rate a nation’s competitiveness. These include roads and other infrastructure⁷, health and primary education, business sophistication and innovation.

Major findings show the larger emerging markets are making little progress in competitiveness. But, the report notes India and South Africa appear to be exceptions. Both countries moved up in the ratings.

The report says 28th-ranked China is the most competitive of this group of economies. But, it says China’s failure to move up in the rankings shows the country is facing some difficult economic issues.

The report says African countries south of the Sahara continue to grow at close to five percent a year. But uneven⁸ commodity prices have hurt competitiveness and productivity. In sub-Saharan Africa, 46th-ranked Mauritius remains⁹ the area’s most competitive economy. It is followed closely by South Africa and Rwanda.

Words in This Story

entrepreneur(s) – n. someone who organizes, launches and directs a business

sophistication – n. having or showing a lot of experience and knowledge about the world or culture

innovation – n. the act or process of introducing new ideas, devices or methods

emerging – adj. newly noticed; growing in strength or popularity; becoming widely known or established

commodity – n. an agricultural product or some other unprocessed product that can be bought and sold

1 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

2 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

3 nurture   

n.养育，照顾，教育；滋养，营养品；vt.养育，给与营养物，教养，扶持

参考例句：

• The tree grows well in his nurture.在他的培育下这棵树长得很好。
• The two sisters had received very different nurture.这俩个姊妹接受过极不同的教育。

4 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

5 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

6 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

7 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

8 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

9 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。