Switzerland world's most competitive country
Switzerland truly is an impressive country, landlocked and small with no natural resources; it has developed into one of the richest countries in the world and was recently named the most competitive economy in the world. This is due in large part to its banking sector, which is one of the most advanced and its government structure, which is efficient in comparison to many other developed countries.
Much of this progress has come on the back of a delicate balancing game that the country has played since it was founded as a Swiss Confederation in the 12th century. Switzerland has not been at war with any country since 1815, because the country has always balanced its national goals and objectives against a foreign policy of neutrality. It is therefore, not a member of the European Union or the Euro Zone, though it plays a significant role in world affairs because the head quarters of many major organisations are located here.
The World Economic Forum, the International Olympic Committee, the World Trade Organization, the Red Cross, the second largest offices of the UN after New York and the head quarters of FIFA are all located in Switzerland, more specifically Geneva, which incidentally was ranked by Mercer in 2009 as the city with the world’s third highest quality of life.
It was therefore without any sense of surprise or indeed smugness that Switzerland was named by the Global Competitiveness Report 2010 as the world’s most advanced and competitive economy, singled out by the report as a country with “an excellent capacity for innovation” and a “very sophisticated business culture”.
Rather, the prestigious vote of confidence from the World Economic Forum, which compiled the report, is part of business as usual in the country, although there are many Swiss nationals who strive for even more and think the country is not yet as competitive as it could be.
Of the 8% of business leaders, CEOs, company presidents and high-level managers across the nation in various sectors of the economy who agreed to fill out the 20 page survey, the most common gripe found among all of them was a high level of government regulation, high taxes and overly-stringent labor laws.
Executive School’s Beat Bechtold, who was the project leader in gathering data in Switzerland for the WEF report, told Switzerland news media that he was surprised by their complaints, as Switzerland is also one of the most efficient countries in the world.
A typical work permit takes just a few days to organize in Switzerland, compared to up to a week or more in many other developed countries.
Switzerland’s tax regime has also been kept comparatively low compared to other European nations. A report in 2009 found that the country’s average tax rate was 33.7%, which placed the country 13th in the world for favorable tax regulation out of a survey of 86 countries. The survey was conducted by KPMG, one of the world’s ‘Big Four’ auditing houses.
Furthermore, the national average tax rate is trailed by 6 of the country’s 26 cantons, with Zug, Schwyz, Obwalden, Nidwalden, Appenzell Inner Rhodes and Uri maintaining tax rates below 30% while another ten cantons have reportedly taken steps to cut taxes during 2010, according to Switzerland news reports.
The report on the highest and lowest taxed locations in the world, found that, of the top 20 locations in Europe for favorable taxes, 9 of them were located within Switzerland, giving the country a considerable competitive edge.
The World Economic Forum’s report on competitiveness was conducted using data collected from individual interviews, as well as a comprehensive analysis of publicly available data and the results of study by the WEF, which looked at 12 pillars of the economy in every country, such as the quality of railroad infrastructure, the country’s credit rating, access to financial services and several others.
In one of these areas, that of tertiary education, Switzerland was ranked less competitive than other countries. The country’s university enrollment rate of 49.4% does not bode well for future rankings and in terms of this pillar, the country ranked 48th out of 139 countries surveyed.
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Switzerland world's most competitive country
Switzerland is frequently pointed to as a model of good governance, prosperity, innovation and stability and is one of the happiest countries in the world. The recent competitive survey by the WEF underscored this, but came with a warning.
Switzerland truly is an impressive country, landlocked and small with no natural resources; it has developed into one of the richest countries in the world and was recently named the most competitive economy in the world. This is due in large part to its banking sector, which is one of the most advanced and its government structure, which is efficient in comparison to many other developed countries. Read more
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