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The World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Competitiveness Report was an annual publication dedicated to assessing and ranking nations based on their capacity to foster economic prosperity among their citizenry.
Answer: True
Explanation: The World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report was an annual publication that assessed and ranked nations based on their capacity to foster economic prosperity for their citizens, utilizing the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) between 2004 and 2020.
The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) was primarily developed by economists Jeffrey Sachs and Michael Porter.
Answer: False
Explanation: The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) was developed by Xavier Sala-i-Martin and Elsa V. Artadi. While Jeffrey Sachs and Michael Porter developed influential precursor indices (Growth Development Index and Business Competitiveness Index, respectively), they were not the primary developers of the GCI itself.
The primary objective of the Global Competitiveness Report was to measure a country's military strength.
Answer: False
Explanation: The primary objective of the Global Competitiveness Report was to assess a country's ability to provide high levels of prosperity to its citizens, not to measure military strength.
The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) measures the institutions, policies, and factors that determine a nation's sustainable economic prosperity.
Answer: True
Explanation: The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) is designed to measure the collection of institutions, policies, and factors that determine a nation's current and medium-term sustainable economic prosperity.
Before the GCI, the Growth Development Index, developed by Jeffrey Sachs, was used for macroeconomic rankings.
Answer: True
Explanation: Before the implementation of the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI), Jeffrey Sachs's Growth Development Index served as a precursor for macroeconomic rankings.
What was the primary purpose of the WEF Global Competitiveness Report?
Answer: To evaluate a country's ability to provide high levels of prosperity to its citizens.
Explanation: The primary purpose of the WEF Global Competitiveness Report was to assess and rank countries based on their capacity to foster high levels of prosperity for their citizens.
Which index was used by the WEF Global Competitiveness Report between 2004 and 2020?
Answer: The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI)
Explanation: Between 2004 and 2020, the WEF Global Competitiveness Report utilized the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) as its primary ranking methodology.
Who were the primary developers of the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI)?
Answer: Xavier Sala-i-Martin and Elsa V. Artadi
Explanation: The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) was developed by economists Xavier Sala-i-Martin and Elsa V. Artadi.
Which of the following was a precursor index to the GCI, focusing on macroeconomic rankings?
Answer: Jeffrey Sachs's Growth Development Index
Explanation: Jeffrey Sachs's Growth Development Index served as a precursor to the GCI, specifically focusing on macroeconomic rankings.
The GCI is structured around approximately 50 variables, with half derived from the Executive Opinion Survey and half from public data.
Answer: False
Explanation: The GCI is structured around over 110 variables, with two-thirds sourced from the Executive Opinion Survey and one-third from public data.
The Executive Opinion Survey collects data from government officials to assess national competitiveness.
Answer: False
Explanation: The Executive Opinion Survey collects data from a representative sample of business leaders within their respective countries, not from government officials.
The GCI measures twelve distinct pillars of competitiveness, including institutions, infrastructure, macroeconomic stability, and health/education.
Answer: True
Explanation: The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) is structured around twelve distinct pillars, encompassing areas such as institutions, infrastructure, macroeconomic stability, health and primary education, among others.
The weighting of GCI pillars is uniform across all countries, regardless of their income level or development stage.
Answer: False
Explanation: The weighting of the GCI pillars is not uniform; it is adjusted based on a country's per capita income and its stage of economic development.
The Global Competitiveness Report explicitly incorporated environmental dimensions like climate risks and resource security into its main indicators.
Answer: False
Explanation: The Global Competitiveness Report's primary indicators did not incorporate environmental dimensions such as energy, water, climate risks, resource security, or food security.
The ecological footprint was a core component used in the GCI scoring algorithm for competitiveness rankings.
Answer: False
Explanation: While the ecological footprint was used as a context indicator in some report editions, it was not a core component of the GCI scoring algorithm for competitiveness rankings.
What proportion of the GCI variables are typically derived from the Executive Opinion Survey?
Answer: Two-thirds
Explanation: The Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) is structured around more than 110 variables, with two-thirds of these variables sourced from the Executive Opinion Survey.
What is the Executive Opinion Survey?
Answer: A survey of business leaders within their respective countries.
Explanation: The Executive Opinion Survey is a key component of the GCI methodology, collecting data from a representative sample of business leaders within their respective countries.
Which of the following is NOT listed as one of the twelve pillars of the GCI?
Answer: Environmental Sustainability
Explanation: Environmental Sustainability was not among the twelve pillars measured by the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI). The report's indicators did not explicitly incorporate environmental dimensions.
How does the GCI methodology account for different levels of economic development?
Answer: By adjusting the weighting of pillars based on a country's per capita income and development stage.
Explanation: The GCI methodology adjusts the weighting of its pillars based on a country's per capita income and its stage of economic development, ensuring relevance across diverse economies.
The report identifies four stages of economic development: factor-driven, efficiency-driven, innovation-driven, and service-driven.
Answer: False
Explanation: The report categorizes countries into three primary stages of economic development: factor-driven, efficiency-driven, and innovation-driven. It does not identify a 'service-driven' stage as a distinct category.
Factor-driven economies rely heavily on basic endowments like unskilled labor and natural resources for competitiveness.
Answer: True
Explanation: Factor-driven economies are characterized by competitiveness derived predominantly from basic factor endowments, including unskilled labor and natural resources, supported by strong institutions and adequate infrastructure.
Efficiency-driven economies achieve competitiveness primarily through groundbreaking innovation and unique product creation.
Answer: False
Explanation: Groundbreaking innovation and unique product creation are characteristic of innovation-driven economies. Efficiency-driven economies focus on improving production processes and product quality.
Innovation-driven economies sustain high living standards by competing through the creation of new and unique products.
Answer: True
Explanation: Innovation-driven economies maintain high living standards by competing through the development and introduction of novel and unique products, supported by sophisticated production processes.
In factor-driven economies, strong institutions are considered less critical than market size.
Answer: False
Explanation: In factor-driven economies, strong institutions are considered critically important, alongside infrastructure and macroeconomic stability, for competitiveness, rather than market size being the primary determinant.
Market size becomes increasingly important for competitiveness as economies advance from the factor-driven to the efficiency-driven stage.
Answer: True
Explanation: Market size gains significance as a driver of competitiveness as economies transition from the factor-driven stage to the efficiency-driven stage.
According to the report, what characterizes a factor-driven economy?
Answer: Reliance on basic factor endowments like unskilled labor and natural resources.
Explanation: Factor-driven economies are characterized by their reliance on basic factor endowments, such as unskilled labor and natural resources, as primary drivers of competitiveness.
What is the key focus for competitiveness in an efficiency-driven economy?
Answer: Improving production efficiency and product quality.
Explanation: Efficiency-driven economies achieve competitiveness by focusing on improving production efficiency and enhancing product quality, supported by factors like higher education and efficient markets.
Singapore was the top-ranked country in the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report.
Answer: False
Explanation: The United States, not Singapore, was the top-ranked country in the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report. Singapore ranked first in the 2019 report.
Switzerland, Singapore, and the United States were consistently ranked among the top countries in the years preceding 2020.
Answer: True
Explanation: Switzerland, Singapore, and the United States were frequently recognized among the leading countries in the Global Competitiveness Report rankings in the years leading up to its discontinuation.
Singapore scored 84.8 in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report.
Answer: True
Explanation: Singapore achieved a score of 84.8 in the 2019 edition of the Global Competitiveness Report.
The United States' score in the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report was 85.6.
Answer: True
Explanation: The United States recorded a score of 85.6 in the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report.
Switzerland ranked seventh in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report.
Answer: False
Explanation: Switzerland ranked first in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report, not seventh.
Which country ranked first in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report?
Answer: Singapore
Explanation: Singapore secured the first position in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report rankings.
What was the rank of the United States in the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report?
Answer: First
Explanation: The United States held the first rank in the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report.
What was Singapore's score in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report?
Answer: 84.8
Explanation: Singapore achieved a score of 84.8 in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report.
What was the rank of Germany in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report?
Answer: Seventh
Explanation: Germany was ranked seventh in the 2019 Global Competitiveness Report.
Allegations in 2025 suggested Klaus Schwab manipulated the report's rankings for political reasons.
Answer: True
Explanation: Reports emerged in 2025 alleging that WEF leader Klaus Schwab manipulated the report for political purposes by altering or suppressing rankings for specific countries, including those in the Middle East, North Africa, and India.
The Global Competitiveness Report was discontinued in 2020.
Answer: True
Explanation: The Global Competitiveness Report, as it was known, ceased publication in 2020.