The International Institute for Management Development (IMD) recently released the IMD World Competitiveness Ranking 2022 – a comprehensive annual report and worldwide reference point on the competitiveness of countries. The ranking is based on a number of competitiveness criteria representing economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure. Among the areas of ranking were scientific infrastructure and education.
For scientific infrastructure competitiveness, Thailand’s ranking remains unchanged at the 38th spot. Improvements have been made in a number of indicators. Total R&D expenditure increased from USD 6.219 billion (1.14% of GDP) in 2021 to USD 6.647 billion (1.33% of GDP) in 2022; whereas total R&D personnel per 1,000 people jumped from 1.9 FTE to 2.2 FTE. The number of scientific publications has increased steadily, with 1,000 more scientific articles than last year, and the number of patent grants was raised from 367 to 473.
For scientific infrastructure competitiveness, Thailand’s ranking remains unchanged at the 38th spot. Improvements have been made in a number of indicators. Total R&D expenditure increased from USD 6.219 billion (1.14% of GDP) in 2021 to USD 6.647 billion (1.33% of GDP) in 2022; whereas total R&D personnel per 1,000 people jumped from 1.9 FTE to 2.2 FTE. The number of scientific publications has increased steadily, with 1,000 more scientific articles than last year, and the number of patent grants was raised from 367 to 473.
The education competitiveness ranking has moved up three spots to 53rd, with positive growth in several criteria. Public expenditure on education rose from 3% of GDP to 3.7% of GDP, moving up from the 59th to the 49th position. Public expenditure on education per student increased from USD 986 to USD 1,294, and proportion of population receiving tertiary education increased from 32% to 34%.
Overall, Thailand is placed in the 33rd position among 63 economies, dropping five spots from the previous year and ranking third in ASEAN behind Singapore and Malaysia. The top five spots went to Denmark, Switzerland, Singapore, Sweden and Hong Kong.
