Slovenia slipped six places on the Global Competitiveness Index compiled by the World Economic Forum and is now 62nd among 148 countries, with a score of 4.2 on a 1-7 scale.
The index, released on Wednesday, shows Slovenia received the highest marks in health care and primary education (ranking 17th), higher education (25th), technological readiness (33rd), infrastructure (36th) and innovation (40th).
However, it was among the worst performers in financial market development (134th) and labour market efficiency (106th).
It received middle-of-the-field scores for institutions (68th), the macroeconomic environment (52nd) and business sophistication (58th).
Slovenia finds itself on the list, which is topped by Switzerland, Singapore and Finland, in the company of countries such as India, Peru, Hungary and Russia.
Slovenia has been losing ground for years, going from 37th in 2009 to 45th in 2010, 57th in 2011, and then only marginally improving to 56th last year.
In response to the news, the Economic Development and Technology Ministry said the reason for the slump was the weak link between the know-how and the end products.
The ministry also announced new measures for supporting entrepreneurship and innovativeness, growth, development and investments in R&D.
Addressing the issue of red tape, the ministry said comprehensive web service sites for foreign and domestic businesses were envisaged, as well as a set of measures for boosting competitiveness and improving the business environment.
To help small businesses deal with the low loan accessibility, the ministry stressed that financial engineering instruments were being used through the Slovenian Enterprise Fund and the investment bank SID.
Source: The Slovenia Times
