Philippines leads emerging economies in talent, despite annual drop

Among economies in the lower middle income tier, the Philippines was ranked first place in the 2019 the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI), a talent competitiveness study conducted by INSEAD, The Adecco Group and Tata Communications. The country, however, only scored 40.94 out of 100, which was lower than its rating last year of 44.17. The Philippines finished 58th overall among the 125 economies surveyed, four positions lower than its ranking of 54th out of 119 economies last year. Within the economies of the ‘Eastern, Southeastern Asia, and Oceania group’, the Philippines stood at ninth place. In Southeast Asia, it ranked fourth. “The slight decline of the Philippines’ ranking in the GTCI Index may partly have to do with some local talent being exported to more developed countries due to higher pay and better employment opportunities,” said Michael L. Ricafort, economist at the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.