MAY 24 — Dear Tay,
It is said that Malaysia has been ranked 10th place in a world’s competitiveness report.
I would like to ask how many countries have been included in the list. Are there more than 10 countries?
Perhaps, it is a conspiracy of foreigners to make us feel “Malaysia Boleh”?
And what is actually the so-called competitiveness?
Regards,
Reader Ah Bang
Dear Ah Bang,
First of all, I think you are spoiling the joy!
Malaysia has not been receiving good news for long. Even the 2010 Thomas Cup cheered us for only one day.
But now, we have been ranked among the top 10 most competitive countries in the world. Oh, this is not a corruption, largest rice dumpling or longest sarong ranking. Instead, it is a competitiveness ranking!
And certainly, more than 10 countries have been assessed. In fact, I have checked the data and found a total of 58 countries and regions have been assessed. The ranking is limited to “top students” only!
Malaysia can actually be ranked among the top 10 countries, including Singapore, Hong Kong, the United States, Australia, Switzerland, Canada and Taiwan. Even though we are ranked the bottom in the top 10 list, we are still in the “gifted class”! Have you been in a gifted class before?
Moreover, the ranking was conducted by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), an internationally-renowned management institution.
I do not think it is a conspiracy either as IMD does not receive money.
Okay, I do agree that I am not sure why Malaysia is competitive and how it can be ranked among the top 10 competitive countries.
However, I have read a book, a very thick book, written by Harvard Business School Professor Michael Porter. He pointed out a few concepts in the book.
1. Do what you know how to do and what you can do well. That is what we called competitive advantage;
2. Open up, so that talents, capital and information will come to you;
3. Innovate, keep reforming and developing to stay ahead;
4. The government, as well as the people must be efficient.
Porter’s competitiveness theory used to be popular in the world. Many countries invited him to be their honoured national advisor by offering him a minimum pay of millions of dollars.
However, he stopped making new arguments later. His market and status dropped and recently, he was paid US$250,000 (RM800,000) to give a talk in Taiwan. It was only an ordinary talk on the co-operation between China and Taiwan.
He himself has actually portrayed the competitiveness concept, namely one will fall behind if he does not move forward. Malaysia is ranked among the top 10 today but how about next year and the year after next?
The initial purpose of the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook is to help us understand how a country could enhance its social progress by using its overall resources and competitive conditions.
The question is, what kind of progress do we need?
Some countries need to get rid of poverty while some countries that have already gotten rid of poverty are facing the pain of growing gap between rich and poor, as well as unfairness and injustice in the society.
To be honest, I am really happy to see Malaysia being ranked among the top 10.
It shows that we have our merits. However, we must be careful as we may fall from the gifted class to the low-grade class if we excessively indulge in the competitiveness ranking while ignoring and not improving problems that we have been facing for long.
So, are we more enlightened now?
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