Seychelles is the fourth-most competitive nation in Africa out of 37 countries ranked in the 2019 edition of the Global Competitiveness Report, scoring high marks in health and macro-economic stability.
The island nation was ranked 76 out of 141 countries and territories on the index, which is published by the World Economic Forum. The World Economic Forum has been measuring countries’ competitiveness since 1979. The report is compiled from a wide variety of reputable data sources, including the World Bank, UNESCO, the World Health Organisation, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the World Tourism Organisation.
Oliver Bastienne, the chairman of the Seychelles Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), told SNA on Tuesday that Seychelles being fourth in Africa is a good sign of continuous economic progress. “The economy of Seychelles thrives on the different businesses that it has available. We have appropriate laws and facilities in place which can enable anyone to set up a business and start trading,” Bastienne said. The SCCI chairman added that the island nation’s good ranking in Africa and globally can also be attributed to the ease of doing business in Seychelles.
“However, this is not to say that we don’t have our share of challenges when it comes to competitiveness and the enabling environment that we have when it comes to doing business. We can do better next year if we cut down on bureaucracy and set up a one-stop institution that will facilitate everything for business,” he said.
Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, scored the highest in the health pillar, which assesses the average number of years a newborn can expect to live in good health. According to Seychelles in Figures’ publication for 2018 is 70 for male and 78 for female.
