Croatia Falls Out of the ‘Top 50’ Countries in ICT Competitiveness

Croatia is ranked 51st out of 133 countries in the latest Global Information Technology Report on ICT competitiveness, having lost two positions since 2009 and falling out of the ‘Top 50’ countries, as announced by the National Competitiveness Council (NVK), which published the latest research from the World Economic Forum (WEF) on information technology.

"After a significant improvement in its ICT competitiveness in 2006, Croatia has been on a slight downward trajectory for the past three years. This year we have left the ‘Top 50’, distancing ourselves even further from the most developed countries in the European Union," emphasizes the president of the National Competitiveness Council, Ivica Mudrinić. He highlights that the problems remain the same – low availability of online public services, the burden of government regulation and taxes, protection of property rights, and insufficient absorption of information and communication technologies in enterprises. "Therefore, we all need to make additional efforts to resolve these issues as soon as possible," Mudrinić points out.

The ninth Global Information Technology Report covered 133 countries that account for 98 percent of the world’s total GDP. The most competitive ICT country in the world this year is Sweden, which has advanced from last year’s second place, followed by Singapore and Denmark. Switzerland is in fourth place, while the USA has dropped from last year’s third to fifth position. Significant progress in ICT competitiveness has also been made this year by China (37th) and India (43rd), which have jumped 9 and 11 places respectively on the ranking.

According to the research results, Croatia ranks 56th in the market, political-regulatory, and infrastructural environment segment, and 63rd in terms of readiness to use ICT. The results of the use of new technologies at all levels – individual, business, and public are somewhat more favorable – 43rd position, as stated in the NVK announcement. Croatia ranks high at 15th place in the number of mobile subscribers and a good 31st in the number of computers.

There is a noticeable significant improvement in the E-Participation Index – from 70th to 25th place and the availability of online public services (vehicle registration, taxes, permits, procurement) from 82nd to 40th place. The ranking of broadband internet subscription has also improved (+27). However, in terms of the costs of using fixed and mobile phones, we are seeing a significant deterioration, as stated in the announcement. Among Croatia’s neighboring countries, Slovenia is the best ranked at 31st place, Montenegro has recorded strong growth at 42nd place, Hungary is at 46th, Macedonia at 73rd, Serbia at 84th position, and Bosnia and Herzegovina at 110th place.

The last place in this year’s research again belongs to the African country Chad as the least developed country in the world, as stated in the announcement. The main feature of the research is to show how much a particular country relies on information and communication technology in promoting sustainable economic growth, especially in times following the greatest global economic crisis in the last few decades. The Network Readiness Index on which the research is based encompasses three dimensions: the general business, regulatory, and infrastructural environment for ICT, the readiness of individuals, the business sector, and the government for stronger use of ICT, and the actual use of the most modern information and communication technologies. (H)