Pakistan ahead of India in development: World Economic Forum

ISLAMABAD: The prestigious World Economic Forum (WEF) has declared Pakistan and China ahead of India among the developing economies in the inclusive development index. The report of the WEF has appeared on Monday and it says that India has been ranked 60th, below the neighbouring Pakistan and China. Pakistan has been ranked at 52nd spot, China at 13th, ahead from India (60th), among 79 developing economies in the Inclusive Development Index, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) report.

WEF's 'Inclusive Growth and Development Report 2017', released in Davos, Switzerland, said that most countries are missing important opportunities to raise economic growth and reduce inequality at the same time because the growth model and measurement tools that have guided policymakers for decades require significant readjustment.

India has been ranked 60th, below its neighbouring countries including China and Pakistan, according to the WEF report, carried by The Asian Age newspaper. The Inclusive Development Index (IDI) is based on 12 performance indicators. In order to provide a more complete measure of economic development than GDP growth alone, the index has three pillars -- Growth and Development, Inclusion and Intergenerational Equity, and Sustainability.

Baltic state Lithuania tops the list of 79 developing economies that also features Central Asia's Azerbaijan and East European Hungary at second and third positions, respectively. China is ranked at the 15th position, Nepal (27th), Bangladesh (36th) and Pakistan (52nd).

BRIC organisation’s two member nations Russia and Brazil are at 13th and 30th places, respectively. Others in the top 10 are Poland (4th), Romania (5th), Uruguay (6th), Latvia (7th), Panama (8th), Costa Rica (9th) and Chile (10th).

The forum that is commencing its five-day session today (Tuesday) will discuss economic issues confronted by various countries across the globe. Pakistan’s delegation in the forum is being led by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has already reached the Swiss hill resort, hosting the annual gathering of economic and political leaders belonging to different countries.