World Economic Forum’s Human Capital Report combines data on learning, skills, employment and demographics for 124 countries, representing 98 percent of global GDP.
When asked what’s most attractive about Slovenia, foreign investors present in the Alpine republic often respond: well educated people with good work ethics. These favorable opinions are confirmed by various analytical comparisons. The latest is The Human Capital Report, published by World Economic Forum in cooperation with consulting company Mercer. Slovenia scored on a high 15th place among 124 countries present in the report.
The main tool used in the report is the Human Capital Index which combines data on learning, employment and demographics. Finland has the best value of the index among the 124 selected countries, which represent 98 percent of the global GDP. »The leaders of the index are high-income economies that have placed importance on high educational attainment, « explain the authors of the report. Finland is followed by Norway, Switzerland, Canada and Japan.
According to World Economic Forum's data Slovenia scored better than countries such as the USA (17th place), UK (19th) and Germany (22nd). In fact, the young Alpine republic has the best human resources potential among all the so called emerging economies with Estonia on 16th and Lithuania on 18th place.
The analysis takes into account a number of variables on education and the labor market, and combines them with a number of additional indicators on innovation or social security. Slovenia's high score reflects a high level of enrolment in education, educational attainment, quality of education, level of skills and economic participation of various age groups. Indirectly, the score also reflects the quality of life in a country. Slovenia, for example, is the world leader in healthy life expectancy at birth. Child labor is practically non-existent (3rd place). There is no secondary enrolment gender gap (1st place).
As World Economic Forum's founder Klaus Schwab stressed in the preface to the analysis it is the talent, not capital, that will be the key factor linking innovation, competitiveness and growth in the 21st century. Slovenia as a young country still has a long way to increase its competitiveness. The fact that last year's European Commission’s report put Slovenia among the most very innovative countries, just behind the global leaders, may come as a surprise to many, yet the WEF's report on human capital easily explains the country's high level of innovation: very good education and high level of skills.
