Digital_Ranking_Report_2021

Figure 6 : Future Readiness factor - Top gainers 2017-2021

5.

Concluding remarks

2020 presented unparalleled challenges to all countries in two dimensions. On the one hand, their health infrastructure and ability to tackle a pandemic. On the other, their capacity to sustain their economies after they were affected by both demand and supply shocks. Given the existing level of international interdependence in the production of goods and services, the restricted mobility of people and goods only exacerbated the negative implications of the crisis. Technology proved to be the saving force in transforming government and business practices as well as social interconnection. The IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking provides a way to quantify the capacity of an economy to adopt and explore new digital technologies. The three important results we identified when examining this year’s rankings follow the suggestions that the Center has echoed in the last few years. Countries with a strong presence in future readiness, that is, with individuals as well as firms that are flexible and agile, and who have managed to integrate IT technologies in their daily practices, seem to have performed better. In addition, leading economies are characterized by strong performances in training and education. Finally, those economies spearheading the way have the ability to allocate capital towards learning and developing new technologies. The rapid expansion of the use of digital technologies has raised an additional issue that needs to be researched carefully. And this is related to the interactions of individuals with technology. The adoption of COVID-19 tracking applications was received with some scepticism from

citizens around the world. Questions about the ownership of private versus public data, as well as the transparency of the use of the data, have been increasingly voiced. These topics need to be examined in a coordinated way, to enable us to enjoy the benefits of digital technology, while at the same time securing the liberties that societies have been built upon.

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IMD WORLD DI G I TAL COMPET I T I VENESS RANK ING 2021