Kuwait ranks high in multiple categories in Global Knowledge Index report 2021
Kuwait has demonstrated strong performance in the Global Knowledge Index 2021 by globally ranking 12th in the technical education and professional training indicator, and 21st in the ICT indicator. Issued by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation (MBRF) in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the index is aimed at measuring knowledge as a concept linked to sustainable development in various aspects of human life. It is directed towards utilizing knowledge to build knowledge societies and economies that are capable of formulating development policies that can foresee the future.
The index measures the state of knowledge in 154 countries around the world based on seven secondary indicators that mark the performance of six crucial knowledge sectors, namely -pre-university education; technical education and professional training; higher education; research, development, and innovation; information and communications technology (ICT); and economy. It also includes a secondary indicator that notes the social, political, economic, health and environmental context under which these sectors are being managed.
Kuwait’s advancement in the technical education and professional training indicator can be attributed to its excellent performance in the main and subcategories. The country ranked 21st in the technical education and professional training components category, and 10th in the job market category. The job market category further consisted of two subcategories - job market efficiency and fairness and inclusion, in which Kuwait obtained the nineth and first place, respectively.
The country also showcased impressive results in the ICT indicator, in which it secured the 21st place globally and second place among Arab countries. It ranked eighth in the indicator’s ICT availability category and 10th in the ICT usage category. The ICT usage category also included the services usage subcategory, in which Kuwait secured first place globally. This subcategory covered variables such as the volume of broadband internet usage per subscription, and the percentage of internet users.
An in-depth review and discussion of the Global Knowledge Index report 2021 was carried out during the seventh edition of the Knowledge Summit 2022. The Summit was organized by MBRF in collaboration with UNDP and was held at the Expo 2020 Dubai. The report further established Kuwait as a strong performer in terms of knowledge infrastructure. This progress was showcased by the ratio of students to trained teachers in elementary education, the cost of a fixed terrestrial broadband Internet subscription as a percentage of GNI per capita, mobile broadband Internet use per subscription, value added by industry and services as a percentage of GDP, and fixed broadband internet use per subscription.
The fifth edition of the Global Knowledge Index report 2021 included 155 variables that were selected from over 40 international sources and databases, including the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the World Bank, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), The International Monetary Fund (IMF), The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the International Labor Organization, among others. The results show Switzerland taking the 1st place globally for the fifth consecutive year, followed by Sweden, the USA, Finland, and the Netherlands.
