A competitiveness index for the regions of a country

Abstract

This article, which forms part of a comprehensive research projecton measuring the level of competitiveness, sets out a proposal fordeveloping an index to measure the competitiveness of the regions of acountry. The aim is to develop a new approach to competitiveness, bymeasuring how resources and capacities are managed in a given regionof a country, to generate a sustained increase in business productivity andthe well-being of its population. The following pillars of the competitivenessof regions are identified: (i); government and institutions; (ii); economicdevelopment; (iii); productive infrastructure; (iv); human capital; and(v); business efficiency. For each of these pillars, five factors and theirvariables are identified to measure the various aspects of regionalcompetitiveness. These represent a second and third level of disaggregationthat enhance the analysis that can be made using the results obtained.