The Philippines ranked 59th, dropping three spots from 56th last year, in the overall digital competitiveness performance in terms of knowledge, technology, and future readiness, according to the latest report from the International Institute for Management Development (IMD).

The IMD announced Thursday, Nov. 30, the result of the 2023 World Digital Competitiveness Ranking (WDCR) providing the digital transformation performance of 64 countries, including the Philippines, towards the artificial intelligence (AI) era, focusing on knowledge, technology, and future readiness, using 54 criteria derived from data and executive surveys.

IMD said that “the top economies in this year’s ranking are those that could be considered ‘digital nations’”. These are “countries that facilitate the full adoption of digital technologies –including AI –by governments, companies, and individuals.”

IMD’s World Competitiveness Center Director Professor Arturo Bris explained that the measures were based on AI indicators that are central to factors like talent, regulatory frameworks, adaptive attitudes, and business agility.

“On a data level, the quality of digital regulation, the funding available for technology development, and the degree of company agility are all data points that are enmeshed with AI,” he added.

Based on the report provided to the press, data showed that the Philippines has declined its ranking in knowledge – ranking 63rd; technology – ranking 51st; and future readiness – ranking 59th.

In terms of knowledge, the country dropped by one place in talent, training and education, and scientific concentration from ranking 55th, 61th, and 57th positions in 2022 to ranking 56th, 62th, and 58th places this year, respectively.

IMD indicated that the Philippines’ knowledge was driven by its scientific concentration on female researchers, as its biggest strength – ranking second among the 64 countries, while its top weakness, ranking 59th, was based on the training and education of women with degrees.

The country’s technological performance also dropped by one to two spots based on its regulatory framework – ranking 63rd; capital – ranking 41st; and technological performance – ranking 43rd.

High-tech exports and telecommunications investments have driven the country's technological strengths. Meanwhile, the technological framework on internet users, and communications technology; and regulatory framework on starting a business, and enforcing contracts are considered its weakest spots.

Further, in terms of future readiness, the country has placed at 59th in adaptive attitudes; 50th in business agility; and 60th in information technology (IT) integration.

Specifically, its strongest spot was driven by its IT integration on public-private partnerships, and attitudes toward globalization.

Among its 14 Asian neighbors, the Philippines ranked 13, maintaining the spot for four years since 2020.

The US reclaimed the top spot with strong results in the three measuring factors among 64 countries ranked in the report.

The report also said that AI technology and national security concerns are at the core of another remarkable trend observed in the ranking, specifically an increasing focus on cybersecurity.

Only five percent of the 4,000 senior executives, who responded to the WDCR survey, said that they had not implemented any new cybersecurity measures in the past year.