The report "assesses the ability of countries to provide high levels of prosperity to their citizens".
"[4][5] Since 2004, the report ranks the world's nations according to the Global Competitiveness Index,[3] based on the latest theoretical and empirical research.
Thus, the GCI separates countries into three specific stages: factor-driven, efficiency-driven, and innovation-driven, each implying a growing degree of complexity in the operation of the economy.
These are: In the factor-driven stage countries compete based on their factor endowments, primarily unskilled labor and natural resources.
Thus, the impact of each pillar on competitiveness varies across countries, in function of their stages of economic development.
The Global Competitiveness Index's annual reports are somewhat similar to the Ease of Doing Business Index and the Indices of Economic Freedom, which also look at factors affecting economic growth (but not as many as the Global Competitiveness Report).
Data from the Global Competitiveness Index relating to the strength of auditing and reporting standards, institutions and judicial independence is used in the Basel AML Index, a money laundering risk assessment tool developed by the Basel Institute on Governance.