World Bank: Boosting Productivity Could Add Two Million Jobs and Raise GDP Across Europe and Central Asia
Strengthening productivity could accelerate economic growth and generate nearly two million new jobs across Europe and Central Asia, according to a new World Bank report released on Nov. 24.
The study urges countries in the region to focus on using existing economic assets more efficiently and investing in the capabilities of their firms and workforce to unlock faster and more resilient growth.
The report underscores that while expanding capital and labor inputs is important, it is productivity that ultimately drives economic performance. The World Bank notes that the region’s economic slowdown since the global financial crisis has been driven almost entirely by weakening productivity, a trend linked to slowed reforms, persistent market distortions and incomplete integration in...
