Nederland nog net niet top

“Based on a methodology devised by Peer Ederer, director of the Human Capital Project, the study predicts major challenges for key European countries – such as Germany and Italy – that do too little to invest in and develop their human capital,” zo meldt de Brusselse denktank. “Specifically, the study measures human capital stock, deployment, utilization and evolution in 13 EU countries, and ranks those countries by their ability to develop their human capital to meet the challenge of globalisation.”

Voor ons land zijn de kansen om als kenniseconomie door te breken nu groter dan in 2003, bij de eerste Kenniseconomie Monitor, zo stelt de Lisbon Council, want: “If policy makers in Germany and Italy continue ignoring the human capital dimension of today’s policy mix, economic power will inexorably seep from the centre to the periphery, thereby reversing the traditional economic hierarchy that has defined Europe for centuries. Long-term potential economic growth could start to diverge sharply among European nations, with Scandinavia, Netherlands, UK and Austria replacing “old Europe” as the core of the new European economy.” De impact van geconcentreerde levenlangleren investeringen is buitengewoon groot zo blijkt uit de analyse: “Sweden invests twice as many resources in school, university and adult education as Italy or Spain, with the result that Swedish employees possess twice as much human capital as measured by our index than their Italian or Spanish counterparts.”

Dit wordt nog versterkt door ht succes van de EU-ruimte voor vrij verkeer van arbeid en door de trends van wereldwijde migratie: “As growth and wealth diverge, highly-skilled citizens from stagnating economies are unlikely to merely watch their standard of living decline relative to their European neighbours. German doctors working in the Nordic economies, or London’s pull on financial-service workers, are examples of a phenomenon that is likely to become more widespread – with ultimately negative consequences for countries that are unable to attract and retain their best and brightest workers. This migration of highly-skilled labour will amplify economic divergence, reducing economic growth further in the economies at the bottom of the table and enhancing the position of those at the top.”

Nederland scoort opmerkelijk goed bij de mate van inzet van zijn menselijk kapitaal. Daarin heeft ons land bij een al hoge economische output en productiviteit zijn positie aan de top in Europa weten te behouden en versterken. “In the last two decades, Human Capital Utilization throughout the EU has risen to 58%, up from an average of 50%. In that time, three countries have given a particularly stellar
performance by rising from the bottom all the way to the top – the Netherlands, Spain and Ireland. The most remarkable of these three is probably the Netherlands, as its increase took place against the background of an already high level of economic output. As populations age, more and more of a country’s human capital is invested in people over 60 years old. If current retirement patterns do not change, the average Human Capital Utilisation will fall to 52% by 2030 based on current demographic trends. If this happens, it would roll back and reverse all of the achievements in effective Human Capital Utilization in the last 20 years.”