Up the ladder: Lithuania rises in World Talent Ranking

International ratings are increasingly reflecting efforts by Lithuanian state institutions, educational establishments and businesses, Marius Skuodis, a vice minister of economy and innovation, said.

Lithuania received the highest score in the investment and development category, inching down, however, to the 13th position from the 14th. Meanwhile the country rose in the appeal (from 46 to 4635 and readiness category (from 45 to 33).

"The breakthrough in these groups were influenced by the increase in workforce, better assessment of university services, a change in the attitude towards executives' education, as well as workers' good foreign language knowledge," Skuodis said.

The IMD World Talent Ranking is based on countries’ performance in three main categories — investment and development, appeal and readiness. The three categories assess how countries perform in a wide range of areas under 32 criteria. These include education, apprenticeships, workplace training, language skills, cost of living, quality of life, remuneration and tax rates.

Estonia ranks 27th this year, Latvia is 34th and Poland is 37th.

Switzerland has been leading the list for the past six years, with Denmark coming second this year, followed by Sweden.