in line with widely accepted economic theory regarding the three stages of economic development, the GCI assumes that in the first stage of development, the economy is "factor-driven" and countries compete based upon their factor endowments, which are primarily unskilled labour and natural resources. companies compete on the basis of price and sell basic products (e.g. commodities),and low wages reflect low productivity.maintaining competitiveess at this stage of development hinges primarily on well-functioning public and private institutions, well-developed infrastructure, stable macroeconomic environments, and healthy workforces with basic education.