Each year for 12 years, The Wall Street Journal and The Heritage Foundation , Washington's preeminent think tank, have tracked the march of economic freedom around the world with the internationally acclaimed Index.

The Index, however, is more than just a dataset based on empirical study; it is a careful theoretical analysis of the factors that most influence the institutional setting of economic growth. Moreover, although there are many theories about the origins and causes of economic development, the findings of this study are straightforward: The countries with the most economic freedom also have higher rates of long-term economic growth and are more prosperous than are those with less economic freedom.

Each year for 12 years, the Index has tracked the march of economic freedom around the world, becoming a must-have resource for investors, policymakers, academics, and others who want to learn about the link between economic freedom and prosperity. The 2006 Index of Economic Freedom measures 161 countries against a list of 50 independent variables divided into 10 broad factors of economic freedom. Low scores are more desirable; the higher the score on a factor, the greater the level of government interference in the economy, and the less economic freedom a country enjoys.

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