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Doing Business 2010: South Asia Picks Up Pace of Business Regulatory Reform
In Washington, D.C.:
Nadine Ghannam
Phone: +1 (202) 473-3011
E-mail: nsghannam@ifc.org
Washington, D.C., September 9, 2009—In
a record year for regulatory reform worldwide, most South Asian economies
strengthened business regulations and made them more efficient, creating
more opportunities for local firms.
A record 131 of 183 economies around
the globe reformed business regulation between June 2008 and May 2009,
according to Doing Business 2010: Reforming through Difficult Times,
the seventh in a series of annual reports published by IFC and the World
Bank. In South Asia, six of eight economies reformed.
Bangladesh, the region’s most active
reformer, implemented an online company registration system—cutting start-up
time by nearly a month—cut corporate income taxes, and expedited trade
by introducing an automated customs clearance system at its main port.
India improved its score on the "closing
a business" indicator by taking steps to ease resolution of insolvency
cases—a critical area in times of crisis. The recent report, Doing
Business in India 2009, which goes beyond Mumbai to look at the application
of business regulations in 17 major cities across India, shows the tremendous
potential in India for drawing on home-grown good practices to cut red
tape and streamline regulation.
Nepal lowered property transfer costs.
Pakistan made it easier to start a business by introducing an e-service
registration system. And Sri Lanka improved access to credit information
to help expand access to finance.
“In an active year of business regulatory
reform, economies in South Asia have picked up their reform pace—though
there is still room for more action,” said Dahlia Khalifa, an author of
the report. “Governments are paying attention to the quality of
business regulation to make their economies more competitive and encourage
local entrepreneurs. Making it easier to start, operate, and even close
a business is always important, but especially during these difficult times.”
This year, there were 4 new reformers
among the global top 10: Liberia, the United Arab Emirates, Tajikistan
and Moldova. Others include Rwanda, the top global reformer, Egypt, Belarus,
the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Colombia.
Colombia and Egypt have been top global reformers in four of the past seven
years.
Doing Business analyzes regulations
that apply to an economy’s businesses during their life cycles, including
start-up and operations, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing
a business.
Doing Business does not measure
all aspects of the business environment that matter to firms and investors.
For example, it does not measure security, macroeconomic stability, corruption,
skill level, or the strength of financial systems.
About the World Bank Group
The World Bank Group is one of the world’s
largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries. It comprises
five closely associated institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction
and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA),
the International Finance Corporation (IFC); the Multilateral Investment
Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and the International Centre for Settlement of
Investment Disputes (ICSID). Each institution plays a distinct role in
the mission to fight poverty and improve living standards for people in
the developing world. For more information, please visit www.worldbank.org,
www.miga.org,
and www.ifc.org.
For more information about the Doing
Business report series, please visit: www.doingbusiness.org
For more information on Doing
Business 2010, please contact:
Nadine Ghannam +1 (202) 473-3011
Rebecca Ong +1 (202) 458-0434
E-mail: nsghannam@ifc.org
E-mail: rong@worldbank.org
Contacts for region-specific queries on Doing Business 2010:
South Asia
Minakshi Seth +91 (11) 4111-1058
Jan Erik
Nora +1 (202) 458-4735
E-mail: mseth@ifc.org
E-mail: enora@worldbank.org
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