ORGANISMS - THE WORLD BANK

THE WORLD BANK. OCTOBER 31, 2017. 15 Years of Reforms to Improve Business Climate Worldwide

Starting a business in Thailand had not been easy until 2017. The requirements to obtain a company’s seal are now abolished, the need for approval of company work regulations from the government has been eliminated, and the process for getting electricity and improved land reliability has been streamlined.

As a result, the time needed to start a business has been reduced to just 4.5 days, compared to 27.5 days in previous years.

With eight reforms in the past year, Thailand has become among the top 10 improvers in the World Bank Group's ease of doing business ranking report, based on reforms undertaken.

WHAT IS "DOING BUSINESS"?

Doing Business is a project that provides objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement across 190 economies. It looks at domestic small and medium-size companies and measures the regulations applying to them through their life cycle.

By gathering and analyzing comprehensive quantitative data to compare business regulation environments across economies and over time, Doing Business encourages economies to compete towards more efficient regulation; offers measurable benchmarks for reform; and serves as a resource for policymakers, academics, journalists, private sector researchers and others interested in the business climate of each economy.




In addition, Doing Business offers detailed subnational reports, which exhaustively cover business regulation and reform in different cities and regions within a nation. These reports provide data on the ease of doing business, rank each location, and recommend reforms to improve performance in each of the indicator areas. Selected cities can compare their business regulations with other cities in the economy or region and with the 190 economies that the global Doing Business has ranked.

"Job creation is one of the transformational gains that countries and communities can achieve when the private sector is allowed to flourish. Fair, efficient and transparent rules, which Doing Business promotes, improve governance and tackle corruption."

Kristalina Georgieva, World Bank Chief Executive Officer

HOW IT ALL STARTED

Doing Business started from two developments in economic growth which happened simultaneously in the late 1980s and early 1990s, said Simeon Djankov, the creator of the Doing Business series and former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Bulgaria.

One was exemplified by Peruvian economist, Hernando de Soto, known for his work on the informal economy and on the importance of business and property rights. In his book The Other Path, published in Spanish in 1989, de Soto makes the point that the prohibitively high cost of establishing a business in his home country of Peru, economic opportunities to the poor were denied. As a result, they end up operating outside the formal economy.

“That was one motivation of the observation,” Djankov added. “If you make it easier for business by simplifying laws and regulations, many more firms and entrepreneurs will switch to the formal sector.”

In the formal sector, he said, workers will have benefits like social security, pension and insurance coverage. At the same time, the government benefits because it will get taxes through which health and education budgets can be replenished.

Second, with the collapse of communism after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, new questions ascended. Many countries in Eastern and Central Europe and the former Soviet Union were running the economy as a state-owned economy. As a result, they did not think about how do you actually establish laws and regulations for small domestic private business to develop.

“These two things came together,” Djankov said. “We then asked the question in the one case, how can you simplify regulation, and in the other case how can you create new regulations so that businesses can be formal and that new businesses can be established in the formal economy and they can be a large generator of jobs.”

At that point when Doing Business was being considered in the late 1990s in the World Bank, there was a big discussion about whether the private sector can generate jobs at all, or the private sector is actually for small tiny firms and it's just the state sector generating jobs.

“At that time 20 years ago, having to make that point that yes, if the private sector has simplified regulations it can actually be a generator of jobs and innovation. So, we helped establish that literature.” He added.

The Doing Business report was then established with five sets of indicators for 133 economies.

TOP IMPROVERS IN 2017

Governments in 119 economies carried out 264 business reforms in the past year to create jobs, attract investment and become more competitive, says the World Bank Group’s latest Doing Business 2018: Reforming to Create Jobs report.

This year marks the 15th Doing Business report. Since the inception of the project in 2003, the global business regulatory environment has changed dramatically. Governments around the world have embraced and nurtured advances in information technology to reduce bureaucratic hurdles and increase transparency.

Today, in 65 of the 190 economies covered by Doing Business, entrepreneurs can complete at least one business incorporation procedure online, compared with only nine of the 145 economies measured in Doing Business 2004. Furthermore, in 32 economies it is now possible to initiate a commercial dispute online. This kind of progress can also be observed in the other areas measured by Doing Business.

Marking its 15th anniversary, the report notes that 3,188 business reforms have been carried out since it began monitoring the ease of doing business for domestic small and medium enterprises around the world.

“Job creation is one of the transformational gains that countries and communities can achieve when the private sector is allowed to flourish. Fair, efficient and transparent rules, which Doing Business promotes, improve governance and tackle corruption,” said World Bank Chief Executive Officer Kristalina Georgieva.

Developing countries carried out 206 reforms, accounting for 78 percent of the total reforms, with Sub-Saharan Africa implementing 83 reforms, a record for a second consecutive year for the region, and South Asia implementing a record 20 reforms. A large number of reforms centered on improving access to credit and registering a new business, with 38 reforms each, as well as facilitating cross border trade, with 33 reforms.

In its annual ease of doing business rankings, New Zealand, Singapore and Denmark retained their first, second and third spots, respectively, followed by Republic of Korea; Hong Kong SAR, China; United States; United Kingdom; Norway; Georgia; and Sweden.

This year’s top 10 improvers, based on reforms undertaken, are Brunei Darussalam (for a second consecutive year); Thailand; Malawi; Kosovo; India; Uzbekistan; Zambia; Nigeria; Djibouti; and El Salvador. For the first time, the group of top 10 improvers includes economies of all income levels and sizes, with half being top improvers for the first time – El Salvador, India, Malawi, Nigeria, and Thailand.



“As we celebrate the 15th anniversary of Doing Business, it is particularly gratifying to see that many of the reforms are being carried out in economies and sectors where they are most needed. We look forward to continuing to shine a light on the real hurdles faced by entrepreneurs, both women and men, and celebrating policy change successes,” said Rita Ramalho, Acting Director of the World Bank’s Global Indicators Group, which produces the report.

WHERE IS BUSINESS REGULATION BETTER?

Although the economies with the most business friendly regulation in this year’s ease of doing business ranking are relatively diverse, the economies within the top 20 share some common features. Thirteen of the top 20 are OECD high-income economies; four are from Europe and Central Asia and three from East Asia and the Pacific. Eighteen of the top 20 are classified as high-income economies.



BUSINESS REGULATION IMPACT ON EMPLOYMENT AND POVERTY

Many factors explain poverty. These can include vulnerability to natural disasters, remoteness and quality of governance etc. Reforming in the areas measured by Doing Business can be particularly beneficial to employment creation when those reforms take place in the areas of starting a business and labor market regulation.

Across economies there is a significant positive association between employment growth and the distance to frontier score. While this result shows an association, and cannot be interpreted in a causal fashion, it is reassuring to see that economies with better business regulation, as measured by Doing Business, also tend to be the economies that are creating more job opportunities.

When it comes to unemployment, the expected opposite result is evident. Economies with less streamlined business regulation are those with higher levels of unemployment on average.



LIKE THE “WORLD CUP”

Throughout the 15 years of Doing Business, Djankov said that the biggest impact is that countries would compete on it. “That’s a component that in a way that most of our analytical and theoretical work we hadn’t thought of.”

He added that in addition to good policy, once you start ranking countries and comparing them, natural competition like a “World Cup” or the “Olympics” comes about.

THE WORLD BANK. OCTOBER 31, 2017. Doing Business Records Nearly 3,200 Reforms in 15 Years to Improve Business Climate Worldwide

WASHINGTON, October 31, 2017 – Governments in 119 economies carried out 264 business reforms in the past year to create jobs, attract investment and become more competitive, says the World Bank Group’s latest Doing Business 2018: Reforming to Create Jobs report.

Marking its 15th anniversary, the report notes that 3,188 business reforms have been carried out since it began monitoring the ease of doing business for domestic small and medium enterprises around the world.

“Job creation is one of the transformational gains that countries and communities can achieve when the private sector is allowed to flourish. Fair, efficient and transparent rules, which Doing Business promotes, improve governance and tackle corruption,” said World Bank Chief Executive Officer Kristalina Georgieva.

Download the Doing Business 2018: Reforming to Create Jobs report.

Developing countries carried out 206 reforms, accounting for 78 percent of the total reforms, with Sub-Saharan Africa implementing 83 reforms, a record for a second consecutive year for the region, and South Asia implementing a record 20 reforms. A large number of reforms centered on improving access to credit and registering a new business, with 38 reforms each, as well as facilitating cross border trade, with 33 reforms.

In its annual ease of doing business rankings, New Zealand, Singapore and Denmark retained their first, second and third spots, respectively, followed by Republic of Korea; Hong Kong SAR, China; United States; United Kingdom; Norway; Georgia; and Sweden.

This year’s top 10 improvers, based on reforms undertaken, are Brunei Darussalam (for a second consecutive year); Thailand; Malawi; Kosovo; India; Uzbekistan; Zambia; Nigeria; Djibouti; and El Salvador. For the first time, the group of top 10 improvers includes economies of all income levels and sizes, with half being top improvers for the first time – El Salvador, India, Malawi, Nigeria, and Thailand.

“Public policy plays a decisive role in enabling small and medium businesses to start, operate and expand. Governments around the world are increasingly turning to Doing Business for objective data to underpin their actions. More importantly, the fact that Doing Business is transparent and publicly available means that citizens can hold governments accountable for reforms that benefit firms, households, and society at large,” said Shanta Devarajan, the World Bank’s Senior Director for Development Economics.

Since its inception, Doing Business has recorded business reforms in 186 of the 190 economies it now monitors. Rwanda has implemented the highest number of business reforms over the past 15 years, with a total of 52 reforms, followed by Georgia, which advanced this year into the top 10 ranked economies (47 reforms) and Kazakhstan and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (41 reforms each).

Easing the requirements for Starting a Business has seen the largest number of reforms, with 626 reforms recorded in the past 15 years. As a result, the time needed to start a new small or medium business has more than halved to an average of 20 days worldwide, compared with 52 days in 2003. In addition, in 65 economies, entrepreneurs can complete at least one business incorporation procedure online, compared with only nine in 2003. Similar progress is also seen in other Doing Business areas.

“As we celebrate the 15th anniversary of Doing Business, it is particularly gratifying to see that many of the reforms are being carried out in economies and sectors where they are most needed. We look forward to continuing to shine a light on the real hurdles faced by entrepreneurs, both women and men, and celebrating policy change successes,” said Rita Ramalho, Acting Director of the World Bank’s Global Indicators Group, which produces the report.

The report also monitors hurdles faced specifically by women in the areas of Starting a Business, Registering Property and Enforcing Contracts. This year’s report records a welcome reform by the Democratic Republic of Congo, which eliminated the requirement for women to obtain their husband’s permission to register a business. However, 36 economies continue to place obstacles for women entrepreneurs, with 22 economies imposing additional steps for married women to start a business and 14 limiting women’s ability to own, use and transfer property.

This year’s report includes two case studies on transparency, which analyze data from business registries and land administrations and find that economies with more transparent and accessible information have lower levels of corruption and bribery. A third case study on private sector participation in formulating construction regulation finds that such rules exhibited higher costs and a propensity for conflicts of interest. A fourth case study highlights three successful insolvency reforms in France, Slovenia and Thailand, and lessons that are transferable to other economies.

By region, economies in East Asia and the Pacific implemented 45 reforms in the past year. The region is home to two of the world’s top 10 ranked economies, Singapore and Hong Kong SAR, China, and two of this year’s top 10 improvers, Brunei Darussalam and Thailand. In the past 15 years, the region has implemented 371 reforms. As a result, the time needed to start a new business has been more than halved to 24 days now, from 50 days in 2003.

The Europe and Central Asia region implemented 44 reforms during the past year. The region is host to a top ranked economy, with Georgia in ninth place, and two of this year’s top improvers, Kosovo and Uzbekistan. In the past 15 years, the region has been an active reformer, with 673 reforms implemented. It now takes 10.5 days to register a new business in the region, compared with 43 days in 2003.

A total of 26 reforms were carried out in the Latin America and the Caribbean region, with El Salvador earning a spot among this year’s top improvers for the first time. The region has implemented 398 reforms in the past 15 years. Now, starting a business in the region takes on average 38 days, compared to 78 days 15 years ago.

The economies of the Middle East and North Africa implemented 29 reforms in the past year. The region has implemented 292 reforms in the past 15 years. As a result, it takes 17 days on average to start a business in the region, compared to 43 days in 2003. However, the region lags on gender-related issues, with 14 economies imposing additional barriers for women entrepreneurs.

In South Asia, 20 reforms were implemented by six of the region’s eight economies. India carried out eight reforms, the highest number for the country in a single year. Over the past 15 years, the region has implemented 127 reforms. Fifteen years ago, it took over 50 days on average to start a business in the region, compared to 17 days now.

Reform activity continued to accelerate in Sub-Saharan Africa, with 36 economies implementing 83 business reforms in the past year. The region is home to three of this year’s top 10 improvers – Malawi, Nigeria, and Zambia. Over the past 15 years, the region has implemented 798 reforms. In 2003, it took 61 days on average to start a business in the region, compared to 22.5 days today.

FULL DOCUMENT: http://www.doingbusiness.org

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Banco Mundial. PORTAL G1. 31/10/2017. Brasil cai da 123ª para a 125ª posição em ranking de ambiente de negócios. Levantamento o Banco Mundial que compara 190 países mostra que o Brasil continua sendo o país onde as empresas gastam mais tempo para calcular e pagar impostos.
Por G1

O Brasil caiu da 123ª para a 125ª posição no ranking do Banco Mundial que compara o ambiente de negócios em 190 países do mundo, apesar de ter registrado uma pequena melhora na sua pontuação.
Segundo o relatório Doing Business 2018, todos os demais parceiros no Brics (Rússia, Índia, China e África do Sul) estão à frente do Brasil no ranking. O país também está atrás dos vizinhos Argentina (117º), Peru (58º) e Chile (55º). A liderança é da Nova Zelândia, seguida por Cingapura, Dinamarca, Coreia do Sul e Hong King.
O relatório anual que mede o impacto das leis e regulações e da burocracia no funcionamento das empresas. Entre os itens avaliados estão o número de dias gastos na abertura de empresas, no pagamento de impostos, na obtenção de alvarás de construção, na conexão com a rede elétrica e no registro de uma propriedade, na obtenção de crédito e na execução de contratos e resolução de insolvência.
País onde se gasta mais tempo para pagar imposto
Segundo o Banco Central, o Brasil continua sendo o País onde as empresas gastam mais tempo para calcular e pagar impostos: 1.958 horas por ano em média. Na Bolívia, que ocupa o penúltimo lugar, são 1.025 horas por ano. Na Argentina, por exemplo, o tempo médio é de 311,5 horas/ano. Já no México o número cai para 240,5 horas/ano.
Apesar de continuar na lanterninha, o Brasil conseguiu reduzir em 80 horas o tempo gasto por ano com pagamento de impostos. No relatório do ano anterior, eram 2.038 horas em média.
Entre os avanços ocorridos no Brasil, o relatório cita a redução do tempo médio dos procedimentos de importação e exportação e o maior intercâmbio dos dados eletrônicos entre os governos. O relatório cita também um estudo que aponta que uma redução de 10% na complexidade fiscal é comparável ao corte de cerca de 1% nas taxas efetivas de impostos.
No critério geral de "pagamento de impostos", que considera também o peso dos impostos e contribuições obrigatórias em relação ao lucro, o Brasil aparece na 184ª posição entre os 190 países analisados.

O Brasil aparece nas últimas colocações também nos quesitos abertura de empresas (176º) e obtenção de alvarás de construção (170º). O melhor desemprenho foi em relação a obtenção de energia elétrica (45º), proteção a investidores minoritários (43º) e execução de contratos (47º).

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LGCJ.: