Reforming to Create Jobs, is an annual publication of the World Bank Group. It is the 15th edition of a series of annual reports assessing the regulations that improve business activity and the ones that constrain it. It does so by presenting quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of property rights.
These indicators are compared across countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe including 190 economies.
Out of the 11 areas of the life of a business affected by the Doing Business measure regulations, 10 are included in this year’s ranking on the ease of doing business. It also measures labour market regulations. However, this is not included in this year’s rankings.
The following are the ten areas included in this year rankings:
- Starting a business
- Dealing with construction permits
- Getting electricity
- Registering property
- Getting credit
- Protecting minority investors
- Paying taxes
- Trading across borders
- Enforcing contracts
- Resolving insolvency
The data in Doing Business 2018 are current as of June 1, 2017.
Doing Business 2018, documented 264 business reforms between June 2016 and June 2017 meaning that last year entrepreneurs in 119 economies saw improvements in their regulatory framework.
The most common reforms in 2016/2017 were the ones reducing the complexity and cost of regulatory processes in the area of starting a business and getting credit, followed by the ones in the area of trading across borders.
Key points to note
- Ten top improvers implemented 53 regulatory reform making it easier to do business. These ten most improved economies are: Brunei Darussalam, Thailand, Malawi, Kosovo, India, Uzbekistan, Zambia, Nigeria, Djibouti and El Salvador.
- Europe and Central Asia continue to be the region with the highest share of economies implementing at least one reform. Follow South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
- The report features four case studies in the following areas: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, registering property, and resolving insolvency. It also features an annex on labour market regulation.
