Press Release
12 October 2007
Top reforming African countries - Ghana, Kenya and Mauritius - recognized
through World Bank-IFC awards
Today Ghana, Kenya, and Mauritius were honored for their performance in the
 World Bank-International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) Doing Business 2008 report
which ranks 178 economies for the regulatory ease of doing business.
Ghana received an award for being the top African reformer in 2006/07. Kenya
received an award for being runner-up top reformer. Ghana and Kenya both rank
among the top ten reformers worldwide this year in the fifth annual report in
the Doing Business series. Mauritius tops the rankings in Africa on the ease of
doing business and places 27th in the global rankings.
The three countries were recognized at an event in London sponsored by Unilever
and jointly supported by the World Bank, IFC, the United Kingdom’s Department
for International Development (DFID), and
Business Action for Africa (BAA).
Placing growth at the heart of development
Michael U. Klein, Vice President for Financial and Private Sector
Development, World Bank and IFC, and Chief Economist, IFC, presented the World
Bank and IFC awards to Rt Hon Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Minister of Finance and
Economic Planning, Ghana, Rt Hon Amos Kimunya, Minister of Finance, Kenya, and
Rt Hon Ali Mansoor, Financial Secretary of Mauritius.
In delivering the keynote address, Rt Hon Baroness Shriti Vadera, Parliamentary
Under Secretary of State, DFID, said, “Africa’s prosperity and stability will
not come from dependency on foreign aid but from sustained, productive private
investment. This will require investment in good governance, in decent
infrastructure and the provision of a reliable, good quality workforce. In the
coming months, DFID is looking to work imaginatively with the private sector.
“DFID will place growth firmly at the heart of the development agenda.
Development assistance needs to become investment in growth – in wealth
creation, in jobs, in allowing each individual the opportunity to achieve
economic independence. It must be an investment in their future.”
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Getting the climate right for enterprise
In presenting the World Bank and IFC awards, Michael Klein said, “Ghana,
Kenya, and Mauritius are leading the way in Africa. More business-friendly
regulations will help to bring new investors, new enterprises, and more jobs.
Creating jobs is the best way to reduce poverty.”
“Africa has already shown what is possible - it does not need to look far for
models for reform,” Michael Klein added. “If an African country were to copy the
best practices from across the Sub-Saharan region, it would rank eighth
world-wide on the aggregate ease of doing business – ahead of Japan, Germany and
France.”
Stephen Lussier, Director, External and Corporate Affairs, De Beers Group/Chair
of Business Action for Africa, said, “A vibrant private sector holds the key to
accelerating growth and eliminating poverty in Africa. Getting the climate right
for enterprise, including for small and medium enterprises, should be a priority
for governments and their donor partners. We warmly welcome the work of the
Doing Business initiative in showcasing success and spotlighting what more needs
to be done. We congratulate those African countries that have demonstrated
strong performance in the Doing Business Report 2008, particularly Mauritius,
Ghana and Kenya. With extensive knowledge of the region and its diversity, we
strongly believe that Africa is open for business”.
The Doing Business rankings track indicators of the time and cost to meet
government requirements in business start-up, operation, trade, taxation, and
closure. They do not track variables such as macroeconomic policy, quality of
infrastructure, currency volatility, investor perceptions, or crime rates.
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Notes to Editors
See Appendix 1 for information on awards given to Ghana, Kenya, and
Mauritius; an overview of how these countries reformed and the report’s main
findings are also provided.
See Appendix 2 for information on World Bank, IFC, DFID, and Business Action
for Africa.
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Appendix 1
Awards
Top reformers in Africa
Ghana received the “Doing Business 2008: Africa Top Reformer” Award. The
country is a top ten reformer for the second year running, and continues to
increase the efficiency of its public services. It cut bottlenecks in property
registration, reducing delays from six months to one. Greater efficiency at the
company registry and the environment agency cut the time for business start-up
to 42 days. Changes in the port authority’s operations sped up imports. New
civil procedure rules and mandatory arbitration and mediation reduced the time
it takes to enforce contracts.
Kenya received the “Doing Business 2008: Africa Runner-up-Top Reformer” Award.
The region’s other top ten reformer, Kenya launched an ambitious licensing
reform program. So far the program has eliminated 110 business licenses and
simplified eight others. The changes have streamlined business start-up and cut
both the time and cost of getting building permits. The program will eventually
eliminate or simplify at least 900 more of the country’s 1,300 licenses.
Property registration is also faster now, thanks to the introduction of
competition among land valuers. And the country’s private credit bureau now
collects a wider range of data.
Top performer in Africa
Mauritius received the “Doing Business 2008: Highest Ranked Country in
Africa” Award. Already the region’s most business-friendly country, Mauritius
made it even easier to do business, in part by simplifying taxes. A three-year
program is harmonizing the tax system and ultimately will create a single
corporate tax rate with few tax credits or tax holidays. Other reforms reduced
the property registration fee to 5% of the property value and simplified
construction permitting. A central database now links the company registry with
tax, social security, and local authorities – shortening business start-up to
just one week. A new risk management system accelerated customs clearance for
low-risk importers. And a new law will help creditors recover their debt faster
in bankruptcy cases.
Doing Business 2008 Report Overview
Doing Business 2008 ranks 178 economies on the ease of doing business based
on ten indicators of business regulation. Since the first report in 2003, Doing
Business has inspired or informed more than 113 reforms worldwide.
The top-ranked countries in Sub-Saharan Africa this year are Mauritius (27),
South Africa (35), Namibia (43), Botswana (51), and Kenya (72).
The top ten reformers globally – including Ghana and Kenya – are, in order,
Egypt, Croatia, Ghana, FYR Macedonia, Georgia, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Kenya,
China, and Bulgaria. Another 11 countries, including Burkina Faso, Mauritius,
and Mozambique, had three or more reforms. Reformers made it simpler to start a
business, strengthened property rights, enhanced investor protections, increased
access to credit, eased tax burdens, and expedited trade while reducing costs.
The Doing Business project is based on the efforts of more than 5,000 local
experts – business consultants, lawyers, accountants, government officials, and
leading academics around the world, who provided methodological support and
review. The data, methodology, and the names of contributors are publicly
available online at
www.doingbusiness.org.
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Appendix 2
Background
World Bank and IFC focus on creating opportunity through jobs and
entrepreneurship.
How do the poor hope to escape from poverty? The World bank and IFC believe that
private sector activity drives sustainable long-term growth and job creation in
emerging economies. To enable growth – and to ensure that the poor have the
chance to participate in the benefits of growth – the challenge is to create an
environment in which new businesses with drive and good ideas can get started in
business, and good firms can invest and grow, generating expanding employment
opportunities.
Private investment has grown faster in countries with better business
environments. And there is also a strong correlation between the quality of the
business environment and overall economic growth. The World Bank and IFC provide
support to governments in improving the business environment, reducing the
transaction costs faced by businesses, bringing down barriers to competition,
ensuring a level playing field that opens opportunities for jobs and
entrepreneurship by women and other historically disadvantaged groups, and
fostering productivity improvements and innovations that bring better, cheaper
goods and services to poor households. IFC uses its financial strength and
global expertise to bring funding and advice to the areas that need it most,
especially the poorest regions and those affected by conflicts.
DFID Identifies Growth as Centre of Development Agenda
DFID has earmarked the private sector as an integral part of the delivery of
its agenda, as it recognizes that a vibrant and successful private sector is key
to sustainable growth. The private sector in developing nations provides more
than 90% of jobs, and is the main source of tax revenues, contributing to public
funding for health care and education.
DFID is committed to working with its partners and supporting the governments of
African countries to deliver on the development agenda. Donors can support
government-led reforms to enhance the climate for business. Market failures can
often prevent the poor from participating in the private sector and benefiting
from growth. Donors and governments must therefore work in close partnership
with private sector companies to improve countries' growth performances and make
sure that the benefits of growth reach the poor.
BAA Optimistic about Prospects in Africa
Business Action for Africa, a partner of Doing Business representing an
international network of businesses and business organizations active across
Africa, says the business community is optimistic about the prospects for Africa
(although the prospects vary significantly between different countries).
It advocates that the biggest impact that larger businesses can have is through
doing good business – principally through their core business operations: doing
business responsibly; paying taxes; involving and supporting small enterprises
in value chains; generating employment opportunities; producing goods and
services that meet the needs of low-income consumers; training and capacity
building; and taking action to tackle HIV/AIDS.
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Contacts
For further information, contact:
Doing Business 2008:
Washington, DC
Rebecca Ong: (202) 473-7734
Email: rong@ifc.org
Inquiries specific to Sub-Saharan Africa:
Timothy Carrington (202) 473-8133
Email: tcarrington@worldbank.org
Houtan Bassiri (27)11-731-31-79
Email: hbassiri@ifc.org
Desmond Dodd (27)11-731-81-83
Email: ddodd@ifc.org
Department for International Development:
Heather Pillans +44 (0) 207 023 1752 (tel)
Email: H-Pillans@dfid.gov.uk
Business Action for Africa:
Zahid Torres-Rahman: 07764 614 642
Email:
zahid.torres-rahman@businessactionforafrica.org
Richard Gilbert: 07771 847755
Richard.gilbert@edelman.com
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