Written Parliamentary Question
Subject: The position of the government on the 2012 ‘Doing Business’ Report
Dear Madam, Dear Sir,The annual Doing Business Report prepared by the International Finance Corporation and the WorldBank measures and tracks changes in the regulations applying to domestic companies in 183economies. The objective of the report is to encourage simple and efficient regulations designed tofacilitate the establishment and operations of businesses.The 2012 Report, ‘Doing Business in a More Transparent World’, highlights the need for regulationsthat are accessible and transparent to business, and which safeguard important aspects of thebusiness environment while avoiding unnecessary costs to companies. This latest Report uses for thefirst time ‘getting an electricity connection’ as an indicator of doing business.Many governments in Sub-Saharan Africa have made substantial reforms to the regulation governingtheir private sector and have achieved substantial advances in their business environment to attractnew investment. Rwanda, Cape Verde, and Zambia are often cited as best case scenarios and shouldbe taken as an example for reforms.My questions are:“What regulatory measures have been undertaken to improve this country’s ranking since the lastDoing Business Report? What are the measures taken by the government in the last few years toovercome the various shortcomings identified in the previous reports?”“More and more economies are focusing their reform efforts on strengthening legal institutions suchas courts and insolvency regimes and enhancing legal protections of investors and property rights.Has this government undertaken such reforms and what are they?”“New data shows the importance of access to regulatory information such ws fee schedules,documentation requirements and information relating to commercial cases and insolvencyproceedings. What measures have been taken by this government to facilitate access to regulatoryinformation?”“Which measures is the government going to adopt to improve the overall investment climate in ourcountry for the coming years, particularly in terms of governance, business development andoperations? Do these measures fit into the framework of a partnership with international financialinstitutions?”“Considering the importance the report gives to access to electricity, what investments have beenallocated for strengthening local infrastructure to facilitate electricity connections?”