Ease of Doing Business 2020: World Bank ranks Pakistan among top 10 reformers

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan has climbed 28 positions in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index and secured a place among top 10 world’s business climate improvers in a year.

According to Ease of Doing Business 2020 report, Pakistan introduced six reforms in the last year to make the business easier and improved its ranking from 136 to 108.



“The economies with the most notable improvement in Doing Business 2020 are Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Togo, Bahrain, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Kuwait, China, India, and Nigeria,” read the World Bank’s annual report.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has expressed satisfaction over the improved World Bank rating of Ease of Doing Business by 28 notches and said that Pakistan, by the end of 2020, would become one of the top destinations for investment.

The World Bank said, “Pakistan made starting a business easier by expanding procedures available through the online one-stop shop. This reform applies to both Karachi and Lahore. Furthermore, Pakistan (Lahore) abolished the Labor Department registration fee”.

Pakistan (Karachi) made obtaining a construction permit easier and faster by streamlining the approval process and also made construction safer by ensuring that building quality inspections take place regularly. Pakistan (Lahore) also made obtaining a construction permit easier and faster by streamlining the approval process and by improving the operational efficiency of its one-stop shop for construction permitting, it added.

Pakistan brought reforms in electricity connection procedure by enforcing service delivery time frames and by launching an online portal for new applications. Pakistan also increased the transparency of electricity tariff changes. This reform applies to both Karachi and Lahore.

“Pakistan (Karachi) made property registration faster by making it easier to execute and register a deed at the Office of the Sub-Registrar. Pakistan (Lahore) made registering property easier by increasing the transparency of the land administration system,” read the report.

It added that Pakistan introduced online payment modules for value added tax and corporate income tax, and less costly by reducing the corporate income tax rate. This reform applies to both Karachi and Lahore.

Pakistan made trading across borders easier by enhancing the integration of various agencies in the Web-Based One Customs (WEBOC) electronic system and coordinating joint physical inspections at the port. This reform applies to both Karachi and Lahore, the annual report said.