According to the last year rating of the World Bank “Doingbusiness”, our country has improved its position to 13 points, having risen from the 57th place to the 44th one. With this result among the CIS countries Belarus has outranked Russia, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Tajikistan.
We’ve made a breakthrough across several positions. In particular, our country has moved from 40th place to 12th for ‘Complexity of New Business Registration’ while ‘Dealing with construction permits’ has shifted from 51st place to 34th. We’ve also managed to considerably improve our position in the nomination for ‘Getting electricity, having occupied the lowest places for several years. According to the Energy Ministry, in this year’s ranking, Belarus has moved from its previous 148th place to 89th. Deputy Chief Engineer of Belenergo Association, Valery Porshnev, is convinced that, next year, we’ll manage to improve further, since WB experts will be able to take into account improvements made this year. It’s also expected that businesses will work alongside energy specialists to solve certain issues.
“We’ve created all conditions for technological connection and have released Decree #397, enabling us to perform a range of services from one application. Many entrepreneurs still prefer the old scheme but then ‘go off the rails’ and return, to be connected. Probably, they are embarrassed by the financial issue.”
Attitudes may vary towards the ratings, with some countries ignoring the Doing Business report. Last year, an independent committee set up by the World Bank to monitor the importance of the Doing Business report announced that its relevance and impact may not warrant the effort. Nevertheless, for many, the assessment remains important. Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, has tasked his government with reaching the top twenty by 2018. Our goal is slightly less ambitious, aiming to reach the 30th position: a goal not far off.
By Polina Kononoga
