Saudi Arabia ranks one of best place for business in MENA region

Washington, September 11, SPA -- Saudi Arabia was one of the largest reformers in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region in developing a business-friendly environment, according to a new World Bank report issued yesterday.


The “Doing Business” report tracked the changes over the last five
years in MENA countries which have positively or negatively impacted
the ease with which private companies can do business. Factors judged
included: Starting a business; obtaining construction permits;
employing workers; registering property; obtaining credit; protecting
investors; paying taxes; trading across borders; enforcing contracts;
and closing business.


Saudi Arabia ranked 16th on the list. Singapore was the top
reformer, while Djibouti was the worst.


The report, which aggregated a variety of factors and assigned a
score (“1” was the highest, and “153” was the lowest) to each country
in the region, praised Saudi Arabia for being a “top regional
reformer.”

“Saudi Arabia, a top regional reformer, made it easier to start a
business by continuing to simplify formalities for commercial
registration and reducing registration fees by 80 percent,” the
report said. “The time to start a business fell by three days.”


In addition, Saudi Arabia was “the only reformer in the area of
closing a business this year. Its Ministry of Commerce introduced
strict deadlines for bankruptcy procedures. Auctions of debtors’
assets are expected to take place more quickly than before.”