CAIRO: "It is good that Egypt made progress and went above last year's tragic position, [but] we still have to advance and cross over the 100 barrier, said Ziad Bahaa El Din, chairman of Board of Trustees, commenting on Egypt ranking 126 globally on the ease of doing business. While the World Bank's "Doing Business 2008 report reveals that Egypt improved on last year's position at 165, experts said the ranking is far from being excellent. Egypt's progress this year was mainly triggered by reforms introduced to business regulations such as time and capital required to start-up a business as well as procedures taken to register an enterprise. The leap in global rankings comes on the heels of its positions as the world's top reformer of business regulations. "We take pride in making such an unprecedented leap in only one year . at a time when other countries are also moving forward with their reforms, he added. "This progress is the result of collaboration among ten different governmental entities, the private sector, and the International Finance Corporation. One-stop shops were among Egypt's most dramatic reforms, enabling investors to register a company with relative ease in a few days rather than several months. The General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) has embarked on establishing one-stop shops throughout Egypt, beginning with Cairo, then Ismailia, Assiut, and Alexandria. This brought around 20 government entities together under one roof, merging all necessary procedures needed to incorporate an enterprise - such as building permits, industrial registration, operating licenses, and tax registration. "On the ground reforms are the main reasons for Egypt's improved global ranking on the ease of doing business, explained Dahlia Khalifa, Doing Business spokesperson. "That proves to domestic and foreign investors that the government is sincere in implementing reforms, which will in turn boost investment in the country. In contrast, Egypt scored 165 out of 175 countries listed on the "Doing Business 2007 report, which caused dismay among officials who dubbed the report unfair and almost "offensive to business regulations reforms undertaken by the government. "Last year's ranking depicted Egypt as one of the least attractive countries for investors, and that was a crisis, pointed out Bahaa El Din, adding that the report only measures ease of doing business in different countries and not their ability to attract investors. The report's rankings are based on ten indicators of business regulations that track the time and cost it takes to meet government requirements in business start-up, registering property, employing workers, trade, taxation, and business closure. The ranking, however, do not take into account areas such as macroeconomic policies, quality of infrastructure, currency volatility, investor perceptions, or crime rates. Despite Egypt's elevated position, Bahaa El Din said, the report is limited in scope and focuses only on business regulations. "Egypt's position is much higher than that in terms of attracting investors. Next year's Doing Business report will broaden its range to include new indicators: quality of infrastructure, transparency and procurement laws, as well as corruption rates.
