Togo may be known for its glimmering phosphate reserves and sandy beaches, but there is much more than that.
The west African country earned its place among the world’s top 10 reformers on the World Bank Group’s Doing Business 2020 report.
The country jumped an impressive 30 places in the rankings after making it easier to start a business, obtain construction permits, pay taxes, access credit, and register property.
These and other improvements lifted Togo to 97th place among the 190 countries ranked globally on the ease of doing business.
Togo’s impressive list of reforms included introducing an online application portal for construction permits, saving developers time and reducing stress.
Nigeria another big winner in the Doing Business 2020 report has been praised for making it easier to open a business through an improved online platform, lowered the cost of construction permits, and established a new small claims court to deal with commercial cases.
Nigeria enacted reforms in six of the ten areas measured by the Doing Business report.
Over the past decade, sub-Saharan Africa has become the top-reforming region globally. An entrepreneur can now register a business in 20 days or less in 26 of sub-Saharan Africa’s 48 economies: A decade ago, this was possible in only three countries.
The report identifies key areas such as taxation, and access to electricity and credit, for example as major impediments to Africa development.
This is because they are be time-consuming and costly for governments, involving big investments in infrastructure and IT systems.
In coming up with the ranking, the report takes into consideration the ease of starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and resolving insolvency.
The top 10 best places in the world to do business, according to the study, are New Zealand (with a score of 86.8 out of 100), Singapore (86.2), Hong Kong SAR, China (85.3), Denmark (85.3), the Republic of Korea (84), the United States (84), Georgia (83.7), the United Kingdom (83.5), Norway (82.6), and Sweden (82).
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