South Asia

Outsourcing of Business Registration Activities - Lessons from Experience (April 2010)

Outsourcing has become a recognized feature of industrial and commercial activity around the world. Many countries have outsourced some aspect of business registration, particularly the development and operation of computer systems, but there are some that have gone further. This study has been commissioned by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to explore the extent to which outsourcing has become a recognized feature of business registration, the reasons for this, and the associated benefits, drawbacks, and practical problems. Did business registries outsource any or all of their functions? If so, did the same considerations apply as for the private sector? Were there lessons to be learned from their experience? Responses to these and other questions were received from 53 registries and analyzed in this study.

Nepal - Creating a Competitive SEZ Regime (April 2008)

This report was prepared jointly by the World Bank Group’s Foreign Investment Advisory Service (FIAS) and South Asia Enterprise Development Facility of the International Finance Corporation (IFC-SEDF), as a follow up to the Nepal: Mini-Diagnostic of the Investment Climate (FIAS-SEDF 2007) and at the request of the Government of Nepal. The purpose of the report is to provide recommendations for development of a legal and regulatory framework, including tax incentives, for special economic zones (SEZs), a new model for Nepal’s economy.

Nepal - Feasibility Study on Establishment of Secured Transactions Registry (March 2008)

In 2006, the Government of Nepal enacted the Secured Transactions Act (ST Act). The overarching goal of ST Act is to reduce risks associated with extending credit, thereby increasing opportunities for economic expansion. At its core, the ST Act allows use of all types of movable assets as collateral and stipulates the creation of a Secured Transactions Registry. While the Act has been in force, it can not be fully implemented as the Secured Transactions Registry, as stipulated by the Act, has not yet been established. In this respect, Government of Nepal requested a World Bank-FIAS- IFC SEDF team to conduct a feasibility study and provide recommendations as to the necessary steps to establish the Secured Transactions Registry. The assessment team examined the legal mandates in the ST Act with the goal of establishing a registry system.

Nepal - Mini-Diagnostic of the Investment Climate (March 2007)

The approach used reflects quick analysis undertaken during the course of an 11-day mission to provide key policymakers with practical reform options to consider in improving Nepal’s investment climate.

Pursuing Investment Climate Improvements: From Analysis to Reform - An Administrative Barriers Review in Bangladesh (2006)

This Administrative Barriers Review (ABR) – Pursuing Investment Climate Improvements: From Analysis to Reform – was one component of a larger series of joint SEDF-FIAS projects which were completed as part of the design phase of the planned World Bank-led, multi-donor-funded Bangladesh Private Sector Development Support Project (PSDSP), due for effectiveness in FY07. The ABR has also helped underpin the preparation of the donor-funded Bangladesh Investment Climate Fund (BICF) to be managed by the IFC.