Reforms in South Asia, 2006 - 07
Read about reforms in 2008-09 Read about reforms in 2007-08 Jump to: B | I | N | P | S
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, through a change in format of the required "circular form", entrepreneurs are required to obtain fewer approvals from various government agencies and procedural steps to transfer property have decreased from 11 to 9. In addition, some district courts' title deeds storages are being digitalized.
Bhutan
Bhutan made it easier for entrepreneurs to start limited liability trading companies by eliminating two procedures--name approval and location clearance--and increasing efficiency at the Registrar of Companies. The time to start operating a business in Thimphu dropped from 62 to 48 days. In addition, t he National Assembly endorsed the Land Bill of Bhutan 2007 on June 27, 2007. Among other provisions that affect everything from surveys to government rights to land in the name of public interest, the Act states that a National Land Commission will be established and become the highest decision-making authority on land matters in Bhutan . The establishment of the Commission will eventually take land transactions out of the courts, thereby freeing up judges' time to deal with judicial matters, and speeding up both the process to transfer land and the time to solve civil disputes. Bhutan implemented its first labor law which prohibits forced labor, discrimination, sexual harassment and the worst forms of child labor. The law removes the 12-month limit on fixed-term contracts, eases restrictions on night work and does away with mandatory pay premiums for daytime overtime. However, the new law also requires an employer to notify a third-party before dismissing a redundant worker and institutes a 72-day notice period. The National Assembly decided in December 2006 to increase the number of judges in District courts from 3 to 5, aiming to finalize hearings and solve cases within 1 month of parties filing. The time needed to transfer property, which takes place largely in the courts, has decreased by 30 days.
India
India introduced an electronic registry that covers the rights granted by companies. The registry can be searched by name of debtor, and is linked geographically to cover the whole country. The private credit bureau has incorporated firms to its database and now provides credit information on corporate entities. Through introduction of an Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system, customs declarations are now carried out through the internet. This system has also allowed the operation of a Risk Management System (RMS), an E-manifest system, and an E-payment system which facilitated the decrease in import time by 7 days.
Nepal
Nepal reformed licensing requirements for companies cutting 2 months. It is no longer a requirement for all firms to obtain an approval from the respective ministry before registering an enterprise. Additional licensing requirements were simplified and regulated by strict timelines.
Pakistan
Pakistan extended overtime limits for retail workers from 150 hours a year to 624 and made working hours more flexible. The private credit bureau has expanded the scope of information distributed to include positive as well as negative credit information. In addition to late payments and defaults information, the original and outstanding loan amounts are now distributed to lenders as well. Pakistan 's public credit registry eliminated its loan threshold of 500,000 Pakistan rupees ($8,350), boosting coverage by 20 times. In July 2006, the Sindh (province) Finance Act was issued that caused the stamp duty to decrease from 3% to 2% of property value. Karachi is located in Sindh province and therefore the new rate applies to our case. However, the positive impact of the reform was overcome by the reinstatement of the Capital Value Tax of 2% at the national level by the Finance Act 2006, causing a net increase of 1% property value in the total cost to transfer this year.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka made the most progress in South Asia for starting a business. A new companies act eliminated burdensome approvals and introduced a flat registration fee. Company seals and notaries were made optional. Procedures were reduced from 8 to 5, and the time for start-up decreased from 50 days to 39. Sri Lanka introduced electronic submission of customs declarations, cutting time for trading by 7 days. Sri Lanka 's credit bureau restricted the availability of information on repaid defaults to only 1 year, while defaults settled through the courts are kept for 3 years.
