UAE Lead Regionally in World Bank Doing Business

Dubai Trade, the premier cross-border trade facilitator, has welcomed the latest edition of the ‘Doing Business 2015’ report, released by the World Bank and International Finance Corporation (IFC).

As per the report, the UAE saw a rise of three positions and is among the 10 economies in the world that have improved the most since the previous year.

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Chairman of Ports, Freezones and Customs Corporation (PCFC) and DP World, welcomed the latest report, saying, "The prestigious World Bank and IFC ‘Doing Business Report’ is globally acknowledged as the best business index, with its annual findings stimulating new policy debates, and a solid ranking leading to greater investments and stimulating new start-ups in the region." The Ease of Doing Business report lists the best and worst economies for doing business by measuring 10 different factors including trading across borders, starting a business, and registering property.

The UAE is able to bench-mark its business regulations and trading across borders with the 189 economies covered by the report. This is the sixth consecutive year that the UAE is in the top 10 and continues to be No. 1 in the MENA region for the eighth consecutive year in the category of Trading Across Borders.

Bin Sulayem added, "Our long history of innovation, automation at ports with e-Payment, e-Gate pass services and single-window clearances contributed to the UAE’s high ranking. The report indicates that we are on the right track, set by our visionary leadership, to be among the best countries in the world by 2021." The Doing Business Report 2015 in its 12th annual report assessed the UAE as the only Middle East economy in the top 25 countries listed.

Since last year’s report, the UAE has shown improvement in three out of 10 parameters: registering property, getting credit and protecting minority investors. It has preserved its number one position globally in ease of paying taxes, and fourth in getting electricity, building permits and registering property. It ranks eighth globally in trading across borders.

Dubai Trade plays a vital role in the UAE’s ranking by collecting critical and relevant data from its customers, and collating this data through its alliances with the established committee of the Executive Council, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Dubai Competitiveness Council and the Emirates Competitiveness Council. The resulting annual report that comes from the World Bank and IFC provide the necessary benchmarks for further trade reform and debate, while also serving as a vital resource for academics, journalists, private sector researchers and others interested in the business climate of the UAE.

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem concluded by congratulating the UAE’s leadership on the high ranking, saying, "This achievement is a result of our government’s initiatives and development projects that match those of many OECD countries such as New Zealand, Denmark, Korea, Norway, United States, United Kingdom, Finland and Australia. We are proud to be compared with those economies as having the most business-friendly regulatory environment. It is very encouraging to note that the UAE’s ranking is improving year after year.

Dubai Trade is working diligently with its partners in trade and logistics (DP World, Dubai Customs, and Economic Zones World) to enhance the doing business formalities in Dubai to preserve our position in the MENA region and globally by reducing export and import costs, documentation, which currently requires three documents for export and five for import, and time, which is seven days in the UAE compared with 10.5 days for export and seven days for import in the OECD countries.

The UAE has maintained a high ranking regionally and globally over the last three years, with the World Bank and IFC lauding the state on its business regulatory reforms, saying that despite the unrest affecting the region, the UAE has the best business regulatory environment overall in the MENA region.