By NAN Business Editor
News Americas, WASHINGTON, D.C., Tues. Nov. 1, 2016: Trying to start a business in the Caribbean? Five countries in the region scored below 100 on the latest World Bank Group’s ‘Doing Business’ rankings for 2017. They are:
1: Haiti
Haiti, one of the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere, scored the lowest on the Doing Business Ranks for the entire Caribbean, according to the World Bank report. The country ranked 181st globally out of 190, scoring just 38.66 out of 100 on the score card that measured regulation that affects small and medium-size enterprises operating in the largest business city of an economy across 11 areas including 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.
2: Suriname
The South American CARICOM nation of Suriname ranked at 2 on the Top Five places where starting a business in the Caribbean is tougher, News Americas Now found. The country came in at 158th on the global 190 list and scored just over 47 out of 100 on the ease of doing business score card.
3: Grenada
Coming in at 3rd on the Top Five List of Caribbean nations where it’s harder to start a business is Grenada. The country scored just about 54 points to rank at only 138th globally and third on our list.
4: St. Kitts And Nevis
The fourth Caribbean nation where it’s harder to start a business is surprisingly the Federation of St. Kitts And Nevis, which promotes a citizenship by investment program globally. The country was ranked at 134th by the World Bank globally with a score of just around 54 points.
5: Guyana
Rounding out the Top Five places in the Caribbean where it’s harder to start a business is the South American CARICOM nation of Guyana. Guyana scored just over 56 points out of 100 to rank at 124th globally on the latest World Bank Group’s ‘Doing Business’ rankings for 2017.
This year the coveted top spot of best places to start a company went to New Zealand, Singapore ranks second, followed by Denmark; Hong Kong SAR, China; Republic of Korea; Norway; United Kingdom; United States; Sweden; and Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
“Simple rules that are easy to follow are a sign that a government treats its citizens with respect. They yield direct economic benefits – more entrepreneurship; more market opportunities for women; more adherence to the rule of law,” said Paul Romer, World Bank Chief Economist and Senior Vice President. “But we should also remember that being treated with respect is something that people value for its own sake and that a government that fails to treat its citizens this way will lose its ability to lead.”
