“Sierra Leone ripe for investors”

  1. Posted on Wednesday 9 September 2009 - 16:49
    Murtala
    Image of Murtala
    Murtala Mohamed Kamara, AfricaNews reporter in Freetown, Sierra Leone Photo: Lindsay Stark
    The World Bank and the International Finance Corporation say Sierra Leone is one of the few countries easy to do business there. They said in their "Doing Business 2010" report that the West African country has laws that strengthen investor protections, and enhance access to credit among others.
    Lindsay Stark Sierra Leone
    The report entitled “Doing Business 2010: Reforming through Difficult Times” praised Sierra Leone among countries just emerging from war for creating an easy environment to do business.

    The report said: “Some post conflict economies in the region are actively improving the regulatory framework for private sector-led development.” It added that “Liberia, the second-fastest reforming economy in the region, eased procedures for business start-up, reduced fees for construction permits, and sped trade with a new one-stop center.”

    The report continued: “Sierra Leone introduced a company law that strengthened investor protections, enhanced access to credit, and provided for the reorganization of troubled firms. It also established a one-stop center for business registration.”

    Rwanda was named the top global reformer among the 183 countries covered by the report based on the country’s number of impacts of reforms executed between June 2008 and May 2009.

    Other West African countries that were also commended included Burkina Faso and Mali. Burkina Faso, the report said reformed in simplifying procedures for construction permits, improving contract enforcement, streamlining property registration, easing business start-up, and expediting trade.

    The annual Doing Business reports analyses policies that apply to an economy’s business during their life cycles including start-up and operations, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing a business according to WB/IFC.

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