This note presents practical guidance on how to implement a framework for managing fiscal commitments from Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). It draws on specific regional operational experience and on World Bank Institute (WBI)'s wider thematic engagement with different partners worldwide. The...

This report examines the key challenges faced by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Kyrgyz Republic, in an attempt to identify the issues and areas in most urgent need of reform. The IFC Study of Investment Climate as seen by Small and Medium Enterprises in the Kyrgyz Republic is the...

Sierra Leone’s devastating 11-year civil war destroyed much of its infrastructure, and left its economy in tatters. In 2004, two years after the end of the war, Sierra Leone asked the investment climate (IC) advisory services of the World Bank Group to help create a better business and...

This strategic framework serves to guide and support the operational response of the World Bank Group (WBG) to new development challenges posed by global climate change. Unabated, climate change threatens to reverse hard-earned development gains. The poorest countries and communities will suffer...

This strategic framework serves to guide and support the operational response of the World Bank Group (WBG) to new development challenges posed by global climate change. Unabated, climate change threatens to reverse hard-earned development gains. The poorest countries and communities will suffer...

The purpose of this handbook is to provide policy makers with a framework to assess a tax system in its entirety, measure its various parameters and how it is administered, and defines best practices for tax policy and administration that will yield a tax system that is simple and predictable...

Many countries are convinced that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) should be an important component of their growth strategy. To encourage FDI, they have improved their business climates, developed various guarantees for investors, and offered incentives. In the real world, Investment Promotion...

This paper focuses on core aspects of the political economy of reform, drawing on case studies of three economies transitioning to stronger business environments (Hungary, the Republic of Korea, and Mexico) and three countries with well-developed business environments (Australia, Italy, and the...

The report is organized as follows: the executive summary (I) pulls together all major conclusions and recommendations of the report. The following five sections then focus on key requirements of any successful regulatory reform program: (II) business regulation policy, (III) measurements and...

In the private sector, outsourcing has become a recognized feature of the business scene. While there are various reasons for contracting out functions to external organizations, in general the justification relates to the potential cost-benefit from adopting this approach. This study set out to...