Provincial Facilitation for Investment and Trade Index: Measuring Economic Governance for Business Development in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic
This report surveyed more than 1,000 businesses to gauge how well provinces support private sector development.
In the last 5 years, the Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) has introduced major regulatory reforms to enable a more conducive business environment.
Thanks to such reforms, the country's overall business environment improved across all provinces between 2017 and 2019.
In this report, a survey of more than 1,000 businesses gauged how well provinces support private sector development, notably through economic governance measures that are under their mandate.
The poll surveyed businesses relating to ease of starting a business; transparency and access to information; regulatory burden; informal charges; consistency of legal implementation; and business friendliness of provincial governments.
Among the 17 provinces covered by the report, Vientiane province performed the best in 2019 and Champasak the worst.
The report showed a 2018 regulatory reform had a positive impact on the business environment by reducing the cost and time required for business registration. But it also found that companies remain disadvantaged by excessive regulatory requirements and continuing informal practices.
Contents
- Executive Summary
- Introduction
- Methodology and Respondent Profiles
- ProFIT 2019 Index and Survey Results
- Selected Policy Issues
- Policy Options
- Appendix
Published March 2022.
