Grapevine

Implementation gaps hinder business climate in 50 economies

The inaugural 2024 report, which assesses the business climate in 50 economies, provides an extensive dataset – 1200 indicators per economy – to identify specific areas where there is room for improvement and motivate reforms. Coverage will increase over the next three years to reach about 180 economies in 2026, providing a full global benchmark.

Nearly all 50 economies assessed this year perform better on their regulatory framework than they do on the public services they provide to ease compliance by businesses. Such implementation gaps keep businesses, workers, and society as a whole from reaping the full benefits of a healthy business climate.

On a scale of 0 to 100, economies score an average of 65.5 for the quality of their regulatory framework—meaning, on average, economies are nearly two-thirds of the way to being business-ready in this category. But they score just 49.7 for their public services, indicating they are only half as ready as they ought to be. This gap exists across all income levels and all regions, although it’s smallest in high-income economies and greatest in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East and Northern Africa.

“With economic growth being slowed by demography, debt, and discord, progress will come only through the ingenuity of private enterprise,” said Indermit Gill, the World Bank Group’s Chief Economist and Senior Vice President for Development Economics.