World Bank commends SVG

St. Vincent and the Grenadines has been commended by the World Bank for its Business-friendly reforms.{{more}}

The Doing Business 2009 report, published by the International Finance Corporation and the World Bank on September 10, 2008, identified St. Vincent and the Grenadines as one of six regional countries which are becoming active reformers of business regulation, between June 2007 and June 2008.

The six, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Haiti, Antigua and Barbuda are said to have regulatory reforms which show a positive trend.

The reduction in the corporate tax rate from 40 per cent to 37.5 per cent; the introduction of a value-added tax at a standard rate of 15% to replace several existing taxes; and the enactment of a bankruptcy law were seen as positive moves by the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The Doing Business report ranks countries based on 10 indicators of business regulation that track the time and cost to meet government requirements in starting and operating a business, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing a business. The rankings do not reflect such areas as macroeconomic policy, quality of infrastructure, currency volatility, investor perceptions, or crime rates.