Oman first in region for business start-ups

Business Wednesday 26/October/2016 16:34 PM
By: Times News Service
Oman first in region for business start-ups

Muscat: Oman has been listed as one of the world’s most improved economies for starting businesses in the World Bank’s influential Ease of Doing Business rankings for 2017, surging into 32nd position from 159 last year.
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The country was ranked as the 66th easiest country in the world for doing business, up from 69th place last year.
And in the starting business category, it has bettered its position by 127 ranks.
Welcoming the progress, Dr. Ahmed Al Futaisi, Minister of Transport and Communication, tweeted on his official twitter handle that “Oman ranked first regionally in starting a business. Efforts are bearing fruits.”
According to the World Bank report, Oman made starting a business easier by removing the requirement to pay the minimum capital within three months of incorporation and streamlining the registration of employees.
Reducing the time for border and documentary compliance by introducing a new online single window that allows for rapid electronic clearance of goods across the borders has also helped Oman, the report adds.
Among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, UAE stands second in starting business category at 53rd position and Kuwait with 173 rank at the sixth position.
The World Bank ranked New Zealand as the best country for ease of doing business, followed by Singapore and Denmark.
Dr Ali bin Masoud Al Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry, commented on this success saying that they appreciate all the efforts made to achieve this international recognition and improve the Sultanate business environment.
"The latest changes and updates in Invest Easy portal played a major role in this success as we cancelled the request to provide proof of the company's capital at the beginning of the registration, the Article 5 and Article 11 in the commercial agencies Law and simplify the procedures for business registration records by allowing 76 electronic service through the portal," the minister said.
The Doing Business study focuses on regulation that affects small and medium-size enterprises across 11 areas.
These include starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts, and others.