| Danial Norjidi |
IN LINE with Brunei’s commitment towards ensuring a pro-business environment, the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) Steering Committee and the Energy and Industry Department at the Prime Minister’s Office (EIDPMO) in collaboration with the World Bank Group held a three-day Reform Workshop with relevant government agencies from September 19 to 21 at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) as well as the Ministry of Finance.
The World Bank Group was represented by eight advisors with diverse expertise to deliver the workshop in person as well as via video conferencing from Washington, DC.
Among those present in Brunei from the World Bank Group were Dr Birgit Hansl, World Bank Programme Leader for Brunei; Dr Julian Clarke, Senior Economist; and Alessio Zanelli, Private Sector Development Specialist.
According to a press release from the EIDPMO, the advisors shared their technical expertise and the best practices in business-related reforms that had been implemented globally.
Dr Hansl highlighted, “The objective of the workshop was to present the findings of a World Bank Group diagnostic, which provides recommendations in areas where the government can have a direct impact on improving business conditions for domestic small and medium-sized businesses.
“During a series of workshops with government champion groups for improving the ease of doing business in Brunei Darussalam, we discussed reform options for business regulations that apply to local businesses through their life cycle, including starting a business, operations and insolvency.
“The diagnostic is based on the objective measures of the World Bank Group Doing Business Report and discusses how particular shortcomings could be addressed through legal and regulatory reforms.”
The press release notes that the insightful discussions that took place in the workshop provided key inputs for the various Champion Groups in the EoDB Steering Committee to refine their medium to long term strategies into clear and robust action plans with an aim to further improve doing business in Brunei.
“Brunei Darussalam shares key features with other successful reformers across the world. These include high-level leadership and ownership of the reform agenda,” Dr Hansl further stated.
“Under the Ease of Doing Business Steering Committee, coordination among the different institutional stakeholders takes place, ensuring that agencies come together under a joint long-term vision with clear objectives. Progress is continuously monitored to identify areas of success as well as areas where further effort is needed. As Brunei embarks on future reforms, consultations with the private sector will become more important.
“This will provide important feedback on the status of frontline service delivery by the government agencies to businesses and help refine the modes of implementation of various reforms to successfully change the experience faced by businesses in practice,” Dr Hansl added.
The workshop was attended by champion groups that are spearheading the reform efforts for various key indicators in the Doing Business Index, including departments under the PMO, which are the Judiciary Department, Law and Welfare Division and E-Government National Centre (EGNC); Ministry of Finance; Ministry of Development; Ministry of Communications; Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism; Ministry of Health; Autoriti Monetari Brunei Darussalam (AMBD); and Muara Port Company.
These efforts are aligned with the titah of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam in July 2017, whereby His Majesty emphasised Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) and MSMEs as two core drivers for boosting Brunei’s economic growth.
With the leadership of His Royal Highness Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah ibni His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, Brunei Darussalam has seen progressive improvements in the Doing Business Index over the last few years.
In 2015, Brunei was ranked 105th out of 190 economies in the Doing Business Report. In 2016, Brunei ranked 97th and this year, Brunei saw a further improvement with its ranking of 72. Furthermore, the World Bank’s Doing Business 2017 report recognised Brunei Darussalam as the most improved economy in the world for the second year running.
The press release noted that despite these successes, further improvements are required to achieve the national target of Top 20 in the Doing Business Index. Therefore, the Sultanate calls upon sustained cooperation, coordination and commitment from both the public and private sectors as businesses also play a significant role in further strengthening Brunei’s competitiveness in doing business globally. Furthermore, greater collaboration between government agencies and businesses will result in better resolution of ‘on-the-ground’ issues faced by Brunei’s business community.
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