2008年-世界发展银行全球_Bosnia_and_Herzegovina___Investment_Climate_Assessment_98页_8mb

报告摘要

Bosnia and Herzegovina Investment Climate Assessment Summary

Overview

The private enterprise sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is growing but remains constrained by structural issues. Key obstacles include:

Performance and Structural Constraints: Financial solvency problems, limited capital availability, and underdocumented labor hinder enterprise development and investment opportunities. Voucher-privatized enterprises (VPEs) in particular underperform due to lack of capital and strategic ownership.
Inefficient Regulatory Regime: Excessive administrative barriers and delays impede business start-up, operations, and growth. These include complex licensing procedures, delays in property ownership transfers, and unclear tax payment systems.
Lack of Market Mechanisms for Restructuring: There is a need for more agile mechanisms for business closure and restructuring to address underperforming companies and improve competitiveness.

The main focus of the report is the performance of VPEs, which constitute about half of the non-financial private sector and significantly impact economic growth. To promote private sector-led growth, the report suggests a limited pilot program to test investor demand and facilitate ownership change and restructuring.

A. State of the Enterprise Sector

The private enterprise sector contributes approximately 50% of GDP.
BiH companies generally have low loan debt but suboptimal profitability compared to European and neighboring countries.
The sector initially developed through a voucher privatization program starting in 1999, where citizens received vouchers to purchase shares in state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
VPEs often rely on indirect government support, including unresolved pension and tax arrears, which deter external investment.
Some VPEs are profitable, but the majority are underperforming, and they represent a large portion of private sector assets.
The existence of fictitious workers (non-productive employees retained for pension purposes) creates a "grey economy" and hampers investment.
It is estimated that there are at least 20,000 fictitious workers, many of whom are not actively working.

B. The Business Enabling Environment

Both Entity governments (FBiH and RS) have reduced bureaucratic procedures for business start-up.
Despite progress, BiH ranks low in the Doing Business 2008 report (117th out of 178), indicating room for improvement.
Key areas for reform include:
- Reducing business licensing delays.
- Streamlining business start-up requirements.
- Simplifying tax payments and reducing the number of tax agencies.
- Improving transparency and efficiency in property ownership transfers.
A more agile business closure mechanism is needed to enable restructuring and market exits.
Streamlining procedures for free trade zones and clarifying duty and tariff exemptions is essential for enhancing competitiveness in external trade.

C. Ownership Change and Restructuring of Underperforming Enterprises

The VPE sector requires more than just administrative reforms; it needs fundamental restructuring.
Over 200 VPEs are identified as potential candidates for restructuring based on financial and operational assessments.
A scoring methodology is proposed to classify VPEs into three levels of viability, with a recommendation to test a small number (e.g., 10) in a pilot program.
VPEs owe significant arrears to the government, including pension and tax obligations, creating a financial gap equivalent to 15% of GDP.
The government should consider converting these arrears into equity ownership as part of restructuring efforts, but only after identifying active investors and ensuring operational improvements.
Fictitious workers pose a major barrier to investment. Resolving their status through a cash-out option could allow new capital to flow into VPEs.
The Privatization Investment Funds (PIFs), as major shareholders of VPEs, are not effective in managing or restructuring these companies. They are more suited to managing investments rather than operational reorientations.

Key Recommendations

Measures	Timing	Priority
Removing Structural Constraints in the Enterprise Sector	Medium term	Medium
• Privatization or business exit of underperforming SOEs and VPEs
• Regularization of fictitious workers and their pension/labor histories, and releasing them for redeployment in economy	Short / medium term	High
Improving Business Regulations and Business Environment
• Eliminate requirements on tax debts, company seal, or rule book to start a business	Medium term	Medium
• Elimination of steps for licensing, and consolidation of processes (streamlining reviews and verifications for operating licences)	Short / medium term	Medium
• Rationalize/reduce multiple tax payments and frequency	Short term	High
• Modernize land registry, update land boundaries with modern imagery, and expedite deeds transfer process for business	Short / medium term	High
Ownership Change and Industry Restructuring of Privatized Enterprises
• Implement an analysis unit to examine VPE financial condition and develop prospective information for restructuring/turnaround	Short term	Medium / High
• Develop evaluation criteria for restructuring candidates and short list of VPEs ready for ownership change and restructuring	Short term	High
• Estimate financing amounts and sources for debt relief and equity of VPEs that are good prospects for restructuring	Short term	High
• Implement vehicles for restructuring including equity funds, agencies, or Development Bank programs	Short / medium term	High
• Implement government debt for equity swaps in VPEs with heavy arrears to the government, to allow short-term government shareholdership for managing restructurings	Short / medium term	Medium
• Workforce downsizing in VPEs, consistent with labor code	Short term	High
• Modify securities laws to allow special funds (private, venture, other) to assist in enterprise restructuring process	Short / medium term	Medium

Conclusions

A pilot program for restructuring underperforming VPEs is recommended to attract new investor capital and test the feasibility of ownership change.
The program should be implemented within a well-organized framework, with a methodology defined in advance.
Foreign ownership is correlated with increased firm competitiveness, innovation, and export potential. Encouraging foreign direct investment (FDI) and foreign business partners is essential for the development of BiH industries.
The restructuring process should be supported by:
- An analysis unit for evaluating VPEs.
- Evaluation criteria for identifying restructuring candidates.
- Fiscal incentives for debt relief and equity.
- Institutional vehicles such as equity funds, restructuring agencies, or the Government Development Bank.