2016年-世界发展银行全球_Enterprise_Surveys___Lao_PDR_Country_Profile_2016_12页_517kb

Lao PDR 2016 Enterprise Survey Summary

Core Content

The Enterprise Surveys (ES) conducted by the World Bank Group in Lao PDR in 2016 provide a comprehensive overview of the business environment, firm characteristics, and performance across various sectors. The survey includes data from 368 firms and covers key areas such as workforce, firm performance, physical infrastructure, international trade, access to finance, crime and informality, regulations, permits, and taxes, corruption, and business environment obstacles.

Main Topics and Key Findings

1. Firm Characteristics

• Firm Age: The average age of firms in Lao PDR is 13.3 years, with large firms being the oldest (16.5 years).
• Female Participation:
  • 43.1% of firms have female participation in ownership.
  • 45.3% of firms have a female top manager.
  • 44.7% of permanent full-time workers are female.
• Firm Size:
  • Small firms: 7.6 permanent full-time workers on average.
  • Medium firms: 35.4 permanent full-time workers.
  • Large firms: 207.8 permanent full-time workers.
• Temporary Workers: 0.0% of firms have temporary workers.
• Workforce Distribution:
  • Production Workers: 22.5% of firms have permanent production workers.
  • Skilled Production Workers: 21.0% of firms have permanent skilled production workers.
  • Unskilled Production Workers: 0.1% of firms have permanent unskilled production workers.
  • Non-Production Workers: 3.4% of firms have permanent non-production workers.

2. Workforce and Training

• Formal Training:
  • 6.5% of firms offer formal training.
  • 37.9% of workers in the manufacturing sector receive formal training.
• Top Manager Experience: On average, top managers have 15.5 years of experience in the firm’s sector.

3. Firm Performance

• Real Annual Sales Growth: -22.4% on average for all firms, with large firms experiencing the lowest growth (-37.4%).
• Annual Employment Growth: -0.5% on average, with medium firms showing the least negative growth (-0.2%).

4. Physical Infrastructure

• Electrical Outages: 0.9 outages per month on average.
• Losses Due to Outages: 1.1% of annual sales are lost due to electrical outages.
• Days to Obtain Electrical Connection: 23.4 days on average.
• Water Insufficiencies: 0.9 incidents per month on average.
• Losses Due to Water Issues: 0.7% of annual sales are lost due to water insufficiencies.

5. International Trade

• Exporting Firms: 6.1% of firms export directly or indirectly (at least 1% of sales).
• Days to Clear Exports: 2.0 days on average.
• Days to Clear Imports: 2.0 days on average.
• Use of Foreign Inputs: 14.3% of firms use material inputs or supplies of foreign origin.

6. Access to Finance

• Checking/Savings Accounts: 81.2% of firms have such accounts.
• Bank Loans: 12.4% of firms have a bank loan or line of credit.
• Internal Financing: 81.2% of investment is financed internally.
• Banks Financing: 10.6% of investment is financed by banks.
• Supplier Credit: 0.5% of investment is financed by supplier credit.
• Equity Sales: 1.0% of investment is financed by equity or stock sales.

7. Crime and Informality

• Security Costs: 0.7% of annual sales are spent on security.
• Losses Due to Crime: 0.1% of annual sales are lost due to theft and vandalism.
• Informal Competition: 77.2% of firms compete against unregistered or informal firms.
• Formal Registration at Start: 96.3% of firms were formally registered when they started operations.

8. Regulations, Permits, and Taxes

• Time Spent on Regulations: 1.2% of senior management time is spent on government regulation compliance.
• Visits to Tax Officials: 4.6 visits on average per firm.
• Permits:
  • Import License: 5.4 days on average.
  • Construction Permit: 20.4 days on average.
  • Operating License: 16.3 days on average.

9. Corruption

• Bribery Incidence: 16.4% of firms experience at least one bribe payment request.
• Gifts for Permits: 49.4% of firms expect to give gifts for a construction permit.
• Gifts for Government Contracts: 74.3% of firms expect to give gifts to secure a government contract.
• Gifts in Tax Meetings: 13.7% of firms expect to give gifts in meetings with tax officials.

10. Business Environment Obstacles

• Top Obstacles:
  • Access to Finance: 4.9% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Access to Land: 2.5% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Business Licenses and Permits: 1.4% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Corruption: 3.2% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Courts: 0.9% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Crime, Theft, and Disorder: 0.0% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Customs and Trade Regulations: 3.6% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Electricity: 13.0% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Inadequately Educated Workforce: 13.2% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.
  • Labor Regulations: 3.3% of firms consider this the biggest obstacle.

Key Information

• The survey covers non-agricultural, formal, private firms.
• Firms are categorized by size: small (5–19 employees), medium (20–99 employees), and large (100+ employees).
• Excluded sectors: Agriculture, fishing, mining, public utilities, government services, health care, and financial services.
• The survey includes 15 business environment obstacles and asks firms to rank the most important one.
• Comparative data is provided for the East Asia & Pacific region and lower middle income economies.

Conclusion

The Lao PDR 2016 Enterprise Survey highlights the challenges and opportunities in the country’s business environment. While firms in Lao PDR show a relatively high rate of formal registration and access to financial services, they face significant issues related to access to finance, corruption, infrastructure reliability, and informal competition. The survey underscores the importance of improving regulatory efficiency, reducing corruption, and enhancing infrastructure to support sustainable business growth and private sector development.