2017年-世界发展银行全球_Investment_Climate_Assessment_of_Bhutan___Removing_Constraints_to_Private_Sector_Development_to_Enable_the_Creation_of_More_and_Better_Jobs_106页_8mb

报告摘要

Investment Climate Assessment of Bhutan Summary

Core Content

The Investment Climate Assessment of Bhutan (2017) focuses on identifying constraints to private sector development and proposes reforms to enable the creation of more and better jobs. The report highlights the role of the private sector in Bhutan's economic growth and outlines key recommendations to improve its performance and competitiveness.

Main Views and Key Information

Economic Structure

Bhutan has experienced rapid economic growth and poverty reduction over the past two decades, with GDP per capita more than doubling from US$1,250 in 2000 to US$2,500 in 2015.
Poverty incidence has dropped to just 2%.
The economy remains heavily dependent on agriculture and the public sector, which together account for 76% of employment.
Private-sector growth is limited, with only 2% of firms being LLCs and 2% attracting foreign ownership.
The private sector is largely small-scale and struggles to access international markets without intermediaries.

Constraints to Private-Sector Development

Access to Finance: A major constraint, driven by both supply and demand-side issues. Financial services are limited in availability, quality, and affordability, and there are barriers to collateralizing productive assets.
Access to Skills: Limited supply of skilled labor hinders the development of high-value industries. Public sector compensation packages are more attractive to graduates, discouraging private-sector employment.
Access to External Markets: High trade costs, poor logistics, and inefficient customs procedures limit firms' ability to export.
Market Competition: The dominance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and the lack of effective competition policies restrict private-sector growth.
Taxation: Tax policies and administration are perceived as complex and burdensome, affecting business operations.

Recommendations

The report provides a range of policy recommendations across crosscutting and sector-specific areas.

Crosscutting Recommendations

Access to Finance:
- Expand the scope of collateralizable assets.
- Deepen and broaden the credit information system.
- Approve and implement a new insolvency bill.
- Reduce risks associated with e-banking.
Access to Labor:
- Introduce a dedicated channel for skilled migration.
- Provide vocational training to the adult labor force.
- Realign public sector compensation packages with those of the private sector.
Access to Markets:
- Promote e-commerce platforms and improve awareness of quality standards and certifications.
- Develop and implement an investment promotion strategy.
- Introduce risk-based border inspections and coordinate customs procedures.
- Improve domestic transportation and logistics infrastructure.
Competition:
- Create a public-private dialogue platform for policy feedback.
- Monitor and address anticompetitive practices by SOEs.
Taxation:
- Increase awareness of taxation policies and accounting standards.

Sector-Specific Recommendations

Tourism:
- Build capacity of three-star accommodation and restaurant providers.
- Support programs to diversify tourist flows geographically and temporally.
ICT:
- Develop a high-skilled migration channel.
- Upgrade skills of current and prospective ICT workers.
- Implement a sector-specific investment promotion strategy.
- Improve internet infrastructure.
Agribusiness:
- Develop regulations, oversight roles, and communication strategy for "Brand Bhutan."
- Promote investments in storage and logistics to facilitate exports of high-value products.
- Reform subsidies and interventions to better incentivize private investment.
Hydropower:
- Commission a study on the involvement of local firms and workers in hydropower projects.
- Increase the capacity of local firms and workers to participate in hydropower projects.
- Ensure that hydropower agreements include provisions to facilitate contracting of Bhutanese firms and employment of Bhutanese workers.

Structure of the Report

The report is organized into four chapters:

Economic Overview – Describes the structure, dynamics, and performance of Bhutan's economy and key industries.
Constraints on Private-Sector Development – Analyzes the factors limiting private-sector growth and productivity.
The Way Forward – Presents policy recommendations for both crosscutting and sector-specific reforms.
Conclusion – Summarizes the study's findings and the importance of improving the investment climate.

Key Data Sources

The report primarily uses the 2015 World Bank Enterprise Survey (WBES), which includes interviews with 367 nonagricultural firms.
It is complemented by other quantitative and qualitative data, including assessments from the World Bank and Bhutanese government departments.

Conclusion

The report emphasizes that Bhutan's investment climate needs further improvement to unlock the potential of the private sector. By addressing constraints in access to finance, skilled labor, and external markets, and by promoting competition and effective taxation, Bhutan can foster private-sector-led growth and job creation. The recommendations are structured to support the government in creating a more conducive environment for business development and economic diversification.

Key Tables and Figures

Table 1: Priority Policy Recommendations – Outlines crosscutting and sector-specific reforms with associated timelines.
Table 2: Changes in Employment Composition – Highlights the dominance of public and agricultural sectors.
Table 3: Share of New and Young Firms – Indicates the prevalence of small and new firms in the private sector.
Table 4: Growth of Firms, 2012-14 – Reflects the limited growth of private firms.
Table 5: Firm's Linkages to External Markets – Shows the limited engagement of firms with international markets.
Table 6: Average Firm Performance, by Export Status – Highlights the performance differences between exporting and non-exporting firms.
Table 7: Major Hydroelectric Projects – Lists key projects contributing to Bhutan's economy.
Table 8: Agricultural Products – Lists the main agricultural exports.
Table 9: Financial Sector Indicators – Compares Bhutan's financial sector with peer countries.
Table 10: Access to Finance – Provides insights into the challenges faced by firms.
Table 11: Summary of Policy Recommendations – Consolidates key recommendations.
Table 12: ES Sample Frame – Describes the methodology of the Enterprise Survey.
Table 13: ES Achieved Sample – Shows the number of firms surveyed.
Table 14: Business Registration Framework – Describes the current business registration system.
Table 15: Share of Informal Firms – Highlights the informal nature of many businesses in Bhutan.
Figure 1: Sectoral Composition of Bhutan's Economy – Illustrates the dominance of agriculture and public sector.
Figure 2: Share of Nonagricultural Private Employment – Shows the limited share of private-sector employment.
Figure 3: Export Indicators – Reflects the challenges in export performance.
Figure 4: Foreign Direct Investment – Highlights the low level of FDI inflows.
Figure 5: Government-Linked Companies with DHI Equity – Shows the influence of SOEs.
Figure 6: Characteristics of Private-Sector Firms – Describes the size and structure of private firms.
Figure 7: Size and Sectoral Distribution – Illustrates the small size of private firms.
Figure 8: Business Entry and Employment Growth – Shows the relationship between business entry and employment growth.
Figure 9: Labor Productivity – Highlights the low productivity in the private sector.
Figure 10: Median Labor Productivity by Sector – Compares productivity across sectors.
Figure 11: Bhutan's Agricultural Exports – Shows the growth in agricultural exports.
Figure 12: Business Environment and Competitiveness Ranking – Places Bhutan in a regional context.
Figure 13: Perception of Investment Climate Constraints – Compares perceptions from 2009 and 2015.
Figure 14: Aggregate Credit – Reflects the availability of credit in Bhutan.
Figure 15: Share of Firms Citing Access to Finance as Constraint – Highlights the importance of finance access.
Figure 16: Financing Needs and Financial Access by Firm Size – Shows the challenges faced by small firms.
Figure 17: Lending Interest Rate and Interest Spread – Indicates the cost of borrowing.
Figure 18: Demand-Side Factors Inhibiting Access to Finance – Lists challenges from the borrower's perspective.
Figure 19: Share of Firms Citing Labor Regulations as Constraint – Shows the impact of labor regulations.
Figure 20: Relative Cost and Productivity of Labor – Compares labor costs and productivity.
Figure 21: Competition for Labor with Public Sector – Highlights the preference for public sector jobs.
Figure 22: Share of Firms Citing Customs and Trade Regulations or Transport as Constraint – Shows the importance of logistics and trade regulations.
Figure 23: Logistic Performance Index – Indicates the inefficiency in logistics.
Figure 24: Time and Cost to Import and Export – Highlights the high costs and time involved in trade.
Figure 25: Tax Rates and Tax Administration – Reflects the complexity of the tax system.
Figure 26: Number of BIT Firms by Status – Shows the distribution of businesses in the tax database.
Figure 27: Correlation of Income and Labor Productivity – Demonstrates the link between productivity and income.
Figure 28: Price Levels Relative to 2000 – Shows inflation trends.
Figure 29: Producer Price Index – Indicates price changes in the economy.

Acknowledgments

The report was developed in collaboration with the Royal Government of Bhutan and draws on the insights of numerous stakeholders, including government departments, financial institutions, and civil society organizations. It also acknowledges the support of the World Bank Group Bhutan country office and the contributions of several researchers and experts.

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