Wednesday October 24, 2012

Malaysia now aims to be top 10 in World Bank ranking

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia is aiming to be among the top 10 most business- friendly economies globally after coming in 12th in the World Bank ranking.

Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said the Doing Business 2013 report affirmed Malaysia's increasing global competitiveness and that the country now wants to be in the top 10.

“Getting there will strengthen our position as a destination of choice for local and foreign investors.”

He said the World Bank had also recognised the Government's reform agenda driven by Pemudah, the interministerial level committee, and Pemandu, the performance management delivery unit.

Mustapa said Malaysia had improved its competitiveness in five areas of business surveyed, including ease in getting electricity, where the country's ranking improved from 59th last year to the present 28th.

The other four areas where the country improved notably were registering property (59th to 33rd), paying taxes (41st to 15th), trading across borders (29th to 11th), and dealing with construction permits (113th to 96th).

Mustapa said the latest ranking reflected Malaysia's continuous improvement in the delivery of public services and the overall efficiency of government machinery through the Economic Transformation Programme and the Government Transformation Programme.

He said the Government remained committed to the strategic reform initiatives to make Malaysia the most competitive in the world.

Despite significant improvements in the overall competitiveness, Pemandu in a statement stressed that there was no room for complacency in driving the efficiency of government and public services.