The need for strategic reforms, simplification of procedures and how to combat bureaucracy were the main conclusions in the World Bank’s Doing Business Report 2015, which was presented yesterday by the Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency (CIPA).

It was Cyprus’ 6th consecutive appearance in the report, which evaluates the participating countries, based on ten different indices from the moment a company is registered.

“Although Cyprus showed marginal improvements in absolute numbers, faster adoption of modern practices and procedures from other economies led the country to a lower position in the ratings table,” CIPA said in an announcement.

“It is also worth noting that while our country ranked 39th last year, this year’s results are not comparable to last year’s, due to the revaluation of assessment tools utilised by the World Bank. Based on this year’s assessment conditions, our country ranked 62nd last year.”

From the total of 10 indexes, Cyprus improved its rankings in three, kept its ratings stable in one and marked losses in six. Cyprus ranked 26th among the 28 EU member states, just ahead of Malta and Croatia.

The island’s assessment on the ‘installation and supply of electricity’, ‘building permits’ and ‘execution of contracts’ indexes was extremely low while the evaluation on other indexes like the ‘registration of real estate’ was less than favourable, CIPA said.

Its president Christodoulos Angastiniotis said: “We have no other choice but to proceed directly with strategic reforms and improvements in order to create a friendlier business environment and to enter into a growth course. We need simplification of procedures, transparency and speed. Exemption from the bureaucratic inefficiencies and tedious conditions which prevent foreign investors from coming to Cyprus is our only way”.

Angastiniotis also said the absence of one-stop-shop service, which would facilitate the business world “not only keeps our country behind other economies, but causes the gap to grow year by year”.

He referred to Cyprus ranking of 14th in the ‘Investor Protection’ index, stressing that that was achieved through hard work and cooperation between all stakeholders associated with the investment sector - CIPA, the Cyprus Stock Exchange and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission.

Source: Cyprus Mail