The German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik looked at the approach taken by Doing Business in the context of broader work on private sector development. What can governments and donors do to spur inclusive economic development? In recent years, the emphasis is shifting towards regulatory business environment reforms. This reflects growing disappointment with project level support for specific sectors or groups of firms. The World Bank/IFCs Doing Business Report focuses on the costs of the regulatory environment and claims that low levels of regulation create a level playing field for all firms that spurs economic growth and especially benefits those working in the informal economy.

The Doing Business approach has been critisized for ignoring the benefits of regulation and for insufficient evidence regarding growth and poverty effects of the proposed reform agenda. According to critics, 'Doing Business' overstates the relevance of bureaucratic burdes and underestimates other binding constraints that call for targeted interventions - e.g. to foster entrepreneurship and vocational training, to encourage economic linkages, and to provide business development services.

The workshop, which is part of the research project “Creating a conductive investment climate” funded by the Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung (BMZ), looked at the approach taken by Doing Business. It brought together researchers on private sector development and practitioners from development cooperation to discuss the relevance of regulatory reforms and the strengths and weaknesses of the Doing Business approach. In addition, key policy challenges for competitiveness and social inclusion in private sector development that may require interventions beyond the Doing Business approach will be debated.

Workshop presentations are available as downloads in the navigation bar on the right hand side or are linked under the name of the speaker in the programme.