Russia did not reach the top twenty in the Doing Business rating

Russia for the first time entered the top thirty in the Doing Business rating of the World Bank (WB). But this is unlikely to please President Vladimir Putin much: at the dawn of his third term in 2012, he instructed to “make 100 steps” and rise from 120th to 20th place in six years. In the spring of this year, Putin postponed hitting the top twenty until the end of his fourth presidential term, until 2024.

What happened

• Russia moved up three positions in Doing Business to 28th place, falling between Austria and Japan.
• Of the countries of the former USSR, Georgia is the highest in the ranking - it is in seventh place just behind the USA and ahead of the UK and Norway. Above Russia, the World Bank rated the Baltic countries and Kazakhstan.
• Sharply - from 46th to 31st place - China moved forward, overtaking France and Switzerland. Other densely populated countries such as India, Pakistan and Nigeria rose significantly.
• Russia improved its positions only in two indicators - in access to electricity networks (+5 positions, 7th place) and obtaining a building permit (+22 positions, 26th place).
• According to the remaining eight indicators, Russia either worsened its positions or remained in place. The ranking for the protection of minority shareholders immediately dropped by 15 points (72nd place), and for the ease of paying taxes - by 5 points, to 58th place. In international trade, the country remained in 99th place.

Progress in the Doing Business since 2012 has become a KPI for officials, so they are in a hurry to justify themselves. A representative of the Federal Tax Service told Vedomosti that the reason for the fall was the transfer of the administration of insurance premiums to the Federal Tax Service, which increased the number of tax collections from 7 to 9. The FCS says that it constantly explains its innovations to the WB, but this is not reflected in the rating.

Quote. “Over the past three years, progress by 12 positions - we continue to move forward. Russia remains the best of the BRICS countries, we are ahead of about half of Europe in this ranking, for example, France and the Netherlands are behind us,” Economic Development Minister Maxim Oreshkin.

Why is it important. Doing Business is a synthetic indicator convenient for foreign business and prestigious for the country. On occasion, it can be mentioned as an example of an improvement in the investment climate recognized abroad. That is what President Putin does all the time in economic forums. It is also convenient for officials that the indicator is purely technical and leaves out the actions of the security forces, the work of the courts, the protection of investments and the subtleties of tax legislation. At the same time, measurements are carried out only in Moscow and St. Petersburg.