Shining a Light?

Global indicators can be very helpful, but they also require some caution in their use.  Global indicators draw our attention to problems and provide metrics to compare across economies and over time.  With comparative rankings and positive attention given to "top reformers" rewarded by the Doing Business (DB) team, such indicators had a strong motivating effect on many countries to pursue certain business environment reforms.

Utility reform has never been more important. The COVID-19 pandemic has badly impacted utilities across the world. Many utilities are now under intensified financial stress due to budget reductions and a loss of revenue, resulting from a sudden drop in collection rates, suspension of billing, and tariff adjustment in some countries. This, in turn, has made it more challenging to ensure continued service delivery.

State-Owned Enterprises SOEs are critical to many developing and emerging economies where the lives of millions of citizens are deeply affected by how these enterprises are run. Governments use SOEs to provide services across multiple sectors and to address the impacts of economic downturns or crises, such as the current COVID-19 crisis.