Doing Business in Small Island Developing States (SIDS)
Speech by Ambassador Hjálmar W. Hannesson at a meeting of the Association of Small States (AOSIS) 6 May 2008
Dear Colleagues,
The Doing Business report is a renowned and respected publication that highlights individual countries’ ease of doing business through benchmarking. In other words, the Doing Business report allows readers to compare government regulations that enhance – or constrain - business activity in 178 countries.
A few years ago, some discerning officials in the Icelandic Foreign Ministry noticed that a number of countries, including Iceland, were excluded from the report. They also noticed that a disproportionate number of them were Small Island Developing States. To remedy this omission, a decision was made by the Government of Iceland to contribute 700.000 USD to take on board 20 SIDS countries.
Iceland’s decision to finance a special publication of the Doing Business report, called Doing Business in SIDS, was an obvious next step. This publication was presented for the first time on 26 March 2008 in Bridgetown, Barbados, at a High-Level Roundtable on International Cooperation for Sustainable Development in Caribbean SIDS.
As you know, Iceland’s development policy places priority on SIDS, as evidenced by our new Island Growth Initiative. For Iceland, when increasing its development cooperation, this was an obvious and logical decision; to increase our development resources towards states with similar features and characteristics. As Minister Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir said in Bridgetown, ‘As small states we have much in common, and much to gain by working together.’
It is my hope that the Doing Business in SIDS report will spark serious discussions among policy makers and the business community. I believe it could help address the unique characteristics and business challenges of 32 Small Island Developing States. The report has already received very positive feedback and could be a valuable tool for addressing regulatory obstacles to help ease the cost of doing business in SIDS.
It’s my great pleasure to present Ms. Svetlana Baugodinova and Iva Ilieva Hamel from the World Bank Doing Business Unit.
Thank you.
