In a record year for regulatory reform worldwide, Eastern Europe and Central Asia led all regions in the pace of reforms. Doing Business 2010: Reforming through Difficult Times finds that 26 of 27 economies in the region reformed regulations to create more opportunity for domestic firms.

Globally, a record 131 of the 183 economies surveyed reformed business regulations between June 2008 and May 2009, according to the report, the seventh in a series of annual reports published by IFC and the World Bank.

The region was the most active worldwide in reforming insolvency regimes and easing access to credit. Six economies improved their insolvency regimes: Albania, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Tajikistan. Seven reformed their credit information systems: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Latvia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Tajikistan, and Turkey. The Kyrgyz Republic and Poland strengthened the legal rights of borrowers and lenders.

“Governments in Europe and Central Asia continue implementing regulatory reforms as part of their long-term strategies, despite the many challenges of the past year,” said Neil Gregory, Advisor, Financial and Private Sector Development, World Bank Group. “They recognize that the quality of business regulation helps determine how easy it is to reorganize troubled firms, rebuild entrepreneurs’ confidence, and start new businesses,”

Reform activity among developing economies in the region is the strongest since 2004. The Kyrgyz Republic, the region’s leading reformer, moved up in the global rankings from 80 to 41 on ease of doing business, by implementing reforms in seven of the 10 areas measured by the report. Among other things, it expedited the issuance of construction permits and eased business start-up and property registration.

This year Rwanda was the top global reformer. There were 4 new reformers among the global top 10:  Liberia, the United Arab Emirates, Tajikistan and Moldova. Others, aside from Rwanda, include Egypt, Belarus, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Colombia.

“Reforms continue to move eastward across the region. Albania, Belarus, the Kyrgyz Republic, and FYR Macedonia implemented reforms in several areas for the third year in row,” said Svetlana Bagaudinova, an author of the report. “Inspired by their neighbors, Kazakhstan, Montenegro, and Tajikistan have also picked up the pace of reform,” she added.

Poland’s ranking in Doing Business 2010 remains at the same level as in 2009, 72rd place. There is, however, a number of reforms undertaken by The Polish Government that are recognized by the Doing Business 2010 ranking. Poland eased the process of dealing with distressed companies with an amendment to its bankruptcy law introducing the option of prebankruptcy reorganization for companies facing financial difficulties. Business start-up was eased by reducing the minimum capital requirement from PLN 50,000 to PLN 5,000 and consolidating applications for company registration and registrations with the tax, social security, and statistics authorities. Social security taxes were cut for businesses, and the value added tax (VAT) law was simplified. Access to credit was improved by allowing all legal persons (including foreign entities) to hold or grant security interests.

“This year’s Doing Business report recognizes The Polish Government’s involvement in improving the business climate in Poland. There have been significant improvements achieved in several crucial areas for the entrepreneurs such as: starting and closing a business, getting credit and paying taxes. The World Bank has been and will continue to support the government in its efforts to further improve the business environment in Poland, where major challenges remain in areas such as obtaining construction permit, paying taxes and starting a business”- said Thomas Laursen, Country Manager for Poland and Baltic Countries.

 Doing Business analyzes regulations that apply to an economy’s businesses during their life cycles, including start-up and operations, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing a business. Doing Business does not measure all aspects of the business environment that matter to firms and investors. For example, it does not measure security, macroeconomic stability, corruption, skill level, or the strength of financial systems.