Tbilisi, November 29, 2010—A two-day conference organized by IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, in partnership with the World Bank and the government of Georgia, will focus on how recent improvements to the business environment in Georgia and other countries, support private sector growth.

The Conference on Business Environment, which begins today in Tbilisi, Georgia, is co-hosted the government of Georgia and senior officials from the World Bank Group. The conference will bring together more than 100 participants, including senior decision makers from 30 countries across Eastern Europe and Central Asia to share their reform experiences and challenges, drawing lessons from the design and implementation of successful reforms. These include establishing one-stop shop for business licensing, trade facilitation, and tax administration; and strengthening the rights of creditors and borrowers.

“Our partnership with the World Bank and IFC in hosting a peer-learning conference in Georgia is exciting, because Georgia is number one economy among the most improved on the ease of doing business over the past five years, according to the Doing Business 2011 report,” said Nika Gilauri, Prime Minister of Georgia. “We hope that all participants will learn from our successful reform experience. We also want to see what we can learn from others, as we intend to continue reforming to ensure that our country remains one of the best places world-wide for doing business.”

“This event provides an opportunity for IFC and its partners to share the know-how on the reform process that has accumulated in the region, and particularly in Georgia over the last few years,” said Snezana Stoiljkovic, IFC Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia. “We hope this event will strengthen the network of reformers across the region who can continue to support each other’s efforts.”

To see the results of Georgia’s reform efforts in practice, participants will have an opportunity to visit Georgia’s Property Registry/Business Service Center, a one-stop-shop for construction permits, tax administration, customs, and the Service Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia.

About the Doing Business report series
Doing Business analyzes regulations that apply to an economy’s businesses during their life cycle, 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. Its findings have stimulated policy debates in more than 80 economies and enabled a growing body of research on how firm-level regulation relates to economic outcomes across economies. For more information about the Doing Business report series, please visit www.doingbusiness.org

About the World Bank Group
The World Bank Group is one of the world’s largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries. It comprises five closely associated institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC); the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Each institution plays a distinct role in the mission to fight poverty and improve living standards for people in the developing world. For more information, please visit www.worldbank.org, www.miga.org, and www.ifc.org.