World Bank Doing Business Report:
The World Bank, in mid-September, announced that it was set to discontinue publishing its Doing Business report.
- This announcement came on the back of an independent investigation that, reportedly, found “data irregularities” that prevailed in the 2018 and 2020 reports.
- In August 2020, World Bank paused the publication of Doing Business reports following a number of irregularities were reported regarding changes to the data.
- The irregularities in Doing Business reports had affected four countries: China; Saudi Arabia; United Arab Emirates; and Azerbaijan.
- A probe of data irregularities cited “undue pressure” by top bank officials, including then-Chief Executive Kristalina Georgieva, to boost China’s ranking in 2017.
- This raised ethical matters involving former bank staff and board officials.
- The World Bank’s annual report matters to several nations, especially developing ones, since it greatly influenced investor decisions by releasing a ranking of economies based on how easy it is to open up, and operate, a business. But while the report was hugely popular among investors, it was heavily criticized by many governments for its methodology that, leaders said, inaccurately captured the realities on the ground.
