The World Bank's Doing Business Report 2020 ranks Thailand 21st, improving by 6 places from 27th last year.

           Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana announced that the World Bank has released its annual Doing Business 2020 report, which evaluates 190 countries. Thailand has achieved a ranking of 21, up 6 places from last year's 27th position, with a score of 80.10, an increase of 1.65 points from last year. This marks Thailand's best ranking in 6 years, bringing it closer to Singapore, which ranks 2nd (86.20 points), and Malaysia, which ranks 12th (81.50 points).

           Thailand's improved ranking is attributed to the government's efforts in implementing various measures, including streamlining approval processes and introducing digital systems in public services, as well as updating regulations to align with changing business contexts to enhance competitiveness and protect investors' interests.

           This report reflects Thailand's success in improving the business environment over the past year. The areas where Thailand has seen better rankings and higher scores include:

1. Dealing with Construction Permits: Thailand improved its ranking from 67th (71.86 points) last year to 34th (77.30 points) this year, due to a reduction in the number of procedures from 19 to 14 and a decrease in processing time from 118 days to 113 days.

           2. Protecting Minority Investors: Thailand improved its ranking from 15th (75.00 points) last year to 3rd (86.00 points) this year, with the Ease of Shareholder Suits Index increasing from 8 points to 9 points, with a maximum score of 10 points.

           Despite the significant overall improvement, Thailand still needs to continuously enhance the business environment to facilitate competition across various sectors. This will ensure that Thailand can compete with rival countries in the long term, and the benefits from reforms in the business environment will lead to increased investment and higher quality employment in the future.

           The World Bank's Doing Business report aims to compare the environment and government facilitation for private sector business operations across different countries, covering indicators throughout the business cycle from starting a business, operating a business, to closing a business, with a total of 10 indicators including:

           1) Starting a Business 2) Dealing with Construction Permits 3) Getting Electricity 4) Registering Property 5) Getting Credit 6) Protecting Minority Investors 7) Paying Taxes 8) Trading Across Borders 9) Enforcing Contracts 10) Resolving Insolvency

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