A new World Bank Group report finds that Mongolia implemented three positive business reforms between June 2012 and June 2013, making it easier to start a business, deal with construction permits, and access electricity.

Doing Business 2014: Understanding Regulations for Small and Medium-Size Enterprises finds that 15 of 25 economies in East Asia and the Pacific made at least one regulatory reform to improve the ease of doing business. Over the past year, Mongolia eliminated the requirements to get company statutes and charters notarized and to register a new company with the local tax office, thereby making starting a business easier. The country also removed a rule requiring companies to submit building plans for lower-risk construction projects to the state for technical review. The third reform involved increasing operational efficiency while lowering the costs of getting electricity access.

IFC, the World Bank Group member focused on private sector development, has worked closely with the Mongolian government to support investment climate regulatory reforms, including providing advice on business reforms that are covered by the sub-indicators of the Doing Business index.

With IFC's partnership, the Mongolian government is drawing lessons from other economies that are successful at implementing business reforms. Last year, a Mongolian reform delegation visited Georgia, one of the top Doing Business performers, to learn how information technology can make governance more transparent and efficient.

Globally, Singapore continues to provide the world's most business-friendly regulatory environment for local entrepreneurs, followed by Hong Kong SAR, China. Joining Singapore and Hong Kong on the top 10 list this year are, in order, New Zealand, the United States, Denmark, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, Georgia, Norway, and the United Kingdom.