The Global Competitiveness Report 2019 of the World Economic Forum has ranked Pakistan as the 52nd most dynamic economy in the world.
Pakistan secured this rank by improving 15 points from last year where it stood at 67 in 2018. The progress of Pakistan’s competitiveness was due to the achievements made during the last 12 months.
The report stated that the most effective improvements were made due to the initiatives and strategies adopted by the apex regulator for the corporate sector and the capital markets, supervising and regulating insurance, non-banking financial companies, and private pension schemes, etc.
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) improved the country’s competitiveness rankings by improving the number of days to start a business, where Pakistan stands at a global rank of 90 as compared to 96 in 2018.
Briefing SECP’s senior officials and the Chairman, Amir Jahangir, Chief Executive Officer of Mishal Pakistan, the Country Partner Institute of the World Economic Forum’s Future of Economic Progress System Initiative, said,
Pakistan offers one of the best environments for shareholder governance. Pakistan is the 7th most effective regulator in the world.
He further said, “The index assesses three dimensions of good governance:
- Shareholders’ rights and role in major corporate decisions.
- Governance safeguards protecting shareholders from undue board control and entrenchment.
- Corporate transparency on ownership stakes, compensation, audits, and financial prospects.
He emphasized that:
This position reflects the long term vision of the SECP and the government, where Pakistan stands at 63 among 141 economies in the world. Jahangir further said, areas where Pakistan needs to concentrate are improving e-participation, strength of auditing and reporting standards, financing for SMEs, insurance premium regulations, willingness to delegate authority.
Chairman SECP, Mr. Aamir Khan, briefed the WEF Partner team and said,
The Commission is working hard to develop new approaches to connect and facilitate its stakeholders, this will bring structural changes in terms of attitude towards entrepreneurial risk and growth of innovative companies, where Pakistan already has an impressive global position of 53 among 141 nations globally.
The strategy adopted by SECP is also instrumental in creating more companies embracing disruptive ideas. The SECP is working with other stakeholders to collaborate in creating a legal framework’s adaptability to digital business models, where Pakistan is performing better than 100 other countries in the world.
Digital solutions deployed by the SECP made company registration and post-incorporation compliance simple, faster and cost-effective. In September 2019, 96% of companies registered online through SECP’s eService and 50% of companies were incorporated the same day.
