2017年-世界发展银行全球_Enterprise_Surveys___Niger_Country_Profile_2017_12页_692kb

Niger 2017 Country Profile: Enterprise Surveys Summary

Introduction

The World Bank Group's Enterprise Surveys (ES) assess the business environment across various dimensions such as infrastructure, trade, finance, regulations, taxes, and corruption. The survey includes responses from 151 firms in Niger, covering the non-agricultural, formal, private economy. The survey aims to understand how these factors affect firm performance and the overall business environment.

Core Content

The ES focus on key aspects of the business environment that influence firm performance and private sector development. These include:

• Firm Characteristics: Age, gender participation in ownership and management, and workforce composition.
• Workforce: Information on employment, formal training, and the proportion of female employees.
• Firm Performance: Annual sales and employment growth.
• Physical Infrastructure: Reliability of electricity and water supply, and time to obtain infrastructure services.
• International Trade: Export and import activities, and the time required to clear customs.
• Access to Finance: Sources of financing, availability of financial services, and reliance on internal funds.
• Crime and Informality: Costs and losses due to crime, and the prevalence of informal firms.
• Regulations, Permits, and Taxes: Time spent on regulatory compliance, number of meetings with tax officials, and time to obtain permits.
• Corruption: Incidence of bribery and informal payments in various business transactions.
• Business Environment Obstacles: Identification of the most significant challenges firms face.

Key Findings

Firm Characteristics

• The average age of firms in Niger is 15 years.
• Female participation in ownership is 14.5%, with medium firms having the highest rate at 19.6%.
• Female top managers account for 10.6% of firms.
• Female permanent full-time workers make up 13.1% of the workforce, with small firms showing higher representation.
• Permanent non-production workers are 12.7% female, while production workers are 6.7% female.
• The average number of years of experience for top managers is 17.8.

Workforce

• 27.5% of firms offer formal training.
• The proportion of workers offered formal training is 20.7%.
• 95.4% of firms have a checking or savings account.
• 27.6% of firms have a bank loan or line of credit.
• 72.8% of investment is financed internally, with a significant reliance on internal funds.
• Supplier credit accounts for 10.3% of investment financing.
• Equity or stock sales contribute minimally to investment financing (0.4%).

Firm Performance

• Real annual sales growth is 4.1%.
• Annual employment growth is 9.0%.
• Firms face an average of 22 electrical outages per month, with losses due to outages at 3.4% of annual sales.
• The time to obtain an electrical connection is 28.6 days.
• Water insufficiencies occur 0.5 times per month, with no significant losses reported.

International Trade

• 13.9% of firms engage in direct or indirect exports.
• The average time to clear direct exports through customs is 7.4 days.
• The average time to clear imports through customs is 16.9 days.
• 74.9% of firms use foreign material inputs or supplies.

Access to Finance

• 95.4% of firms have a checking or savings account.
• 27.6% of firms have a bank loan or line of credit.
• 72.8% of investment is internally financed, while 14.1% is financed by banks.
• Supplier credit accounts for 10.3% of investment financing.

Crime and Informality

• Security costs account for 0.9% of annual sales.
• Losses due to theft and vandalism are 0.6% of annual sales.
• 85.1% of firms compete against unregistered or informal firms.
• 86.0% of firms were formally registered when they started operations.

Regulations, Permits, and Taxes

• Senior management spends 11.4% of their time dealing with government regulations.
• The average number of visits to tax officials is 2.0.
• The time to obtain an import license is 18.9 days.
• The time to obtain a construction-related permit is 44.1 days.
• The time to obtain an operating license is 14.0 days.

Corruption

• 7.8% of firms experience at least one bribe payment request.
• 12.6% of firms expect to give gifts to obtain a construction permit.
• 46.0% of firms expect to give gifts to secure a government contract.
• 6.1% of firms expect to give gifts in meetings with tax officials.

Business Environment Obstacles

• The most significant obstacle is access to finance (15.2%).
• Other notable obstacles include corruption (8.0%), crime (7.3%), and electricity (10.9%).
• The perception of obstacles varies by firm size, with small firms facing more challenges than large firms.

Conclusion

The Enterprise Surveys for Niger in 2017 highlight several challenges in the business environment, including access to finance, corruption, and infrastructure issues. These factors significantly impact firm performance and the overall competitiveness of the private sector. The data also shows a relatively low level of female participation in ownership and management, indicating potential gender disparities in the business environment. Addressing these challenges is essential for promoting sustainable growth and development in Niger.