Malidves slips to 95th in ‘Ease of Doing Business’ index

Much of the drop is due to the introduction of a new taxation system, which previously saw the Maldives at the top of the index. Taking into account the business profit taxes, pension payments and others, the report calculates the Maldives’ total tax on gross commercial profits for a business in its second year of operation profit as 30.7 percent, well below the South Asia average of 40.2 percent.

The Maldives is rated 167th – worse than Afghanistan – for ‘getting credit’, a measure of the availability of credit information and the effectiveness of collateral and bankruptcy laws in facilitating lending.

While the rating is particularly hurt by the lack of a credit ratings registry, the Maldives scores several points lower than the regional average for protecting the rights of creditors.