Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Economy Pro le of Sierra Leone Doing Business 2018 Indicators (in order of appearance in the document) Starting a business Procedures, time, cost and paid-in minimum capital to start a limited liability company Dealing with construction Procedures, time and cost to complete all formalities to build a warehouse and the quality control and permits safety mechanisms in the construction permitting system Getting electricity Procedures, time and cost to get connected to the electrical grid, the reliability of the electricity supply and the transparency of tariffs Registering property Procedures, time and cost to transfer a property and the quality of the land administration system Getting credit Movable collateral laws and credit information systems Protecting minority investors Minority shareholders’ rights in related-party transactions and in corporate governance Paying taxes Payments, time and total tax rate for a firm to comply with all tax regulations as well as post-filing processes Trading across borders Time and cost to export the product of comparative advantage and import auto parts Enforcing contracts Time and cost to resolve a commercial dispute and the quality of judicial processes Resolving insolvency Time, cost, outcome and recovery rate for a commercial insolvency and the strength of the legal framework for insolvency Labor market regulation Flexibility in employment regulation and aspects of job quality About Doing Business The Doing Business project provides objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement across 190 economies and selected cities at the subnational and regional level. The Doing Business project, launched in 2002, looks at domestic small and medium-size companies and measures the regulations applying to them through their life cycle. Doing Business captures several important dimensions of the regulatory environment as it applies to local rms. It provides quantitative indicators on regulation for starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and resolving insolvency. Doing Business also measures features of labor market regulation. Although Doing Business does not present rankings of economies on the labor market regulation indicators or include the topic in the aggregate distance to frontier score or ranking on the ease of doing business, it does present the data for these indicators. By gathering and analyzing comprehensive quantitative data to compare business regulation environments across economies and over time, Doing Business encourages economies to compete towards more e cient regulation; o ers measurable benchmarks for reform; and serves as a resource for academics, journalists, private sector researchers and others interested in the business climate of each economy. In addition, Doing Business o ers detailed subnational reports, which exhaustively cover business regulation and reform in di erent cities and regions within a nation. These reports provide data on the ease of doing business, rank each location, and recommend reforms to improve performance in each of the indicator areas. Selected cities can compare their business regulations with other cities in the economy or region and with the 190 economies that Doing Business has ranked. The rst Doing Business report, published in 2003, covered 5 indicator sets and 133 economies. This year’s report covers 11 indicator sets and 190 economies. Most indicator sets refer to a case scenario in the largest business city of each economy, except for 11 economies that have a population of more than 100 million as of 2013 (Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Russian Federation and the United States) where Doing Business, also collected data for the second largest business city. The data for these 11 economies are a population-weighted average for the 2 largest business cities. The project has bene ted from feedback from governments, academics, practitioners and reviewers. The initial goal remains: to provide an objective basis for understanding and improving the regulatory environment for business around the world. Page 2   for insolvency Doing Business Labor market 2018 regulation Sierra Leone Flexibility in employment regulation and aspects of job quality About Doing Business The Doing Business project provides objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement across 190 economies and selected cities at the subnational and regional level. The Doing Business project, launched in 2002, looks at domestic small and medium-size companies and measures the regulations applying to them through their life cycle. Doing Business captures several important dimensions of the regulatory environment as it applies to local rms. It provides quantitative indicators on regulation for starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and resolving insolvency. Doing Business also measures features of labor market regulation. Although Doing Business does not present rankings of economies on the labor market regulation indicators or include the topic in the aggregate distance to frontier score or ranking on the ease of doing business, it does present the data for these indicators. By gathering and analyzing comprehensive quantitative data to compare business regulation environments across economies and over time, Doing Business encourages economies to compete towards more e cient regulation; o ers measurable benchmarks for reform; and serves as a resource for academics, journalists, private sector researchers and others interested in the business climate of each economy. In addition, Doing Business o ers detailed subnational reports, which exhaustively cover business regulation and reform in di erent cities and regions within a nation. These reports provide data on the ease of doing business, rank each location, and recommend reforms to improve performance in each of the indicator areas. Selected cities can compare their business regulations with other cities in the economy or region and with the 190 economies that Doing Business has ranked. The rst Doing Business report, published in 2003, covered 5 indicator sets and 133 economies. This year’s report covers 11 indicator sets and 190 economies. Most indicator sets refer to a case scenario in the largest business city of each economy, except for 11 economies that have a population of more than 100 million as of 2013 (Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Russian Federation and the United States) where Doing Business, also collected data for the second largest business city. The data for these 11 economies are a population-weighted average for the 2 largest business cities. The project has bene ted from feedback from governments, academics, practitioners and reviewers. The initial goal remains: to provide an objective basis for understanding and improving the regulatory environment for business around the world. The distance to frontier (DTF) measure shows the distance of each economy to the “frontier,” which represents the best performance observed on each of the indicators across all economies in the Doing Business sample since 2005. An economy’s distance to frontier is re ected on a scale from 0 to 100, where 0 represents the lowest performance and 100 represents the frontier. The ease of doing business ranking ranges from 1 to 190. The ranking of 190 economies is determined by sorting the aggregate distance to frontier scores, rounded to two decimals. More about Doing Business (PDF, 5MB) Ease of Doing Business in Region Sub-Saharan Africa DB 2018 Rank 190 1 Sierra Leone Income Category Low income 160 Population 7,396,190 DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) GNI Per Capita (US$) 490 0 100 48.18 City Covered Freetown DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 65.15: Kenya (Rank: 80) 57.24: Ghana (Rank: 120) 50.43: Regional Average (Sub­Saharan Africa) 49.80: Guinea (Rank: 153) 48.18: Sierra Leone (Rank: 160) Page 3   41.45: Guinea­Bissau (Rank: 176) aggregate distance to frontier scores, rounded to two decimals. More Doingabout 2018 (PDF, Doing Business Business 5MB) Sierra Leone Ease of Doing Business in Region Sub-Saharan Africa DB 2018 Rank 190 1 Sierra Leone Income Category Low income 160 Population 7,396,190 DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) GNI Per Capita (US$) 490 0 100 48.18 City Covered Freetown DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 65.15: Kenya (Rank: 80) 57.24: Ghana (Rank: 120) 50.43: Regional Average (Sub­Saharan Africa) 49.80: Guinea (Rank: 153) 48.18: Sierra Leone (Rank: 160) 41.45: Guinea­Bissau (Rank: 176) Note: The distance to frontier (DTF) measure shows the distance of each economy to the “frontier,” which represents the best performance observed on each of the indicators across all economies in the Doing Business sample since 2005. An economy’s distance to frontier is re ected on a scale from 0 to 100, where 0 represents the lowest performance and 100 represents the frontier. The ease of doing business ranking ranges from 1 to 190. Rankings on Doing Business topics - Sierra Leone 1 28 55 83 81 85 82 Rank 100 109 136 159 162 159 165 163 182 178 190 Starting Dealing Getting Registering Getting Protecting Paying Trading Enforcing Resolving a with Electricity Property Credit Minority Taxes across Contracts Insolvency Business Construction Investors Borders Permits Distance to Frontier (DTF) on Doing Business topics - Sierra Leone 100 86.95 80 72.86 60 55.00 55.92 DTF 48.99 43.27 38.43 40 30.65 25.00 24.72 20 0 Starting Dealing Getting Registering Getting Protecting Paying Trading Enforcing Resolving a with Electricity Property Credit Minority Taxes across Contracts Insolvency Business Construction Change:-3.52 Change:-0.20 Change:0.00 Investors Change:0.00 Borders Change:0.00 Change:+0.08 Change:+0.47 Permits Change:0.00 Change:+5.18 Change:-2.62 Starting a Business Page 4   This topic measures the paid-in minimum capital requirement, number of procedures, time and cost for a small- to medium-sized a with Electricity Property Credit Minority Taxes across Contracts Insolvency Business Construction Change:-3.52 Change:-0.20 Change:0.00 Investors Change:0.00 Borders Change:0.00 Change:+0.08 Change:+0.47 Permits Change:0.00 Change:+5.18 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Change:-2.62 Starting a Business This topic measures the paid-in minimum capital requirement, number of procedures, time and cost for a small- to medium-sized limited liability company to start up and formally operate in economy’s largest business city. To make the data comparable across 190 economies, Doing Business uses a standardized business that is 100% domestically owned, has start-up capital equivalent to 10 times income per capita, engages in general industrial or commercial activities and employs between 10 and 50 people one month after the commencement of operations, all of whom are domestic nationals. Starting a Business considers two types of local limited liability companies that are identical in all aspects, except that one company is owned by 5 married women and the other by 5 married men. The distance to frontier score for each indicator is the average of the scores obtained for each of the component indicators. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Procedures to legally start and operate a To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions company (number) about the business and the procedures are used. It is assumed that any required information is readily available and that the entrepreneur will pay Pre-registration (for example, name verification no bribes. or reservation, notarization) Registration in economy’s largest business city The business: - Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent). If there is more than Post-registration (for example, social security one type of limited liability company in the economy, the most common registration, company seal) among domestic rms is chosen. Information on the most common form is Obtaining approval from spouse to start business obtained from incorporation lawyers or the statistical o ce. or leave home to register company - Operates in the economy’s largest business city and the entire o ce Obtaining any gender-specific permission that space is approximately 929 square meters (10,000 square feet). For 11 can impact company registration, company economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city. operations and process of getting national - Is 100% domestically owned and has ve owners, none of whom is a legal identity card entity; and has a start-up capital of 10 times income per capita and has a Time required to complete each procedure turnover of at least 100 times income per capita. (calendar days) - Performs general industrial or commercial activities, such as the production or sale of goods or services to the public. The business does Does not include time spent gathering not perform foreign trade activities and does not handle products subject information to a special tax regime, for example, liquor or tobacco. It does not use Each procedure starts on a separate day (2 heavily polluting production processes. procedures cannot start on the same day) - Leases the commercial plant or o ces and is not a proprietor of real Procedures fully completed online are recorded estate and the amount of the annual lease for the o ce space is equivalent as ½ day to 1 times income per capita. Procedure is considered completed once final - Does not qualify for investment incentives or any special bene ts. document is received - Has at least 10 and up to 50 employees one month after the commencement of operations, all of whom are domestic nationals. No prior contact with officials - Has a company deed 10 pages long. Cost required to complete each procedure (% of The owners: income per capita) - Have reached the legal age of majority. If there is no legal age of majority, Official costs only, no bribes they are assumed to be 30 years old. No professional fees unless services required by - Are sane, competent, in good health and have no criminal record. law or commonly used in practice - Are married and the marriage is monogamous and registered with the authorities. Paid-in minimum capital (% of income per capita) - Where the answer di ers according to the legal system applicable to the Funds deposited in a bank or with third party woman or man in question (as may be the case in economies where there before registration or up to 3 months after is legal plurality), the answer used will be the one that applies to the incorporation majority of the population. Standardized Company Page 5   before registration or up to 3 months after is legal plurality), the answer used will be the one that applies to the incorporation majority of the population. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Standardized Company Legal form Limited Liability Company Paid-in minimum capital requirement SLL 0 City Covered Freetown Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Procedure – Men (number) 5 7.6 4.9 1.00 (New Zealand) Time – Men (days) 11 24.0 8.5 0.50 (New Zealand) Cost – Men (% of income per capita) 36.2 49.9 3.1 0.00 (United Kingdom) Procedure – Women (number) 5 7.7 4.9 1.00 (New Zealand) Time – Women (days) 11 24.1 8.5 0.50 (New Zealand) Cost – Women (% of income per capita) 36.2 49.9 3.1 0.00 (United Kingdom) Paid-in min. capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 25.6 8.7 0.00 (113 Economies) Figure – Starting a Business in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 86.95: Sierra Leone (Rank: 83) 84.02: Ghana (Rank: 110) 83.20: Kenya (Rank: 117) 81.77: Guinea (Rank: 125) 76.82: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 63.76: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 178) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of starting a business is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for starting a business. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Figure – Starting a Business in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 30 10 25 ost (% of income per capita) 8 20 Time (days) 6 15 4 10 Page 6   starting a business. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Starting a Business in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 30 10 25 Cost (% of income per capita) 8 20 Time (days) 6 15 4 10 2 5 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 Procedures (number) * This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure. Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a di erent procedure list for men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website (http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below. Details – Starting a Business in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 Check the uniqueness of the company name and pick up a company 1 day no charge registration form Agency : Corporate A airs Commission The company name search can be conducted electronically or at the Corporate A airs Commission (CAC) o ce. Currently entrepreneurs prefer to conduct the name search in person at the CAC o ce. If done at the o ce, Form 28 is completed by the applicant providing 3 name options. Then a search is done by a sta member and the desired name availability is con rmed. The company must have a Memorandum and Articles of Association. Standard articles are available at the CAC. If the standard documents are considered insu cient, a solicitor can be consulted to prepare one. 2 Register with the Corporate A airs Commission 5 days on average SLL 250,000 Agency : Corporate A airs Commission Submission of the company's documents to the CAC o cer starts the incorporation process. The o cer examines the documents and issues a payment slip to settle incorporation fees. Registering an LLC costs SLL 250,000 (one time fee). After submission of the completed application, supporting documents and payment of fees, the company will be incorporated and registered, and be issued a Tax Identi cation Number (TIN) and National and Social Security Insurance Trust Number (NASSIT number) using the information provided to the CAC. 3 Pay the registration fees 1 day no charge Page 7   (http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Starting a Business in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 Check the uniqueness of the company name and pick up a company 1 day no charge registration form Agency : Corporate A airs Commission The company name search can be conducted electronically or at the Corporate A airs Commission (CAC) o ce. Currently entrepreneurs prefer to conduct the name search in person at the CAC o ce. If done at the o ce, Form 28 is completed by the applicant providing 3 name options. Then a search is done by a sta member and the desired name availability is con rmed. The company must have a Memorandum and Articles of Association. Standard articles are available at the CAC. If the standard documents are considered insu cient, a solicitor can be consulted to prepare one. 2 Register with the Corporate A airs Commission 5 days on average SLL 250,000 Agency : Corporate A airs Commission Submission of the company's documents to the CAC o cer starts the incorporation process. The o cer examines the documents and issues a payment slip to settle incorporation fees. Registering an LLC costs SLL 250,000 (one time fee). After submission of the completed application, supporting documents and payment of fees, the company will be incorporated and registered, and be issued a Tax Identi cation Number (TIN) and National and Social Security Insurance Trust Number (NASSIT number) using the information provided to the CAC. 3 Pay the registration fees 1 day no charge Agency : Bank The company make relevant payment by making a wire transfer. Once the CAC receives the money, it will issue the certi cate of incorporation. Entrepreneurs can also pay the fees by mobile money. 4 Request a business license from the Municipality of Freetown 2 days SLL 750,000 Agency : Municipality of Freetown Once a TIN number is assigned, the business license and registration certi cate is obtained from the desk of the Freetown City Council located at the one-stop shop within the O ce of the Administrator and Registrar General (OARG). 5 Make a company seal 2 days SLL 50,000 Agency : Sealmaker In practice, the company typically makes a formal seal and a common seal. Under Section 17 of the Companies (Amendment) Act of 2014 this is no longer legally required, however it is still frequently done in practice. For documents used outside Sierra Leone, the formal seal is used for sealing company documents. This seal is usually embossed on documents with a metal device on which the company’s name, crest, and the like are engraved. For documents to be used in Sierra Leone, an impression is made with a common seal, which is usually made in ink with a wooden (or rubber) block. Applies to women only. Page 8   Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. For documents to be used in Sierra Leone, an impression is made with a Doing common seal, Business which is 2018 usually Sierra made in ink with a wooden (or rubber) block. Leone Applies to women only. Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Dealing with Construction Permits This topic tracks the procedures, time and cost to build a warehouse—including obtaining necessary the licenses and permits, submitting all required noti cations, requesting and receiving all necessary inspections and obtaining utility connections. In addition, the Dealing with Construction Permits indicator measures the building quality control index, evaluating the quality of building regulations, the strength of quality control and safety mechanisms, liability and insurance regimes, and professional certi cation requirements. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Procedures to legally build a warehouse (number) To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions about the construction company, the warehouse project and the utility Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining connections are used. all necessary clearances, licenses, permits and certificates The construction company (BuildCo): Submitting all required notifications and - Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent) and operates in the receiving all necessary inspections economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city. Obtaining utility connections for water and - Is 100% domestically and privately owned; has ve owners, none of whom sewerage is a legal entity. Has a licensed architect and a licensed engineer, both Registering and selling the warehouse after its registered with the local association of architects or engineers. BuildCo is completion not assumed to have any other employees who are technical or licensed Time required to complete each procedure experts, such as geological or topographical experts. (calendar days) - Owns the land on which the warehouse will be built and will sell the warehouse upon its completion. Does not include time spent gathering information The warehouse: Each procedure starts on a separate day— - Will be used for general storage activities, such as storage of books or though procedures that can be fully completed stationery. online are an exception to this rule - Will have two stories, both above ground, with a total constructed area of Procedure is considered completed once final approximately 1,300.6 square meters (14,000 square feet). Each oor will document is received be 3 meters (9 feet, 10 inches) high and will be located on a land plot of No prior contact with officials approximately 929 square meters (10,000 square feet) that is 100% owned by BuildCo, and the warehouse is valued at 50 times income per capita. Cost required to complete each procedure (% of - Will have complete architectural and technical plans prepared by a warehouse value) licensed architect. If preparation of the plans requires such steps as Official costs only, no bribes obtaining further documentation or getting prior approvals from external agencies, these are counted as procedures. Building quality control index (0-15) - Will take 30 weeks to construct (excluding all delays due to administrative Sum of the scores of six component indices: and regulatory requirements). Quality of building regulations (0-2) The water and sewerage connections: Quality control before construction (0-1) - Will be 150 meters (492 feet) from the existing water source and sewer Quality control during construction (0-3) tap. If there is no water delivery infrastructure in the economy, a borehole Quality control after construction (0-3) will be dug. If there is no sewerage infrastructure, a septic tank in the smallest size available will be installed or built. Liability and insurance regimes (0-2) - Will have an average water use of 662 liters (175 gallons) a day and an Professional certifications (0-4) average wastewater ow of 568 liters (150 gallons) a day. Will have a peak water use of 1,325 liters (350 gallons) a day and a peak wastewater ow of 1,136 liters (300 gallons) a day. - Will have a constant level of water demand and wastewater ow throughout the year; will be 1 inch in diameter for the water connection and 4 inches in diameter for the sewerage connection. Page 9   Applies to women only. Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Dealing with Construction Permits This topic tracks the procedures, time and cost to build a warehouse—including obtaining necessary the licenses and permits, submitting all required noti cations, requesting and receiving all necessary inspections and obtaining utility connections. In addition, the Dealing with Construction Permits indicator measures the building quality control index, evaluating the quality of building regulations, the strength of quality control and safety mechanisms, liability and insurance regimes, and professional certi cation requirements. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Procedures to legally build a warehouse (number) To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions about the construction company, the warehouse project and the utility Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining connections are used. all necessary clearances, licenses, permits and certificates The construction company (BuildCo): Submitting all required notifications and - Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent) and operates in the receiving all necessary inspections economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city. Obtaining utility connections for water and - Is 100% domestically and privately owned; has ve owners, none of whom sewerage is a legal entity. Has a licensed architect and a licensed engineer, both Registering and selling the warehouse after its registered with the local association of architects or engineers. BuildCo is completion not assumed to have any other employees who are technical or licensed Time required to complete each procedure experts, such as geological or topographical experts. (calendar days) - Owns the land on which the warehouse will be built and will sell the warehouse upon its completion. Does not include time spent gathering information The warehouse: Each procedure starts on a separate day— - Will be used for general storage activities, such as storage of books or though procedures that can be fully completed stationery. online are an exception to this rule - Will have two stories, both above ground, with a total constructed area of Procedure is considered completed once final approximately 1,300.6 square meters (14,000 square feet). Each oor will document is received be 3 meters (9 feet, 10 inches) high and will be located on a land plot of No prior contact with officials approximately 929 square meters (10,000 square feet) that is 100% owned by BuildCo, and the warehouse is valued at 50 times income per capita. Cost required to complete each procedure (% of - Will have complete architectural and technical plans prepared by a warehouse value) licensed architect. If preparation of the plans requires such steps as Official costs only, no bribes obtaining further documentation or getting prior approvals from external agencies, these are counted as procedures. Building quality control index (0-15) - Will take 30 weeks to construct (excluding all delays due to administrative Sum of the scores of six component indices: and regulatory requirements). Quality of building regulations (0-2) The water and sewerage connections: Quality control before construction (0-1) - Will be 150 meters (492 feet) from the existing water source and sewer Quality control during construction (0-3) tap. If there is no water delivery infrastructure in the economy, a borehole Quality control after construction (0-3) will be dug. If there is no sewerage infrastructure, a septic tank in the smallest size available will be installed or built. Liability and insurance regimes (0-2) - Will have an average water use of 662 liters (175 gallons) a day and an Professional certifications (0-4) average wastewater ow of 568 liters (150 gallons) a day. Will have a peak water use of 1,325 liters (350 gallons) a day and a peak wastewater ow of 1,136 liters (300 gallons) a day. - Will have a constant level of water demand and wastewater ow throughout the year; will be 1 inch in diameter for the water connection and 4 inches in diameter for the sewerage connection. Standardized Warehouse Page 10   and 4 inches in diameter for the sewerage connection. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Standardized Warehouse Estimated value of warehouse SLL 145,028,552.50 City Covered Freetown Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Procedures (number) 17 14.8 12.5 7.00 (Denmark) Time (days) 182 147.5 154.6 27.5 (Korea, Rep.) Cost (% of warehouse value) 22.8 9.9 1.6 0.10 (5 Economies) Building quality control index (0-15) 7.0 8.0 11.4 15.00 (3 Economies) Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 69.92: Guinea (Rank: 75) 63.16: Kenya (Rank: 124) 61.90: Ghana (Rank: 131) 56.91: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 44.40: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 176) 38.43: Sierra Leone (Rank: 182) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of dealing with construction permits is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for dealing with construction permits. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 180 25 160 20 Cost (% of warehouse value) 140 120 Time (days) 15 100 80 10 60 40 5 20 0 0 1 2 3 *4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 * 15 16 17 Procedures (number) * This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure. Page 11   component indicators. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 180 25 160 20 Cost (% of warehouse value) 140 120 Time (days) 15 100 80 10 60 40 5 20 0 0 1 2 3 *4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 * 15 16 17 Procedures (number) * This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure. Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a di erent procedure list for men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website (http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below. Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality 14 12.0 12 10 9.0 9.0 Index score 8.0 8 7.0 6.5 6 4 2 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 Hire a licensed surveyor to visit the property and prepare the survey 20 days SLL 1,000,000 plan Agency : Private Surveyor For a private property, BuildCo must hire a private licensed surveyor who will visit the property in order to prepare the survey plan. On average, it costs around SLL 1 million for the services of a private surveyor, which includes the cost of submitting the survey plan to the Director of Surveys and Lands. 2 Licensed surveyor submits the survey plan to the Ministry of Lands, 1 day no charge Country Planning and the Environment Agency : Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment Page 12   Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 Hire a licensed surveyor to visit the property and prepare the survey 20 days SLL 1,000,000 plan Agency : Private Surveyor For a private property, BuildCo must hire a private licensed surveyor who will visit the property in order to prepare the survey plan. On average, it costs around SLL 1 million for the services of a private surveyor, which includes the cost of submitting the survey plan to the Director of Surveys and Lands. 2 Licensed surveyor submits the survey plan to the Ministry of Lands, 1 day no charge Country Planning and the Environment Agency : Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment In accordance with Section 15 of the Surveys Act Cap 256 of the Laws of Sierra Leone (as amended by section 2 of Act No 14 of the Laws of Sierra Leone 1060 ), the licensed surveyor must submit the survey plan to the Ministry of Lands on behalf of the client. 3 Obtain results of soil test report 30 days USD 4,750 Agency : Private Firm Based on Article 22 section 2 of the Freetown Improvement Law of January 1, 1960, a soil test is required so that all walls of a building rest on solid rock. 4 Receive countersignature of the Director of Surveys and Lands on the 14 days no charge survey plan of the property Agency : Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment Section 2 of the Survey (Amendment) Act, 1950, mandates that each survey plan must be countersigned by the Director of Surveys and Lands. 5 Register the survey plan with the Land Registry 1 day SLL 10,000 Agency : Land Registry One copy of the survey plan is registered with the Land Registry. The Registry will verify the records to ensure that there is not multiple claims to the land. 6 Submit the building permit application to the O ce of the Chief 1 day no charge Building Inspector (OBI) Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure The issuance of the building permits and building inspection functions have been transferred from the Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment to the Ministry of Works, Housing and Infrastructure. The supervisors at the Ministry Works, Housing and Infrastructure will check all the documents and the plans and will assess the building fees. A nal review is conducted by the Chief Building Inspector. The law provides the Ministry one month to issue the building permit. The Ministry will conduct its own search on whether the owner of the land is accurate. Two sets of the following documents should be submitted at this stage: • Land survey plan signed by the Director of Surveys and Lands • Plan of the building 1/8 scale • Floor plan Page 13   One copy of the survey plan is registered with the Land Registry. The Registry Doing will verify the Business to ensure recordsSierra 2018 that there is not multiple claims to the land. Leone 6 Submit the building permit application to the O ce of the Chief 1 day no charge Building Inspector (OBI) Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure The issuance of the building permits and building inspection functions have been transferred from the Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment to the Ministry of Works, Housing and Infrastructure. The supervisors at the Ministry Works, Housing and Infrastructure will check all the documents and the plans and will assess the building fees. A nal review is conducted by the Chief Building Inspector. The law provides the Ministry one month to issue the building permit. The Ministry will conduct its own search on whether the owner of the land is accurate. Two sets of the following documents should be submitted at this stage: • Land survey plan signed by the Director of Surveys and Lands • Plan of the building 1/8 scale • Floor plan • Section plan • Elevation The following documents are also submitted for a building permit: • Design plans for the structure (in this case, the warehouse) • Land tax payment 7 Receive inspection from the Ward Building Inspector to verify the land 1 day no charge survey Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure The Ward Building Inspector conducts an inspection of the topography of the land and accessibility of the land via a road. They check that the land is free of multiple claims and that it complies with the survey plan. The Inspector does not check for water and electricity connections. 8 Receive signed certi cate and pay fees at the NRA desk 4 days SLL 2,970,000 Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure The Ministry of Works assesses and calculates the fees that have to be paid by BuildCo. BuildCo pays the fees at the National Revenue Authority (NRA). Upon payment, a receipt is obtained as proof of payment. 9 Obtain building permit 14 days no charge Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure 10 File a notice of commencement of construction 1 day no charge Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure BuildCo must le a notice of commencement of construction to inform the Chief Inspection O cer and his inspectors. The notice must be stamped and must include a tentative schedule of the di erent stages of construction. 11 Receive inspection of completion of structure 1 day no charge Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure Previously construction companies would be subject to an inspection from the municipal ward at least once or twice per week. Although the regulations provided for phased inspections after each stage of construction, they were never enforced. Starting in 2007 the Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and Page 14   Environment began an active campaign to streamline its work and provide Chief Inspection O cer and his inspectors. The notice must be stamped and Doing must include Business a tentative 2018 schedule Sierra Leoneof the di erent stages of construction. 11 Receive inspection of completion of structure 1 day no charge Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure Previously construction companies would be subject to an inspection from the municipal ward at least once or twice per week. Although the regulations provided for phased inspections after each stage of construction, they were never enforced. Starting in 2007 the Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and Environment began an active campaign to streamline its work and provide better services. It recruited a new cadre of professional inspectors and began enforcing the applicable rules and regulations. Now inspections are done only at certain stages of construction, most importantly: structure works and roof works. The schedule of inspections is now issued together with the building permit. There is no need to request inspections and once the inspectors visit the side, they do not interrupt the works. BuildCo must post the inspections schedule on the construction site, which is then signed by the inspectors after every inspection. 12 Receive inspection when roof has been covered 1 day no charge Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure 13 File a notice of completion with the Ministry of Works and request nal 14 days no charge inspection Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure BuildCo must notify the Ministry of Works at least one week prior to completion of the works. It then takes the Ministry between 1 -- 2 weeks to visit the site and conduct a nal inspection. 14 Receive nal inspection from Ministry of Works 1 day no charge Agency : Ministry of Works, Housing & Infrastructure Purchase and submit application form for water connection to Guma 1 day SLL 10,000 15 Valley Agency : Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC) BuildCo purchases and completes the application form and submits it to Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC). 16 Receive inspection from water authorities 1 day no charge Agency : Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC) GVWC will conduct a survey to assess the feasibility of a connection and prepares a cost estimate of materials and work. It takes about a month before the inspection takes place. 17 Pay and connect to water 90 days SLL 900,000 Agency : Guma Valley Water Company (GVWC) Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Building quality control index (0-15) 7.0 Page 15   Quality of building regulations index (0-2) 1.0 Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Building quality control index (0-15) 7.0 Quality of building regulations index (0-2) 1.0 How accessible are building laws and regulations in your economy? (0-1) They must be 0.0 purchased; Not easily accessible. Which requirements for obtaining a building permit are clearly speci ed in the building List of required 1.0 regulations or on any accessible website, brochure or pamphlet? (0-1) documents; Fees to be paid; Required preapprovals. Quality control before construction index (0-1) 1.0 Which third-party entities are required by law to verify that the building plans are in Licensed 1.0 compliance with existing building regulations? (0-1) architect. Quality control during construction index (0-3) 2.0 What types of inspections (if any) are required by law to be carried out during Inspections at 1.0 construction? (0-2) various phases. Do legally mandated inspections occur in practice during construction? (0-1) Mandatory 1.0 inspections are always done in practice. Quality control after construction index (0-3) 3.0 Is there a nal inspection required by law to verify that the building was built in Yes, nal 2.0 accordance with the approved plans and regulations? (0-2) inspection is done by government agency. Do legally mandated nal inspections occur in practice? (0-1) Final inspection 1.0 always occurs in practice. Liability and insurance regimes index (0-2) 0.0 Which parties (if any) are held liable by law for structural aws or problems in the No party is held 0.0 building once it is in use (Latent Defect Liability or Decennial Liability)? (0-1) liable under the law. Which parties (if any) are required by law to obtain an insurance policy to cover No party is 0.0 possible structural aws or problems in the building once it is in use (Latent Defect required by law Liability Insurance or Decennial Insurance)? (0-1) to obtain insurance . Professional certi cations index (0-4) 0.0 What are the quali cation requirements for the professional responsible for verifying University 0.0 that the architectural plans or drawings are in compliance with existing building degree in Page 16   Professional Doing cations Sierra certi 2018 Business index (0-4) Leone 0.0 What are the quali cation requirements for the professional responsible for verifying University 0.0 that the architectural plans or drawings are in compliance with existing building degree in regulations? (0-2) architecture or engineering. What are the quali cation requirements for the professional who supervises the University 0.0 construction on the ground? (0-2) degree in engineering, construction or construction management. Getting Electricity This topic measures the procedures, time and cost required for a business to obtain a permanent electricity connection for a newly constructed warehouse. Additionally, the reliability of supply and transparency of tari s index measures reliability of supply, transparency of tari s and the price of electricity. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Procedures to obtain an electricity connection To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions are (number) used. Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining The warehouse: all necessary clearances and permits - Is owned by a local entrepreneur and is used for storage of goods. Completing all required notifications and - Is located in the economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the receiving all necessary inspections data are also collected for the second largest business city. Obtaining external installation works and possibly - Is located in an area where similar warehouses are typically located and is purchasing material for these works in an area with no physical constraints. For example, the property is not Concluding any necessary supply contract and near a railway. obtaining final supply - Is a new construction and is being connected to electricity for the rst time. Time required to complete each procedure - Has two stories with a total surface area of approximately 1,300.6 square (calendar days) meters (14,000 square feet). The plot of land on which it is built is 929 Is at least 1 calendar day square meters (10,000 square feet). Each procedure starts on a separate day Does not include time spent gathering The electricity connection: information - Is a permanent one with a three-phase, four-wire Y connection with a subscribed capacity of 140-kilo-volt-ampere (kVA) with a power factor of 1, Reflects the time spent in practice, with little when 1 kVA = 1 kilowatt (kW). follow-up and no prior contact with officials - Has a length of 150 meters. The connection is to either the low- or Cost required to complete each procedure (% of medium-voltage distribution network and is either overhead or income per capita) underground, whichever is more common in the area where the warehouse is located and requires works that involve the crossing of a 10- Official costs only, no bribes meter road (such as by excavation or overhead lines) but are all carried out Value added tax excluded on public land. There is no crossing of other owners’ private property The reliability of supply and transparency of because the warehouse has access to a road. tari s index (0-8) - Does not require work to install the internal wiring of the warehouse. This has already been completed up to and including the customer’s service Duration and frequency of power outages (0–3) panel or switchboard and the meter base. Tools to monitor power outages (0–1) Tools to restore power supply (0–1) The monthly consumption: Regulatory monitoring of utilities’ performance - It is assumed that the warehouse operates 30 days a month from 9:00 (0–1) a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (8 hours a day), with equipment utilized at 80% of capacity Page 17   on average and that there are no electricity cuts (assumed for simplicity Financial deterrents limiting outages (0–1) construction management. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Getting Electricity This topic measures the procedures, time and cost required for a business to obtain a permanent electricity connection for a newly constructed warehouse. Additionally, the reliability of supply and transparency of tari s index measures reliability of supply, transparency of tari s and the price of electricity. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Procedures to obtain an electricity connection To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions are (number) used. Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining The warehouse: all necessary clearances and permits - Is owned by a local entrepreneur and is used for storage of goods. Completing all required notifications and - Is located in the economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the receiving all necessary inspections data are also collected for the second largest business city. Obtaining external installation works and possibly - Is located in an area where similar warehouses are typically located and is purchasing material for these works in an area with no physical constraints. For example, the property is not Concluding any necessary supply contract and near a railway. obtaining final supply - Is a new construction and is being connected to electricity for the rst time. Time required to complete each procedure - Has two stories with a total surface area of approximately 1,300.6 square (calendar days) meters (14,000 square feet). The plot of land on which it is built is 929 Is at least 1 calendar day square meters (10,000 square feet). Each procedure starts on a separate day Does not include time spent gathering The electricity connection: information - Is a permanent one with a three-phase, four-wire Y connection with a subscribed capacity of 140-kilo-volt-ampere (kVA) with a power factor of 1, Reflects the time spent in practice, with little when 1 kVA = 1 kilowatt (kW). follow-up and no prior contact with officials - Has a length of 150 meters. The connection is to either the low- or Cost required to complete each procedure (% of medium-voltage distribution network and is either overhead or income per capita) underground, whichever is more common in the area where the warehouse is located and requires works that involve the crossing of a 10- Official costs only, no bribes meter road (such as by excavation or overhead lines) but are all carried out Value added tax excluded on public land. There is no crossing of other owners’ private property The reliability of supply and transparency of because the warehouse has access to a road. tari s index (0-8) - Does not require work to install the internal wiring of the warehouse. This has already been completed up to and including the customer’s service Duration and frequency of power outages (0–3) panel or switchboard and the meter base. Tools to monitor power outages (0–1) Tools to restore power supply (0–1) The monthly consumption: Regulatory monitoring of utilities’ performance - It is assumed that the warehouse operates 30 days a month from 9:00 (0–1) a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (8 hours a day), with equipment utilized at 80% of capacity Financial deterrents limiting outages (0–1) on average and that there are no electricity cuts (assumed for simplicity reasons) and the monthly energy consumption is 26,880 kilowatt-hours Transparency and accessibility of tariffs (0–1) (kWh); hourly consumption is 112 kWh. Price of electricity (cents per kilowatt-hour)* - If multiple electricity suppliers exist, the warehouse is served by the Price based on monthly bill for commercial cheapest supplier. warehouse in case study - Tari s e ective in March of the current year are used for calculation of the price of electricity for the warehouse. Although March has 31 days, for * N o t e : Doing Business m e a s u r e s t h e p r i c e o f calculation purposes only 30 days are used. electricity, but it is not included in the distance to frontier score nor the ranking on the ease of getting electricity. Page 18   Standardized Connection frontier score nor the ranking on the ease of getting electricity. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Standardized Connection Price of electricity (US cents per kWh) 24.1 Name of utility Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) City Covered Freetown Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Procedures (number) 8 5.3 4.7 2 (United Arab Emirates) Time (days) 82 115.3 79.1 10 (United Arab Emirates) Cost (% of income per capita) 5365.7 3737.0 63.0 0.00 (Japan) Reliability of supply and transparency of tariff 0 0.9 7.4 8.00 (28 Economies) index (0-8) Figure – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 76.68: Kenya (Rank: 71) 56.81: Ghana (Rank: 136) 47.88: Guinea (Rank: 158) 45.91: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 30.65: Sierra Leone (Rank: 178) 29.01: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 180) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of getting electricity is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for getting electricity. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Figure – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 6000 80 70 5000 Cost (% of income per capita) 60 4000 50 Time (days) 40 3000 30 2000 20 1000 10 Page 19   getting electricity. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 6000 80 70 5000 Cost (% of income per capita) 60 4000 50 Time (days) 40 3000 30 2000 20 1000 10 0 0 1 *2 3 4 5 6 *7 8 Procedures (number) * This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure. Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a di erent procedure list for men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website (http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below. Figure – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality 4.5 4 4 3.5 3 Index score 2.5 2 1.5 0.9 1 0.5 0 0 0 0 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 Submit application to EDSA and await estimate 14 calendar days SLL 863,000 Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) Customer submits application form including supporting documents (proof of ownership, photo ID), and the application is stamped by the licensed electrical contractor. The form is then sent by the Commercial Department to the Transmission and Distribution Section in EDSA, who draw up the estimate. The estimate will depend on the type of supply needed. The quotation then goes to the Audit Department for veri cation who ensure that costs are standard. They then sent it back to the T&D Section who will prepare the nal estimate letter and send it to the customer. Page 20   2 Receive site inspection by EDSA 2 calendar days SLL 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 Submit application to EDSA and await estimate 14 calendar days SLL 863,000 Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) Customer submits application form including supporting documents (proof of ownership, photo ID), and the application is stamped by the licensed electrical contractor. The form is then sent by the Commercial Department to the Transmission and Distribution Section in EDSA, who draw up the estimate. The estimate will depend on the type of supply needed. The quotation then goes to the Audit Department for veri cation who ensure that costs are standard. They then sent it back to the T&D Section who will prepare the nal estimate letter and send it to the customer. 2 Receive site inspection by EDSA 2 calendar days SLL 0 Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) The inspector will go to the site to inspect if information provided by the applicant is correct and to determine the type of supply that will be needed. He will also determine the right tari that will apply. 3 Purchase materials and request inspection by EDSA 14 calendar days SLL 152,654,720.6 Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) When the customer receives the estimate, he also receives a list of materials that he needs to purchase in order to start the work. EDSA is not able to provide the materials, for that reason applicant needs to purchase them on his own in any specialized store. (note: there is not a particular store) . 4 Receive inspection of materials by EDSA 7 calendar days SLL 0 Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) EDSA conducts an inspection of the material to con rm that they of standard quality. The materials bought by the customer are then used by EDSA for external connection works. 5 Receive job number, open customer account and pay supply connection 1 calendar day 705500 fee Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) The Job Number is presented in the Customer Service section, where EDSA prepares a New Customer Account. The applicant pays customer accounts deposit. 6 Await completion of external works by EDSA 28 calendar days SLL 1,414,000 Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) The utility conducts external connection works 7 Receive internal wiring inspection by EDSA 1 calendar day SLL 0 Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) Before starting external connection, utility conducts internal wiring inspection. After this inspection, EDSA will start the work in order to bring electricity to the warehouse. 8 Receive external inspection, meter installation and electricity ow from 18 calendar days SLL 0 EDSA Page 21   Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) inspection. After this inspection, EDSA will start the work in order to bring Doing electricity Business the warehouse. to2018 Sierra Leone 8 Receive external inspection, meter installation and electricity ow from 18 calendar days SLL 0 EDSA Agency : Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) Regarding the internal wiring of the warehouse, it is the responsibility of the applicant to set up the internal wiring of the warehouse. The applicant should hire a certi ed electrician (see survey) in order to set up the internal wiring and certify that the internal wiring is in compliance with EDSA standards. (Applicant’s form is again sent back to Meter and Test section where based on the report of inspectors, a suitable meter is selected and tested. Meter is taken to site and installed. Transmission line bought by applicant is connected to the power line, electricity starts owing. It takes EDSA Meter section days to select a suitable meter and have it thoroughly tested before installation is done. Actual installation work at the site lasts for only a few hours. Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Details – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Reliability of supply and transparency of tari index (0-8) 0 Total duration and frequency of outages per customer a year (0-3) 0 System average interruption duration index (SAIDI) .. System average interruption frequency index (SAIFI) .. What is the minimum outage time (in minutes) that the utility considers for the calculation of SAIDI/SAIFI N/A Mechanisms for monitoring outages (0-1) 0 Does the distribution utility use automated tools to monitor outages? No Mechanisms for restoring service (0-1) 0 Does the distribution utility use automated tools to restore service? No Regulatory monitoring (0-1) 0 Does a regulator—that is, an entity separate from the utility—monitor the utility’s performance on No reliability of supply? Financial deterrents aimed at limiting outages (0-1) 0 Does the utility either pay compensation to customers or face nes by the regulator (or both) if outages No exceed a certain cap? Communication of tari s and tari changes (0-1) 1 Are e ective tari s available online? Yes Link to the website, if available online http://www.edsa.sl/i ndex.php/customer- services/billing- payments Page 22   Are customers noti ed of a change in tari ahead of the billing cycle? Yes Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Getting Electricity in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Reliability of supply and transparency of tari index (0-8) 0 Total duration and frequency of outages per customer a year (0-3) 0 System average interruption duration index (SAIDI) .. System average interruption frequency index (SAIFI) .. What is the minimum outage time (in minutes) that the utility considers for the calculation of SAIDI/SAIFI N/A Mechanisms for monitoring outages (0-1) 0 Does the distribution utility use automated tools to monitor outages? No Mechanisms for restoring service (0-1) 0 Does the distribution utility use automated tools to restore service? No Regulatory monitoring (0-1) 0 Does a regulator—that is, an entity separate from the utility—monitor the utility’s performance on No reliability of supply? Financial deterrents aimed at limiting outages (0-1) 0 Does the utility either pay compensation to customers or face nes by the regulator (or both) if outages No exceed a certain cap? Communication of tari s and tari changes (0-1) 1 Are e ective tari s available online? Yes Link to the website, if available online http://www.edsa.sl/i ndex.php/customer- services/billing- payments Are customers noti ed of a change in tari ahead of the billing cycle? Yes Note: If the duration and frequency of outages is 100 or less, the economy is eligible to score on the Reliability of supply and transparency of tari index. If the duration and frequency of outages is not available, or is over 100, the economy is not eligible to score on the index. If the minimum outage time considered for SAIDI/SAIFI is over 5 minutes, the economy is not eligible to score on the index. Registering Property This topic examines the steps, time and cost involved in registering property, assuming a standardized case of an entrepreneur who wants to purchase land and a building that is already registered and free of title dispute. In addition, the topic also measures the quality of the land administration system in each economy. The quality of land administration index has ve dimensions: reliability of infrastructure, transparency of information, geographic coverage, land dispute resolution, and equal access to property rights. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. Page 23   If the minimum outage time considered for SAIDI/SAIFI is over 5 minutes, the economy is not eligible to score on the index. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Registering Property This topic examines the steps, time and cost involved in registering property, assuming a standardized case of an entrepreneur who wants to purchase land and a building that is already registered and free of title dispute. In addition, the topic also measures the quality of the land administration system in each economy. The quality of land administration index has ve dimensions: reliability of infrastructure, transparency of information, geographic coverage, land dispute resolution, and equal access to property rights. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Procedures to legally transfer title on immovable To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions property (number) about the parties to the transaction, the property and the procedures are used. Preregistration procedures (for example, checking for liens, notarizing sales agreement, The parties (buyer and seller): paying property transfer taxes) - Are limited liability companies (or the legal equivalent). Registration procedures in the economy's largest - Are located in the periurban area of the economy’s largest business city. business citya. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second largest Postregistration procedures (for example, filling business city. title with municipality) - Are 100% domestically and privately owned. Time required to complete each procedure - Have 50 employees each, all of whom are nationals. (calendar days) - Perform general commercial activities. Does not include time spent gathering information The property (fully owned by the seller): - Has a value of 50 times income per capita, which equals the sale price. Each procedure starts on a separate day - though - Is fully owned by the seller. procedures that can be fully completed online - Has no mortgages attached and has been under the same ownership for are an exception to this rule the past 10 years. Procedure is considered completed once final - Is registered in the land registry or cadastre, or both, and is free of title document is received disputes. No prior contact with officials - Is located in a periurban commercial zone, and no rezoning is required. Cost required to complete each procedure (% of - Consists of land and a building. The land area is 557.4 square meters property value) (6,000 square feet). A two-story warehouse of 929 square meters (10,000 square feet) is located on the land. The warehouse is 10 years old, is in Official costs only (such as administrative fees, good condition, has no heating system and complies with all safety duties and taxes). standards, building codes and legal requirements. The property, Value Added Tax, Capital Gains Tax and illicit consisting of land and building, will be transferred in its entirety. payments are excluded - Will not be subject to renovations or additional construction following the Quality of land administration index (0-30) purchase. - Has no trees, natural water sources, natural reserves or historical Reliability of infrastructure index (0-8) monuments of any kind. Transparency of information index (0–6) - Will not be used for special purposes, and no special permits, such as for Geographic coverage index (0–8) residential use, industrial plants, waste storage or certain types of agricultural activities, are required. Land dispute resolution index (0–8) - Has no occupants, and no other party holds a legal interest in it. Equal access to property rights index (-2–0) Standard Property Transfer Property value SLL 145,028,552.50 City Covered Freetown Page 24   Sub-Saharan OECD high Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Standard Property Transfer Property value SLL 145,028,552.50 City Covered Freetown Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Procedures (number) 7 6.2 4.6 1.00 (4 Economies) Time (days) 56 59.3 22.3 1.00 (3 Economies) Cost (% of property value) 10.8 7.8 4.2 0.00 (5 Economies) Quality of the land administration index (0-30) 6.5 8.6 22.7 29.00 (Singapore) Figure – Registering Property in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 55.50: Ghana (Rank: 119) 54.49: Kenya (Rank: 125) 54.41: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 126) 51.71: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 50.07: Guinea (Rank: 143) 43.27: Sierra Leone (Rank: 165) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of registering property is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for registering property. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Figure – Registering Property in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 12 50 10 Cost (% of property value) 40 8 Time (days) 30 6 20 4 10 2 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Procedures (number) * This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure. Page 25   Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a di erent procedure list for registering property. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Registering Property in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost Time Cost 12 50 10 Cost (% of property value) 40 8 Time (days) 30 6 20 4 10 2 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Procedures (number) * This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure. Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a di erent procedure list for men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website (http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below. Figure – Registering Property in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality 18 16.0 16 14 12 Index score 10 8.6 8.0 8 6.5 6.5 6 4 3.0 2 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Registering Property in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 The buyer veri es the seller’s title to the property at the Property 5 days SLL 20,000 Registry Agency : Land Registry, O ce of the Administrator and Registrar General With a copy of the abstract of title the buyer then conducts a search in the property register to verify the seller’s title to the property as well as information regarding the encumbrances on the property. 2 A licensed surveyor visits the property and prepares the survey plan 20 days SLL 1 million Agency : Licensed surveyor A private, licensed surveyor visits the property in order to prepare the survey plan. On average, it is expected to pay around SLL 1.5 million for the Page 26   Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Registering Property in Sierra Leone – Procedure, Time and Cost No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs 1 The buyer veri es the seller’s title to the property at the Property 5 days SLL 20,000 Registry Agency : Land Registry, O ce of the Administrator and Registrar General With a copy of the abstract of title the buyer then conducts a search in the property register to verify the seller’s title to the property as well as information regarding the encumbrances on the property. 2 A licensed surveyor visits the property and prepares the survey plan 20 days SLL 1 million Agency : Licensed surveyor A private, licensed surveyor visits the property in order to prepare the survey plan. On average, it is expected to pay around SLL 1.5 million for the services of a private surveyor, which includes as well the cost of submitting the survey plan to the Director of Surveys and Lands • 1,000/00 for one town lot, • 10,000/00 for 1 acre • 500/00 for change of name in a survey plan 3 A licensed surveyor submit the survey plan to the Ministry of Lands and 1 day no cost Housing Agency : Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment The buyer should obtain a survey plan of the property duly signed by the Director of Surveys and Lands. 4 Countersignature of the Director of Surveys and Lands on the survey 2 weeks no cost plan of the property Agency : Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment In accordance to Section 15 of the Survey Act, CAP 128 of the Laws of Sierra Leone provides for the submission of every site plan to be inserted in a document to be registered. Section 2 of the Survey (Amendment) Act, 1950, mandates that each such plan should be countersigned by the Director of Surveys and Lands. In accordance to Section 15 of the Surveys Act Cap 256 of the Laws of Sierra Leone (as amended by section 2 of Act No 14 of the Laws of Sierra Leone 1960 ), the licensed surveyor will submit the survey plan to the lands ministry on behalf of the buyer. The countersigned survey will be returned to the surveyor who submitted the survey plan to the Director of Surveys and Lands. 5 Preparation and execution of the sale purchase agreement by a hired 7 days 10% of purchase lawyer price Agency : Lawyer's o ce Registration of Instruments Act, Cap 256 of the Laws of Sierra Leone and the Stamp Duty Act, Cap 274 stipulate that all registrable instruments have to be prepared and deposited by a legal practitioner. 6 Obtain a tax clearance certi cate from the National Revenue Authority 2 days SLL 5,000 + 30% Agency : National Revenue Authority capital gains tax (not included in the The tax clearance is applied for after the deed document is prepared . It is calculation) submitted to the NRA on application for tax clearance, and payment of the assessed tax, the deed is stamped on the margin of the front page, and a receipt issued, which is attached to the document. The seller of the property pays 30% of the pro t derived from the sale as capital gains tax, and the above certi cate is issued. Please note that Capital gains tax is not included Page 27   Stamp Duty Act, Cap 274 stipulate that all registrable instruments have to be Doing prepared Business and deposited 2018 legal practitioner. by aLeone Sierra 6 Obtain a tax clearance certi cate from the National Revenue Authority 2 days SLL 5,000 + 30% Agency : National Revenue Authority capital gains tax (not included in the The tax clearance is applied for after the deed document is prepared . It is calculation) submitted to the NRA on application for tax clearance, and payment of the assessed tax, the deed is stamped on the margin of the front page, and a receipt issued, which is attached to the document. The seller of the property pays 30% of the pro t derived from the sale as capital gains tax, and the above certi cate is issued. Please note that Capital gains tax is not included in the calculation. 7 Registration of the transfer of instrument by the Registrar General 7 days 0.1% for the stamp Agency : Land Registry, O ce of the Administrator and Registrar General duty + SLL 50,000 for the fast track The transfer of title is registered by the Registrar General. Companies are procedure registered at the Stamp duty, registration fee, Property fee and local taxes (estimates based on acreage) are paid at this time. The registration fee is a xed fee. Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Details – Registering Property in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Quality of the land administration index (0-30) 6.5 Reliability of infrastructure index (0-8) 0.0 What is the institution in charge of immovable property registration? O ce of the Administrator and Registrar General In what format are the majority of title or deed records kept in the largest business city Paper 0.0 —in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)? Is there an electronic database for checking for encumbrances (liens, mortgages, No 0.0 restrictions and the like)? Institution in charge of the plans showing legal boundaries in the largest business city: The Surveys and Lands Department at the Ministry of Lands, Country Planning, and the Environment. In what format are the majority of maps of land plots kept in the largest business city— Paper 0.0 in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)? Is there an electronic database for recording boundaries, checking plans and providing No 0.0 cadastral information (geographic information system)? Is the information recorded by the immovable property registration agency and the Separate 0.0 cadastral or mapping agency kept in a single database, in di erent but linked databases databases or in separate databases? Do the immovable property registration agency and cadastral or mapping agency use No 0.0 Page 28   Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Registering Property in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Quality of the land administration index (0-30) 6.5 Reliability of infrastructure index (0-8) 0.0 What is the institution in charge of immovable property registration? O ce of the Administrator and Registrar General In what format are the majority of title or deed records kept in the largest business city Paper 0.0 —in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)? Is there an electronic database for checking for encumbrances (liens, mortgages, No 0.0 restrictions and the like)? Institution in charge of the plans showing legal boundaries in the largest business city: The Surveys and Lands Department at the Ministry of Lands, Country Planning, and the Environment. In what format are the majority of maps of land plots kept in the largest business city— Paper 0.0 in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)? Is there an electronic database for recording boundaries, checking plans and providing No 0.0 cadastral information (geographic information system)? Is the information recorded by the immovable property registration agency and the Separate 0.0 cadastral or mapping agency kept in a single database, in di erent but linked databases databases or in separate databases? Do the immovable property registration agency and cadastral or mapping agency use No 0.0 the same identi cation number for properties? Transparency of information index (0–6) 3.0 Who is able to obtain information on land ownership at the agency in charge of Anyone who 1.0 immovable property registration in the largest business city? pays the o cial fee Is the list of documents that are required to complete any type of property transaction Yes, online 0.5 made publicly available–and if so, how? Link for online access: http://www.oarg. gov.sl/Land%20R egistry.html Is the applicable fee schedule for any property transaction at the agency in charge of Yes, online 0.5 immovable property registration in the largest business city made publicly available– and if so, how? Link for online access: http://www.oarg. gov.sl/Land%20R Page 29   egistry.html immovable property registration in the largest business city made publicly available– and if Doing so, how? 2018 Business Sierra Leone Link for online access: http://www.oarg. gov.sl/Land%20R egistry.html Does the agency in charge of immovable property registration commit to delivering a Yes, online 0.5 legally binding document that proves property ownership within a speci c time frame– and if so, how does it communicate the service standard? Link for online access: http://www.oarg. gov.sl/Land%20R egistry.html Is there a speci c and separate mechanism for ling complaints about a problem that No 0.0 occurred at the agency in charge of immovable property registration? Contact information: Are there publicly available o cial statistics tracking the number of transactions at the No 0.0 immovable property registration agency? Number of property transfers in the largest business city in 2015: Who is able to consult maps of land plots in the largest business city? Anyone who 0.5 pays the o cial fee Is the applicable fee schedule for accessing maps of land plots made publicly available Yes, in person 0.0 —and if so, how? Link for online access: Does the cadastral or mapping agency commit to delivering an updated map within a No 0.0 speci c time frame—and if so, how does it communicate the service standard? Link for online access: Is there a speci c and separate mechanism for ling complaints about a problem that No 0.0 occurred at the cadastral or mapping agency? Contact information: Geographic coverage index (0–8) 0.0 Are all privately held land plots in the economy formally registered at the immovable No 0.0 property registry? Are all privately held land plots in the largest business city formally registered at the No 0.0 immovable property registry? Are all privately held land plots in the economy mapped? No 0.0 Are all privately held land plots in the largest business city mapped? No 0.0 Land dispute resolution index (0–8) 3.5 Does the law require that all property sale transactions be registered at the immovable Yes 1.5 property registry to make them opposable to third parties? Is the system of immovable property registration subject to a state or private No 0.0 guarantee? Page 30   Does the law require that all property sale transactions be registered at the immovable Yes 1.5 property Doing registry Business them opposable to makeSierra 2018 Leone to third parties? Is the system of immovable property registration subject to a state or private No 0.0 guarantee? Is there a speci c compensation mechanism to cover for losses incurred by parties who No 0.0 engaged in good faith in a property transaction based on erroneous information certi ed by the immovable property registry? Does the legal system require a control of legality of the documents necessary for a Yes 0.5 property transaction (e.g., checking the compliance of contracts with requirements of the law)? If yes, who is responsible for checking the legality of the documents? Lawyer. Does the legal system require veri cation of the identity of the parties to a property Yes 0.5 transaction? If yes, who is responsible for verifying the identity of the parties? Registrar; Lawyer. Is there a national database to verify the accuracy of identity documents? Yes 1.0 For a standard land dispute between two local businesses over tenure rights of a The High Court property worth 50 times gross national income (GNI) per capita and located in the of Sierra Leone largest business city, what court would be in charge of the case in the rst instance? How long does it take on average to obtain a decision from the rst-instance court for More than 3 0.0 such a case (without appeal)? years Are there any statistics on the number of land disputes in the rst instance? No 0.0 Number of land disputes in the largest business city in 2015: Equal access to property rights index (-2–0) 0.0 Do unmarried men and unmarried women have equal ownership rights to property? Yes 0.0 Do married men and married women have equal ownership rights to property? Yes 0.0 Getting Credit This topic explores two sets of issues—the strength of credit reporting systems and the e ectiveness of collateral and bankruptcy laws in facilitating lending. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Strength of legal rights index (0–12) Doing Business assesses the sharing of credit information and the legal rights of borrowers and lenders with respect to secured transactions Rights of borrowers and lenders through through 2 sets of indicators. The depth of credit information index collateral laws (0-10) measures rules and practices a ecting the coverage, scope and Protection of secured creditors’ rights through accessibility of credit information available through a credit registry or a bankruptcy laws (0-2) credit bureau. The strength of legal rights index measures the degree to Depth of credit information index (0–8) which collateral and bankruptcy laws protect the rights of borrowers and lenders and thus facilitate lending. For each economy it is first determined Scope and accessibility of credit information whether a unitary secured transactions system exists. Then two case distributed by credit bureaus and credit scenarios, case A and case B, are used to determine how a nonpossessory registries (0-8) security interest is created, publicized and enforced according to the law. Page 31   Credit bureau coverage (% of adults) Special emphasis is given to how the collateral registry operates (if Do married men and married women have equal ownership rights to property? Yes 0.0 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Getting Credit This topic explores two sets of issues—the strength of credit reporting systems and the e ectiveness of collateral and bankruptcy laws in facilitating lending. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Strength of legal rights index (0–12) Doing Business assesses the sharing of credit information and the legal rights of borrowers and lenders with respect to secured transactions Rights of borrowers and lenders through through 2 sets of indicators. The depth of credit information index collateral laws (0-10) measures rules and practices a ecting the coverage, scope and Protection of secured creditors’ rights through accessibility of credit information available through a credit registry or a bankruptcy laws (0-2) credit bureau. The strength of legal rights index measures the degree to Depth of credit information index (0–8) which collateral and bankruptcy laws protect the rights of borrowers and lenders and thus facilitate lending. For each economy it is first determined Scope and accessibility of credit information whether a unitary secured transactions system exists. Then two case distributed by credit bureaus and credit scenarios, case A and case B, are used to determine how a nonpossessory registries (0-8) security interest is created, publicized and enforced according to the law. Credit bureau coverage (% of adults) Special emphasis is given to how the collateral registry operates (if Number of individuals and firms listed in largest registration of security interests is possible). The case scenarios involve a credit bureau as a percentage of adult population secured borrower, company ABC, and a secured lender, BizBank. Credit registry coverage (% of adults) In some economies the legal framework for secured transactions will allow Number of individuals and firms listed in credit only case A or case B (not both) to apply. Both cases examine the same set registry as a percentage of adult population of legal provisions relating to the use of movable collateral. Several assumptions about the secured borrower (ABC) and lender (BizBank) are used: - ABC is a domestic limited liability company (or its legal equivalent). - ABC has up to 50 employees. - ABC has its headquarters and only base of operations in the economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city. - Both ABC and BizBank are 100% domestically owned. The case scenarios also involve assumptions. In case A, as collateral for the loan, ABC grants BizBank a nonpossessory security interest in one category of movable assets, for example, its machinery or its inventory. ABC wants to keep both possession and ownership of the collateral. In economies where the law does not allow nonpossessory security interests in movable property, ABC and BizBank use a fiduciary transfer-of-title arrangement (or a similar substitute for nonpossessory security interests). In case B, ABC grants BizBank a business charge, enterprise charge, floating charge or any charge that gives BizBank a security interest over ABC’s combined movable assets (or as much of ABC’s movable assets as possible). ABC keeps ownership and possession of the assets. Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 5 5.1 6.0 12.00 (4 Economies) Depth of credit information index (0-8) 0 3.0 6.6 8.00 (34 Economies) Page 32   Credit registry coverage (% of adults) 1.5 6.3 18.3 100.00 (3 Economies) possible). ABC keeps ownership and possession of the assets. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 5 5.1 6.0 12.00 (4 Economies) Depth of credit information index (0-8) 0 3.0 6.6 8.00 (34 Economies) Credit registry coverage (% of adults) 1.5 6.3 18.3 100.00 (3 Economies) Credit bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 8.2 63.7 100.00 (23 Economies) Figure – Getting Credit in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 75.00: Kenya (Rank: 29) 65.00: Ghana (Rank: 55) 40.73: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 30.00: Guinea (Rank: 142) 30.00: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 142) 25.00: Sierra Leone (Rank: 159) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of getting credit is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for getting credit. These scores are the distance to frontier score for the sum of the strength of legal rights index and the depth of credit information index. Figure – Legal Rights in Sierra Leone and comparator economies 8 7 7 7 6 6 6 5 5.1 Index score 5 4 3 2 1 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Legal Rights in Sierra Leone Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 5 Does an integrated or uni ed legal framework for secured transactions that extends to the creation, publicity and No enforcement of functional equivalents to security interests in movable assets exist in the economy? Does the law allow businesses to grant a non possessory security right in a single category of movable assets, without Yes requiring a speci c description of collateral? Page 33   Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Legal Rights in Sierra Leone Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 5 Does an integrated or uni ed legal framework for secured transactions that extends to the creation, publicity and No enforcement of functional equivalents to security interests in movable assets exist in the economy? Does the law allow businesses to grant a non possessory security right in a single category of movable assets, without Yes requiring a speci c description of collateral? Does the law allow businesses to grant a non possessory security right in substantially all of its assets, without requiring Yes a speci c description of collateral? May a security right extend to future or after-acquired assets, and does it extend automatically to the products, proceeds Yes or replacements of the original assets? Is a general description of debts and obligations permitted in collateral agreements; can all types of debts and Yes obligations be secured between parties; and can the collateral agreement include a maximum amount for which the assets are encumbered? Is a collateral registry in operation for both incorporated and non-incorporated entities, that is uni ed geographically No and by asset type, with an electronic database indexed by debtor's name? Does a notice-based collateral registry exist in which all functional equivalents can be registered? No Does a modern collateral registry exist in which registrations, amendments, cancellations and searches can be No performed online by any interested third party? Are secured creditors paid rst (i.e. before tax claims and employee claims) when a debtor defaults outside an insolvency No procedure? Are secured creditors paid rst (i.e. before tax claims and employee claims) when a business is liquidated? No Are secured creditors subject to an automatic stay on enforcement when a debtor enters a court-supervised No reorganization procedure? Does the law protect secured creditors’ rights by providing clear grounds for relief from the stay and/or sets a time limit for it? Does the law allow parties to agree on out of court enforcement at the time a security interest is created? Does the law Yes allow the secured creditor to sell the collateral through public auction or private tender, as well as, for the secured creditor to keep the asset in satisfaction of the debt? Figure – Credit Information in Sierra Leone and comparator economies 10 8 8 Index score 6 6 4 3.0 2 0 0 0 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Credit Information in Sierra Leone Page 34   0 0 0 0 Sierra Leone Doing Business 2018 Ghana Sierra Leone Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Credit Information in Sierra Leone Credit Credit Depth of credit information index (0-8) bureau registry Score Are data on both firms and individuals distributed? No No 0 Are both positive and negative credit data distributed? No No 0 Are data from retailers or utility companies - in addition to data from banks and financial institutions - No No 0 distributed? Are at least 2 years of historical data distributed? (Credit bureaus and registries that distribute more No No 0 than 10 years of negative data or erase data on defaults as soon as they are repaid obtain a score of 0 for this component.) Are data on loan amounts below 1% of income per capita distributed? No No 0 By law, do borrowers have the right to access their data in the credit bureau or credit registry? No No 0 Can banks and financial institutions access borrowers’ credit information online (for example, No No 0 through an online platform, a system-to-system connection or both)? Are bureau or registry credit scores offered as a value-added service to help banks and financial No No 0 institutions assess the creditworthiness of borrowers? Score ("yes" to either public bureau or private registry) 0 Note: An economy receives a score of 1 if there is a "yes" to either bureau or registry. If the credit bureau or registry is not operational or covers less than 5% of the adult population, the total score on the depth of credit information index is 0. Coverage Credit bureau Credit registry Number of individuals 0 41,732 Number of firms 0 19,591 Total 0 61,323 Percentage of adult population 0.0 1.5 Protecting Minority Investors This topic measures the strength of minority shareholder protections against misuse of corporate assets by directors for their personal gain as well as shareholder rights, governance safeguards and corporate transparency requirements that reduce the risk of abuse. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Extent of disclosure index (0–10): Review and To make the data comparable across economies, a case study uses several approval requirements for related-party assumptions about the business and the transaction. transactions; Disclosure requirements for related-party transactions The business (Buyer): Extent of director liability index (0–10): Ability of - Is a publicly traded corporation listed on the economy’s most important minority shareholders to sue and hold interested stock exchange. If the number of publicly traded companies listed on that directors liable for prejudicial related-party exchange is less than 10, or if there is no stock exchange in the economy, it is assumed that Buyer is a large private company with multiple Page 35   transactions; Available legal remedies (damages, Percentage of adult population 0.0 1.5 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Protecting Minority Investors This topic measures the strength of minority shareholder protections against misuse of corporate assets by directors for their personal gain as well as shareholder rights, governance safeguards and corporate transparency requirements that reduce the risk of abuse. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Extent of disclosure index (0–10): Review and To make the data comparable across economies, a case study uses several approval requirements for related-party assumptions about the business and the transaction. transactions; Disclosure requirements for related-party transactions The business (Buyer): Extent of director liability index (0–10): Ability of - Is a publicly traded corporation listed on the economy’s most important minority shareholders to sue and hold interested stock exchange. If the number of publicly traded companies listed on that directors liable for prejudicial related-party exchange is less than 10, or if there is no stock exchange in the economy, it transactions; Available legal remedies (damages, is assumed that Buyer is a large private company with multiple disgorgement of profits, fines, imprisonment, shareholders. rescission of the transaction) - Has a board of directors and a chief executive o cer (CEO) who may legally act on behalf of Buyer where permitted, even if this is not speci cally Ease of shareholder suits index (0–10): Access to required by law. internal corporate documents; Evidence - Has a supervisory board (applicable to economies with a two-tier board obtainable during trial and allocation of legal system) on which 60% of the shareholder-elected members have been expenses appointed by Mr. James, who is Buyer’s controlling shareholder and a Extent of conflict of interest regulation index member of Buyer’s board of directors. (0–10): Simple average of the extent of disclosure, - Has not adopted any bylaws or articles of association that di er from extent of director liability and ease of default minimum standards and does not follow any nonmandatory codes, shareholder indices principles, recommendations or guidelines relating to corporate Extent of shareholder rights index (0-10): governance. Shareholders’ rights and role in major corporate - Is a manufacturing company with its own distribution network. decisions Extent of ownership and control index (0-10): The transaction involves the following details: Governance safeguards protecting shareholders - Mr. James owns 60% of Buyer and elected two directors to Buyer’s ve- from undue board control and entrenchment member board. Extent of corporate transparency index (0-10): - Mr. James also owns 90% of Seller, a company that operates a chain of Corporate transparency on ownership stakes, retail hardware stores. Seller recently closed a large number of its stores. compensation, audits and financial prospects - Mr. James proposes that Buyer purchase Seller’s unused eet of trucks to expand Buyer’s distribution of its food products, a proposal to which Buyer Extent of shareholder governance index (0–10): agrees. The price is equal to 10% of Buyer’s assets and is higher than the Simple average of the extent of shareholders market value. rights, extent of ownership and control and - The proposed transaction is part of the company’s ordinary course of extent of corporate transparency indices business and is not outside the authority of the company. Strength of minority investor protection index - Buyer enters into the transaction. All required approvals are obtained, (0–10): Simple average of the extent of conflict of and all required disclosures made (that is, the transaction is not interest regulation and extent of shareholder fraudulent). governance indices - The transaction causes damages to Buyer. Shareholders sue Mr. James and the other parties that approved the transaction. Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Extent of conflict of interest regulation index (0- 6.7 4.8 6.4 9.3 (New Zealand) 10) Extent of shareholder governance index (0-10) 4.3 4.0 6.4 Page 36   9.00 (Kazakhstan) and the other parties that approved the transaction. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Extent of conflict of interest regulation index (0- 6.7 4.8 6.4 9.3 (New Zealand) 10) Extent of shareholder governance index (0-10) 4.3 4.0 6.4 9.00 (Kazakhstan) Figure – Protecting Minority Investors in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 58.33: Kenya (Rank: 62) 55.00: Sierra Leone (Rank: 81) 51.67: Ghana (Rank: 96) 43.72: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 41.67: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 138) 40.00: Guinea (Rank: 146) Note: The ranking of economies on the strength of minority investor protections is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for protecting minority investors. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for the extent of con ict of interest regulation index and the extent of shareholder governance index. Figure – Protecting Minority Investors in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality Sierra Leone 6 8 6 2 5 6 Ghana 3 5 7 3 6 7 Guinea 4 1 7 3 4 5 Guinea-Bissau 4 1 7 3 4 6 Kenya 4 5 6 6 5 9 OECD high income 7.3 5.6 6.5 5.2 6.3 7.4 Sub-Saharan Africa 4.2 3.5 5.5 3.3 4.6 5.6 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 Sub-Indicator Score Extent of corporate transparency index (0­10) Extent of director liability index (0­10) Extent of disclosure index (0­10) Extent of ownership and control index (0­10) Extent of shareholder rights index (0­10) Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) Details – Protecting Minority Investors in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Page 37   Extent of ownership and control index (0­10) Extent of shareholder rights index (0­10) Ease of shareholder suits index (0­10) Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Protecting Minority Investors in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Extent of con ict of interest regulation index (0-10) 6.7 Extent of disclosure index (0-10) 6 Which corporate body is legally su cient to approve the Buyer-Seller transaction? (0-3) Shareholders 3.0 excluding interested parties Must an external body review the terms of the transaction before it takes place? (0-1) No 0.0 Must Mr. James disclose his con ict of interest to the board of directors? (0-2) Full disclosure of 2.0 all material facts Must Buyer disclose the transaction in published periodic lings (annual reports)? (0-2) Disclosure on 1.0 the transaction only Must Buyer immediately disclose the transaction to the public and/or shareholders? (0- No disclosure 0.0 2) obligation Extent of director liability index (0-10) 8 Can shareholders representing 10% of Buyer's share capital sue directly or derivatively Yes 1.0 for the damage the transaction caused to Buyer? (0-1) Can shareholders hold the interested director liable for the damage the transaction Liable if negligent 1.0 caused to Buyer? (0-2) Can shareholders hold the other directors liable for the damage the transaction caused Liable if unfair or 2.0 to Buyer (0-2) prejudicial Must Mr. James pay damages for the harm caused to Buyer upon a successful claim by Yes 1.0 shareholders? (0-1) Must Mr. James repay pro ts made from the transaction upon a successful claim by Yes 1.0 shareholders? (0-1) Is Mr. James disquali ed or ned and imprisoned upon a successful claim by No 0.0 shareholders? (0-1) Can a court void the transaction upon a successful claim by shareholders? (0-2) Voidable if unfair 2.0 or prejudicial Ease of shareholder suits index (0-10) 6 Before suing can shareholders representing 10% of Buyer's share capital inspect the No 0.0 transaction documents? (0-1) Can the plainti obtain any documents from the defendant and witnesses at trial? (0-3) Any relevant 3.0 document Can the plainti request categories of documents from the defendant without No 0.0 identifying speci c ones? (0-1) Can the plainti directly question the defendant and witnesses at trial? (0-2) Yes 2.0 Page 38   Can the plainti obtain any documents from the defendant and witnesses at trial? (0-3) Any relevant 3.0 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone document Can the plainti request categories of documents from the defendant without No 0.0 identifying speci c ones? (0-1) Can the plainti directly question the defendant and witnesses at trial? (0-2) Yes 2.0 Is the level of proof required for civil suits lower than that of criminal cases? (0-1) Yes 1.0 Can shareholder plainti s recover their legal expenses from the company? (0-2) At the discretion 0.0 of the court Extent of shareholder governance index (0-10) 4.3 Extent of shareholder rights index (0-10) 5 Does the sale of 51% of Buyer's assets require shareholder approval? No 0.0 Can shareholders representing 10% of Buyer's share capital call for a meeting of Yes 1.0 shareholders? Must Buyer obtain its shareholders’ approval every time it issues new shares? Yes 1.0 Do shareholders automatically receive preemption rights every time Buyer issues new No 0.0 shares? Must shareholders approve the election and dismissal of the external auditor? Yes 1.0 Are changes to the rights of a class of shares only possible if the holders of the a ected No 0.0 shares approve? Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, does the sale of 51% of its assets require No 0.0 member approval? Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, can members representing 10% call for a Yes 1.0 meeting of members? Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must all members consent to add a new Yes 1.0 member? Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must a member rst o er to sell their No 0.0 interest to the existing members before they can sell to non-members? Extent of ownership and control index (0-10) 2 Is it forbidden to appoint the same individual as CEO and chair of the board of No 0.0 directors? Must the board of directors include independent and nonexecutive board members? No 0.0 Can shareholders remove members of the board of directors without cause before the Yes 1.0 end of their term? Must the board of directors include a separate audit committee exclusively comprising No 0.0 board members? Must a potential acquirer make a tender o er to all shareholders upon acquiring 50% No 0.0 of Buyer? Must Buyer pay declared dividends within a maximum period set by law? No 0.0 Is a subsidiary prohibited from acquiring shares issued by its parent company? Yes 1.0 Page 39   Buyer pay declared MustBusiness Doing dividends 2018 Sierra within a maximum period set by law? Leone No 0.0 Is a subsidiary prohibited from acquiring shares issued by its parent company? Yes 1.0 Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer have a mechanism to resolve No 0.0 disagreements among members? Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must a potential acquirer make a tender No 0.0 o er to all shareholders upon acquiring 50% of Buyer? Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer distribute pro ts within a No 0.0 maximum period set by law? Extent of corporate transparency index (0-10) 6 Must Buyer disclose direct and indirect bene cial ownership stakes representing 5%? Yes 1.0 Must Buyer disclose information about board members’ primary employment and Yes 1.0 directorships in other companies? Must Buyer disclose the compensation of individual managers? No 0.0 Must a detailed notice of general meeting be sent 21 days before the meeting? Yes 1.0 Can shareholders representing 5% of Buyer’s share capital put items on the general No 0.0 meeting agenda? Must Buyer's annual nancial statements be audited by an external auditor? Yes 1.0 Must Buyer disclose its audit reports to the public? Yes 1.0 Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must members meet at least once a year? No 0.0 Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, can members representing 5% put items on No 0.0 the meeting agenda? Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer's annual nancial statements be Yes 1.0 audited by an external auditor? Paying Taxes This topic records the taxes and mandatory contributions that a medium-size company must pay or withhold in a given year, as well as measures the administrative burden in paying taxes and contributions. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed on June 30, 2017 covering for the Paying Taxes indicator calendar year 2016 (January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2016). Last year (Doing Business 2017) the scope of data collection was expanded to better understand the overall tax environment in an economy. The questionnaire was expanded to include new questions on post- ling processes: VAT refund and tax audit. The data shows where post ling processes and practices work e ciently and what drives the di erences in the overall tax compliance cost across economies. The new section covers both the legal framework and the administrative burden on businesses to comply with post ling processes. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Tax payments for a manufacturing company in Using a case scenario, Doing Business records taxes and mandatory 2016 (number per year adjusted for electronic and contributions a medium size company must pay in a year, and measures joint ling and payment) the administrative burden of paying taxes, contributions and dealing with post ling processes. Information is also compiled on frequency of ling Total number of taxes and contributions paid, Page 40   and payments, time taken to comply with tax laws, time taken to comply including consumption taxes (value added tax, Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer's annual nancial statements be Yes 1.0 audited by an external auditor? Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Paying Taxes This topic records the taxes and mandatory contributions that a medium-size company must pay or withhold in a given year, as well as measures the administrative burden in paying taxes and contributions. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed on June 30, 2017 covering for the Paying Taxes indicator calendar year 2016 (January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2016). Last year (Doing Business 2017) the scope of data collection was expanded to better understand the overall tax environment in an economy. The questionnaire was expanded to include new questions on post- ling processes: VAT refund and tax audit. The data shows where post ling processes and practices work e ciently and what drives the di erences in the overall tax compliance cost across economies. The new section covers both the legal framework and the administrative burden on businesses to comply with post ling processes. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Tax payments for a manufacturing company in Using a case scenario, Doing Business records taxes and mandatory 2016 (number per year adjusted for electronic and contributions a medium size company must pay in a year, and measures joint ling and payment) the administrative burden of paying taxes, contributions and dealing with post ling processes. Information is also compiled on frequency of ling Total number of taxes and contributions paid, and payments, time taken to comply with tax laws, time taken to comply including consumption taxes (value added tax, with the requirements of post ling processes and time waiting. sales tax or goods and service tax) Method and frequency of filing and payment To make data comparable across economies, several assumptions are used: Time required to comply with 3 major taxes - TaxpayerCo is a medium-size business that started operations on January (hours per year) 1, 2015. It produces ceramic flowerpots and sells them at retail. All taxes Collecting information, computing tax payable and contributions recorded are paid in the second year of operation Completing tax return, filing with agencies (calendar year 2016). Taxes and mandatory contributions are measured at all levels of government. Arranging payment or withholding Preparing separate tax accounting books, if The VAT refund process: required - In June 2016, TaxpayerCo. makes a large capital purchase: the value of the Total tax and contribution rate (% of pro t before machine is 65 times income per capita of the economy. Sales are equally all taxes) spread per month (1,050 times income per capita divided by 12) and cost of goods sold are equally expensed per month (875 times income per Profit or corporate income tax capita divided by 12). The machinery seller is registered for VAT and excess Social contributions, labor taxes paid by input VAT incurred in June will be fully recovered after four consecutive employer months if the VAT rate is the same for inputs, sales and the machine and Property and property transfer taxes the tax reporting period is every month. Input VAT will exceed Output VAT Dividend, capital gains, financial transactions in June 2016. taxes The corporate income tax audit process: Waste collection, vehicle, road and other taxes - An error in calculation of income tax liability (for example, use of incorrect Post ling Index tax depreciation rates, or incorrectly treating an expense as tax deductible) leads to an incorrect income tax return and a corporate income Time to comply with a VAT refund tax underpayment. TaxpayerCo. discovered the error and voluntarily Time to receive a VAT refund noti ed the tax authority. The value of the underpaid income tax liability is Time to comply with a corporate income tax audit 5% of the corporate income tax liability due. TaxpayerCo. submits corrected information after the deadline for submitting the annual tax Time to complete a corporate income tax audit return, but within the tax assessment period. Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Payments (number per year) 34 37.2 10.9 3 (Hong Kong SAR, China) Page 41   return, but within the tax assessment period. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Payments (number per year) 34 37.2 10.9 3 (Hong Kong SAR, China) Time (hours per year) 343 280.8 160.7 55 (Luxembourg) Total tax and contribution rate (% of profit) 31.0 46.8 40.1 18.47% (32 Economies) Postfiling index (0-100) 95.41 54.39 83.45 99.38 (Estonia) Figure – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 72.86: Sierra Leone (Rank: 85) 71.67: Kenya (Rank: 92) 66.47: Ghana (Rank: 116) 57.49: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 54.93: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 155) 38.93: Guinea (Rank: 182) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of paying taxes is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores on the ease of paying taxes. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the four component indicators – number of tax payments. time, total tax rate and post ling index – with a threshold and a nonlinear transformation applied to one of the component indicators, the total tax rate. The nonlinear distance to frontier for the total tax rate is equal to the distance to frontier for the total tax rate to the power of 0.8. The threshold is de ned as the total tax rate at the 15th percentile of the overall distribution for all years included in the analysis up to and including Doing Business 2015, which is 26.1%. All economies with a total tax rate below this threshold receive the same score as the economy at the threshold. Figure – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality 120 100 95.41 80 Index score 62.03 60 54.39 49.54 45.34 40 20 12.77 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone Total tax and Tax or mandatory Payments Notes on Time Statutory contribution rate (% Notes contribution (number) Payments (hours) tax rate Tax base of profit) on TTR Page 42   Corporate income 5 16 30% taxable profit 17.28 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality 120 100 95.41 80 Index score 62.03 60 54.39 49.54 45.34 40 20 12.77 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone Total tax and Tax or mandatory Payments Notes on Time Statutory contribution rate (% Notes contribution (number) Payments (hours) tax rate Tax base of profit) on TTR Corporate income 5 16 30% taxable profit 17.28 tax Social Security 12 157 10% gross income 11.28 Contributions Capital gains tax 1 30% Capital gains arising from 1.52 disposal of a chargeable asset Municipal License 1 fixed fee depending on 0.46 fee type of business Tax on interest 1 15% interest income 0.38 Vehicle tax 1 various cubic capacity 0.12 rates Social security 0 jointly 5% gross salary 0.00 withheld contributions on employees Fuel tax 1 SLL number of liters 0.00 small 307.38 amount per liter Goods and Services 12 170 15% cost of materials 0.00 not Tax / VAT included Totals 34 343 31.0 Details – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone – Tax by Type Taxes by type Answer Profit tax (% of profit) 18.8 Page 43   Totals 34 343 31.0 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone – Tax by Type Taxes by type Answer Profit tax (% of profit) 18.8 Labor tax and contributions (% of profit) 11.3 Other taxes (% of profit) 1.0 Details – Paying Taxes in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Post ling index (0-100) 95.41 VAT refunds Does VAT exist? Yes Does a VAT refund process exist per the case study? No Restrictions on VAT refund process Purchase of machine exempted from VAT Percentage of cases exposed to a VAT audit (%) Not applicable Is there a mandatory carry forward period? No Time to comply with VAT refund (hours) No VAT No VAT Time to obtain a VAT refund (weeks) No VAT No VAT Corporate income tax audits Does corporate income tax exist? Yes Percentage of cases exposed to a corporate income tax audit (%) 0% - 24% Time to comply with a corporate income tax audit (hours) 6.5 90.83 Time to complete a corporate income tax audit (weeks) No tax audit per 100 case study scenario Notes: Names of taxes have been standardized. For instance income tax, pro t tax, tax on company's income are all named corporate income tax in this table. The hours for VAT include all the VAT and sales taxes applicable. The hours for Social Security include all the hours for labor taxes and mandatory contributions in general. The post ling index is the average of the scores on time to comply with VAT refund, time to obtain a VAT refund, time to comply with a corporate income tax audit and time to complete a corporate income tax audit. N/A = Not applicable. Trading across Borders Page 44   Doing Business records the time and cost associated with the logistical process of exporting and importing goods. Doing Business a corporate income tax audit and time to complete a corporate income tax audit. N/A = Not applicable. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Trading across Borders Doing Business records the time and cost associated with the logistical process of exporting and importing goods. Doing Business measures the time and cost (excluding tari s) associated with three sets of procedures—documentary compliance, border compliance and domestic transport—within the overall process of exporting or importing a shipment of goods. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. Given the importance of trade digitalization, in Doing Business 2018, the Trading across Borders questionnaire included research questions on the availability and status of implementation of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Single Window (SW) systems. With this information, Doing Business built a comprehensive dataset on the adoption and level of sophistication of electronic platforms in 190 economies. These data are not used to compute the distance to frontier score or ranking of the ease of doing business. The new dataset on EDI and SW systems is available here. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Documentary compliance To make the data comparable across economies, a few assumptions are made about the traded goods and the transactions: Obtaining, preparing and submitting documents during transport, clearance, inspections and port Time: Time is measured in hours, and 1 day is 24 hours (for example, 22 or border handling in origin economy days are recorded as 22×24=528 hours). If customs clearance takes 7.5 Obtaining, preparing and submitting documents hours, the data are recorded as is. Alternatively, suppose documents are required by destination economy and any transit submitted to a customs agency at 8:00a.m., are processed overnight and economies can be picked up at 8:00a.m. the next day. The time for customs clearance Covers all documents required by law and in would be recorded as 24 hours because the actual procedure took 24 practice, including electronic submissions of hours. information Border compliance Cost: Insurance cost and informal payments for which no receipt is issued are excluded from the costs recorded. Costs are reported in U.S. dollars. Customs clearance and inspections Contributors are asked to convert local currency into U.S. dollars based on Inspections by other agencies (if applied to more the exchange rate prevailing on the day they answer the questionnaire. than 20% of shipments) Contributors are private sector experts in international trade logistics and Handling and inspections that take place at the are informed about exchange rates. economy’s port or border Assumptions of the case study: - For all 190 economies covered by Doing Domestic transport Business, it is assumed a shipment is in a warehouse in the largest Loading or unloading of the shipment at the business city of the exporting economy and travels to a warehouse in the warehouse or port/border largest business city of the importing economy. - It is assumed each Transport between warehouse and port/border economy imports 15 metric tons of containerized auto parts (HS 8708) from its natural import partner—the economy from which it imports the Traffic delays and road police checks while shipment is en route largest value (price times quantity) of auto parts. It is assumed each economy exports the product of its comparative advantage (de ned by the largest export value) to its natural export partner—the economy that is the largest purchaser of this product. Shipment value is assumed to be $50,000. - The mode of transport is the one most widely used for the chosen export or import product and the trading partner, as is the seaport, or land border crossing. - All electronic information submissions requested by any government agency in connection with the shipment are considered to be documents obtained, prepared and submitted during the export or import process. - A port or border is a place (seaport, airport or land border crossing) where merchandise can enter or leave an economy. - Relevant government agencies include customs, port authorities, road police, border guards, standardization agencies, ministries or departments of agriculture or industry, national security agencies and any other government authorities. Page 45   of agriculture or industry, national security agencies and any other Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone government authorities. Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Time to export: Border compliance (hours) 55 100.1 12.7 0 (17 Economies) Cost to export: Border compliance (USD) 552 592.1 149.9 0.00 (19 Economies) Time to export: Documentary compliance 72 87.8 2.4 1.0 (25 Economies) (hours) Cost to export: Documentary compliance (USD) 227 215.1 35.4 0.00 (19 Economies) Time to import: Border compliance (hours) 120 136.4 8.7 0.00 (21 Economies) Cost to import: Border compliance (USD) 821 686.8 111.6 0.00 (27 Economies) Time to import: Documentary compliance 137 103.0 3.5 1.0 (30 Economies) (hours) Cost to import: Documentary compliance (USD) 387 300.1 25.6 0.00 (30 Economies) Figure – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 67.63: Kenya (Rank: 106) 59.60: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 141) 52.56: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 52.32: Ghana (Rank: 158) 48.99: Sierra Leone (Rank: 162) 46.24: Guinea (Rank: 165) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of trading across borders is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for trading across borders. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for the time and cost for documentary compliance and border compliance to export and import (domestic transport is not used for calculating the ranking). Figure – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone – Time and Cost Time Cost 160 821 900 137 800 140 120 120 700 552 600 Time (hours) Cost (USD) 100 500 80 72 387 400 60 55 227 300 40 200 20 100 0 0 Export - Border Compliance Export - Documentary Compliance Import - Border Compliance Import - Documentary CompliancePage 46   Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone – Time and Cost Time Cost 160 821 900 137 800 140 120 120 700 552 600 Time (hours) Cost (USD) 100 500 80 72 387 400 60 55 227 300 40 200 20 100 0 0 Export - Border Compliance Export - Documentary Compliance Import - Border Compliance Import - Documentary Compliance Details – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone Characteristics Export Import Product HS 18 : Cocoa and cocoa preparations HS 8708: Parts and accessories of motor vehicles Trade partner China China Border Freetown port Freetown port Distance (km) 8 8 Domestic transport time (hours) 5 2 Domestic transport cost (USD) 250 199 Details – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone – Components of Border Compliance Time to Complete Associated Costs (hours) (USD) Export: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 40.3 354.3 Export: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 11.1 31.4 Export: Port or border handling 54.9 166.1 Import: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 40.3 175.0 Import: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 72.0 500.0 Import: Port or border handling 48.0 146.0 Details – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone – Trade Documents Export Import Bill of lading Bill of lading Commercial Invoice Classification and Valuation Certificate Page 47   Domestic transport cost (USD) 250 199 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone – Components of Border Compliance Time to Complete Associated Costs (hours) (USD) Export: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 40.3 354.3 Export: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 11.1 31.4 Export: Port or border handling 54.9 166.1 Import: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 40.3 175.0 Import: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 72.0 500.0 Import: Port or border handling 48.0 146.0 Details – Trading across Borders in Sierra Leone – Trade Documents Export Import Bill of lading Bill of lading Commercial Invoice Classification and Valuation Certificate Container Allocation Document Commercial Invoice Single Customs Declaration (EX 1) Single Customs Declaration (IM 4) Packing List Customs Release Order/ Exit Note Phytosanitary certificate Delivery Order Proof of Payment of Customs Fees Packing List SOLAS certificate Proof of payment of customs fees and duties TPMS/ENS Payment SOLAS certificate Enforcing Contracts The enforcing contracts indicator measures the time and cost for resolving a commercial dispute through a local rst-instance court, and the quality of judicial processes index, evaluating whether each economy has adopted a series of good practices that promote quality and e ciency in the court system. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Time required to enforce a contract through the The dispute in the case study involves the breach of a sales contract courts (calendar days) between 2 domestic businesses. The case study assumes that the court hears an expert on the quality of the goods in dispute. This distinguishes Time to file and serve the case the case from simple debt enforcement. Time for trial and to obtain the judgment To make the data comparable across economies, Doing Business uses Page 48   Time to enforce the judgment several assumptions about the case: SOLAS certificate Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Enforcing Contracts The enforcing contracts indicator measures the time and cost for resolving a commercial dispute through a local rst-instance court, and the quality of judicial processes index, evaluating whether each economy has adopted a series of good practices that promote quality and e ciency in the court system. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Time required to enforce a contract through the The dispute in the case study involves the breach of a sales contract courts (calendar days) between 2 domestic businesses. The case study assumes that the court hears an expert on the quality of the goods in dispute. This distinguishes Time to file and serve the case the case from simple debt enforcement. Time for trial and to obtain the judgment To make the data comparable across economies, Doing Business uses Time to enforce the judgment several assumptions about the case: Cost required to enforce a contract through the - The dispute concerns a lawful transaction between two businesses (Seller courts (% of claim) and Buyer), both located in the economy’s largest business city. For 11 Attorney fees economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city. - The buyer orders custom-made goods, then fails to pay. Court fees - The value of the dispute is 200% of the income per capita or the Enforcement fees equivalent in local currency of USD 5,000, whichever is greater. Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) - The seller sues the buyer before the court with jurisdiction over commercial cases worth 200% of income per capita or $5,000. Court structure and proceedings (-1-5) - The seller requests a pretrial attachment to secure the claim. Case management (0-6) - The dispute on the quality of the goods requires an expert opinion. Court automation (0-4) - The judge decides in favor of the seller; there is no appeal. Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) - The seller enforces the judgment through a public sale of the buyer’s movable assets. Standardized Case Claim value SLL 27,535,607.00 Court name Freetown High Court - Commercial Section City Covered Freetown Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Time (days) 515 656.8 577.8 164.00 (Singapore) Cost (% of claim value) 39.5 44.0 21.5 9.00 (Iceland) Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) 8.0 6.5 11.0 15.50 (Australia) Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 58.27: Kenya (Rank: 90) 55.92: Sierra Leone (Rank: 100) 54.00: Ghana (Rank: 116) Page 49   of judicial processes Quality Business Doing index (0-18) 2018 Sierra Leone 8.0 6.5 11.0 15.50 (Australia) Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 58.27: Kenya (Rank: 90) 55.92: Sierra Leone (Rank: 100) 54.00: Ghana (Rank: 116) 53.87: Guinea (Rank: 117) 48.14: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 36.76: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 168) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of enforcing contracts is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for enforcing contracts. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators. Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone – Time and Cost Time Cost 2000 50 45.0 1785 44.0 41.8 39.5 Cost (% of claim value) 40 1500 Time (days) 28.0 30 1000 23.0 21.5 710 656.8 20 577.8 465 515 500 311 10 0 0 Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya OECD high income Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan Africa Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality Sierra Leone 1.5 2 0 4.5 Ghana 2.5 1 0 3 Guinea 2 0 3 Guinea-Bissau 2 1.5 0 4 Kenya 2 2 0.5 4.5 OECD high income 2.5 2.9 2 3.6 Sub-Saharan Africa 2 1.1 0.3 3.2 0 2 4 6 8 10 Page 50   12 0 0 Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya OECD high income Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan Africa Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality Sierra Leone 1.5 2 0 4.5 Ghana 2.5 1 0 3 Guinea 2 0 3 Guinea-Bissau 2 1.5 0 4 Kenya 2 2 0.5 4.5 OECD high income 2.5 2.9 2 3.6 Sub-Saharan Africa 2 1.1 0.3 3.2 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 Sub-Indicator Score Alternative dispute resolution (0­3) Case management (0­6) Court automation (0­4) Court structure and proceedings (­1­5) Details – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone Indicator Time (days) 515 Filing and service 30 Trial and judgment 395 Enforcement of judgment 90 Cost (% of claim value) 39.5 Attorney fees 15 Court fees 4.5 Enforcement fees 20 Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) 8.0 Court structure and proceedings (-1-5) 4.5 Case management (0-6) 2.0 Court automation (0-4) 0.0 Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) 1.5 Details – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Page 51   Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) 1.5 Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Enforcing Contracts in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) 8.0 Court structure and proceedings (-1-5) 4.5 1. Is there a court or division of a court dedicated solely to hearing commercial cases? Yes 1.5 2. Small claims court 1.5 2.a. Is there a small claims court or a fast-track procedure for small claims? Yes 2.b. If yes, is self-representation allowed? Yes 3. Is pretrial attachment available? Yes 1.0 4. Are new cases assigned randomly to judges? Yes, but manual 0.5 5. Does a woman's testimony carry the same evidentiary weight in court as a man's? Yes 0.0 Case management (0-6) 2.0 1. Time standards 1.0 1.a. Are there laws setting overall time standards for key court events in a civil case? Yes 1.b. If yes, are the time standards set for at least three court events? Yes 1.c. Are these time standards respected in more than 50% of cases? Yes 2. Adjournments 0.0 2.a. Does the law regulate the maximum number of adjournments that can be No granted? 2.b. Are adjournments limited to unforeseen and exceptional circumstances? No 2.c. If rules on adjournments exist, are they respected in more than 50% of cases? n.a. 3. Can two of the following four reports be generated about the competent court: (i) No 0.0 time to disposition report; (ii) clearance rate report; (iii) age of pending cases report; and (iv) single case progress report? 4. Is a pretrial conference among the case management techniques used before the Yes 1.0 competent court? 5. Are there any electronic case management tools in place within the competent court No 0.0 for use by judges? 6. Are there any electronic case management tools in place within the competent court No 0.0 for use by lawyers? Court automation (0-4) 0.0 1. Can the initial complaint be led electronically through a dedicated platform within No 0.0 the competent court? 2. Is it possible to carry out service of process electronically for claims led before the No 0.0 competent court? Page 52   1. Can the initial complaint be led electronically through a dedicated platform within No 0.0 Businesscourt? the competent Doing 2018 Sierra Leone 2. Is it possible to carry out service of process electronically for claims led before the No 0.0 competent court? 3. Can court fees be paid electronically within the competent court? No 0.0 4. Publication of judgments 0.0 4.a Are judgments rendered in commercial cases at all levels made available to the No general public through publication in o cial gazettes, in newspapers or on the internet or court website? 4.b. Are judgments rendered in commercial cases at the appellate and supreme No court level made available to the general public through publication in o cial gazettes, in newspapers or on the internet or court website? Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) 1.5 1. Arbitration 1.5 1.a. Is domestic commercial arbitration governed by a consolidated law or Yes consolidated chapter or section of the applicable code of civil procedure encompassing substantially all its aspects? 1.b. Are there any commercial disputes—aside from those that deal with public No order or public policy—that cannot be submitted to arbitration? 1.c. Are valid arbitration clauses or agreements usually enforced by the courts? Yes 2. Mediation/Conciliation 0.0 2.a. Is voluntary mediation or conciliation available? No 2.b. Are mediation, conciliation or both governed by a consolidated law or n.a. consolidated chapter or section of the applicable code of civil procedure encompassing substantially all their aspects? 2.c. Are there nancial incentives for parties to attempt mediation or conciliation (i.e., n.a. if mediation or conciliation is successful, a refund of court ling fees, income tax credits or the like)? Resolving Insolvency Doing Business studies the time, cost and outcome of insolvency proceedings involving domestic legal entities. These variables are used to calculate the recovery rate, which is recorded as cents on the dollar recovered by secured creditors through reorganization, liquidation or debt enforcement (foreclosure or receivership) proceedings. To determine the present value of the amount recovered by creditors, Doing Business uses the lending rates from the International Monetary Fund, supplemented with data from central banks and the Economist Intelligence Unit. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Time required to recover debt (years) To make the data on the time, cost and outcome comparable across economies, several assumptions about the business and the case are Measured in calendar years used: Appeals and requests for extension are included - A hotel located in the largest city (or cities) has 201 employees and 50 Cost required to recover debt (% of debtor’s estate) suppliers. The hotel experiences nancial di culties. Page 53   Measured as percentage of estate value - The value of the hotel is 100% of the income per capita or the equivalent if mediation or conciliation is successful, a refund of court ling fees, income tax credits or the like)? Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Resolving Insolvency Doing Business studies the time, cost and outcome of insolvency proceedings involving domestic legal entities. These variables are used to calculate the recovery rate, which is recorded as cents on the dollar recovered by secured creditors through reorganization, liquidation or debt enforcement (foreclosure or receivership) proceedings. To determine the present value of the amount recovered by creditors, Doing Business uses the lending rates from the International Monetary Fund, supplemented with data from central banks and the Economist Intelligence Unit. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Time required to recover debt (years) To make the data on the time, cost and outcome comparable across economies, several assumptions about the business and the case are Measured in calendar years used: Appeals and requests for extension are included - A hotel located in the largest city (or cities) has 201 employees and 50 Cost required to recover debt (% of debtor’s estate) suppliers. The hotel experiences nancial di culties. Measured as percentage of estate value - The value of the hotel is 100% of the income per capita or the equivalent Court fees in local currency of USD 200,000, whichever is greater. - The hotel has a loan from a domestic bank, secured by a mortgage over Fees of insolvency administrators the hotel’s real estate. The hotel cannot pay back the loan, but makes Lawyers’ fees enough money to operate otherwise. Assessors’ and auctioneers’ fees In addition, Doing Business evaluates the adequacy and integrity of the Other related fees existing legal framework applicable to liquidation and reorganization Outcome proceedings through the strength of insolvency framework index. The index tests whether economies adopted internationally accepted good Whether business continues operating as a going practices in four areas: commencement of proceedings, management of concern or business assets are sold piecemeal debtor’s assets, reorganization proceedings and creditor participation. Recovery rate for creditors Measures the cents on the dollar recovered by secured creditors Outcome for the business (survival or not) determines the maximum value that can be recovered Official costs of the insolvency proceedings are deducted Depreciation of furniture is taken into account Present value of debt recovered Strength of insolvency framework index (0- 16) Sum of the scores of four component indices: Commencement of proceedings index (0-3) Management of debtor’s assets index (0-6) Reorganization proceedings index (0-3) Creditor participation index (0-4) Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 11.1 20.3 71.2 93.1 (Norway) Time (years) 2.3 2.9 1.7 0.4 (Ireland) Page 54   Cost (% of estate) 42.0 22.7 9.1 1.00 (Norway) Creditor participation index (0-4) Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan OECD high Indicator Sierra Leone Africa income Overall Best Performer Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 11.1 20.3 71.2 93.1 (Norway) Time (years) 2.3 2.9 1.7 0.4 (Ireland) Cost (% of estate) 42.0 22.7 9.1 1.00 (Norway) Outcome (0 as piecemeal sale and 1 as going 0 .. .. .. concern) Strength of insolvency framework index (0-16) 6.0 6.2 12.1 15.00 (6 Economies) Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF) 0 100 43.11: Kenya (Rank: 95) 39.27: Guinea (Rank: 111) 30.28: Regional Average (Sub-Saharan Africa) 24.77: Ghana (Rank: 158) 24.72: Sierra Leone (Rank: 159) 0.00: Guinea-Bissau (Rank: 168) Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of resolving insolvency is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for resolving insolvency. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for the recovery rate and the strength of insolvency framework index. Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone – Time and Cost Time Cost 5 42.0 45 4.5 40 4 3.8 35 Cost (% of estate) Time (years) 2.9 30 3 22.0 22.0 22.7 25 2.3 1.9 20 2 1.7 15 8.0 9.1 1 10 5 0 0 Ghana Guinea no practice Kenya OECD high income Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan Africa Guinea-Bissau Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality Sierra Leone 3 2 1 0 Page 55   Ghana 2 2 0 Ghana Guinea no practice Kenya OECD high income Sierra Leone Sub-Saharan Africa Guinea-Bissau Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Measure of Quality Sierra Leone 3 2 1 0 Ghana 2 2 0 Guinea 5.5 2 1 0.5 Guinea-Bissau 5.5 2 1 0.5 Kenya 3 3 1 2 OECD high income 5.4 2.8 2.3 1.9 Sub-Saharan Africa 4.1 2.3 1 0.4 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 Sub-Indicator Score Management of debtor's assets index (0­6) Commencement of proceedings index (0­3) Creditor participation index (0­4) Reorganization proceedings index (0­3) Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone and comparator economies – Recovery Rate Recovery Rate (cents on the dollar) 30 27.9 25 22.8 20.7 20.3 20 15 11.1 10 5 0.0 0 Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Details – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone Indicator Answer Explanation Proceeding liquidation After Mirage's default on payment, BizBank would initiate liquidation by filing a petition to the court. The case will be assigned to the Fast Track Commercial Court (Division of the High Court of Sierra Leone). The court will then review the case, hold a hearing and appoint a liquidator to proceed with liquidation process. Outcome piecemeal sale The hotel will stop operating and Mirage assets will be sold piecemeal after the liquidation procedure as the assets will be sold in a public or private auction by the liquidator. After the distribution of the money owed to the secured and unsecured creditors the company will no longer be a going concern. Time (in years) 2.3 The insolvency process will start with pre-trial wherein a pre-trial settlement conference will be held and the parties will be given the opportunity to settle the matter through mediation or arbitration supervised by the court. If the parties could not reach an agreement the Page 56   Sierra Leone Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Kenya Sub-Saharan Africa Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone Indicator Answer Explanation Proceeding liquidation After Mirage's default on payment, BizBank would initiate liquidation by filing a petition to the court. The case will be assigned to the Fast Track Commercial Court (Division of the High Court of Sierra Leone). The court will then review the case, hold a hearing and appoint a liquidator to proceed with liquidation process. Outcome piecemeal sale The hotel will stop operating and Mirage assets will be sold piecemeal after the liquidation procedure as the assets will be sold in a public or private auction by the liquidator. After the distribution of the money owed to the secured and unsecured creditors the company will no longer be a going concern. Time (in years) 2.3 The insolvency process will start with pre-trial wherein a pre-trial settlement conference will be held and the parties will be given the opportunity to settle the matter through mediation or arbitration supervised by the court. If the parties could not reach an agreement the matter will be committed to a trial hearing. During this phase, a judge will sit on the matter with two assessors, the court will appoint a liquidator. She/he will be given powers to sell the companies property and pay of the debt. Cost (% of 42.0 The costs associated with the case would amount to approximately 42% of the value of the estate) debtor's estate. The cost incurred during the entire insolvency process mainly includes court fees (2%), attorney fees (15%), insolvency representative fees (5%), auctioneer's fees (10%), fees of accountants, assessors, inspectors and other professionals (7%), and other fees (3%). Recovery rate (cents on the 11.1 dollar) Details – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Strength of insolvency framework index (0-16) 6.0 Commencement of proceedings index (0-3) 2.0 What procedures are available to a DEBTOR when commencing insolvency (b) Debtor may 0.5 proceedings? le for liquidation only Does the insolvency framework allow a CREDITOR to le for insolvency of the debtor? (b) Yes, but a 0.5 creditor may le for liquidation only What basis for commencement of the insolvency proceedings is allowed under the (a) Debtor is 1.0 insolvency framework? generally unable to pay its debts as they mature Management of debtor's assets index (0-6) 3.0 Does the insolvency framework allow the continuation of contracts supplying essential No 0.0 goods and services to the debtor? Does the insolvency framework allow the rejection by the debtor of overly burdensome Yes 1.0 Page 57   dollar) Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Resolving Insolvency in Sierra Leone – Measure of Quality Answer Score Strength of insolvency framework index (0-16) 6.0 Commencement of proceedings index (0-3) 2.0 What procedures are available to a DEBTOR when commencing insolvency (b) Debtor may 0.5 proceedings? le for liquidation only Does the insolvency framework allow a CREDITOR to le for insolvency of the debtor? (b) Yes, but a 0.5 creditor may le for liquidation only What basis for commencement of the insolvency proceedings is allowed under the (a) Debtor is 1.0 insolvency framework? generally unable to pay its debts as they mature Management of debtor's assets index (0-6) 3.0 Does the insolvency framework allow the continuation of contracts supplying essential No 0.0 goods and services to the debtor? Does the insolvency framework allow the rejection by the debtor of overly burdensome Yes 1.0 contracts? Does the insolvency framework allow avoidance of preferential transactions? Yes 1.0 Does the insolvency framework allow avoidance of undervalued transactions? Yes 1.0 Does the insolvency framework provide for the possibility of the debtor obtaining credit No 0.0 after commencement of insolvency proceedings? Does the insolvency framework assign priority to post-commencement credit? (c) No priority is 0.0 assigned to post- commencement creditors Reorganization proceedings index (0-3) 0.0 Which creditors vote on the proposed reorganization plan? N/A 0.0 Does the insolvency framework require that dissenting creditors in reorganization No 0.0 receive at least as much as what they would obtain in a liquidation? Are the creditors devided into classes for the purposes of voting on the reorganization No 0.0 plan, does each class vote separately and are creditors in the same class treated equally? Creditor participation index (0-4) 1.0 Does the insolvency framework require approval by the creditors for selection or No 0.0 appointment of the insolvency representative? Does the insolvency framework require approval by the creditors for sale of substantial No 0.0 assets of the debtor? Page 58   Does the insolvency framework require approval by the creditors for selection or No 0.0 appointment Doing Business of the 2018insolvency Sierrarepresentative? Leone Does the insolvency framework require approval by the creditors for sale of substantial No 0.0 assets of the debtor? Does the insolvency framework provide that a creditor has the right to request No 0.0 information from the insolvency representative? Does the insolvency framework provide that a creditor has the right to object to Yes 1.0 decisions accepting or rejecting creditors' claims? Note: Even if the economy’s legal framework includes provisions related to insolvency proceedings (liquidation or reorganization), the economy receives 0 points for the strength of insolvency framework index, if time, cost and outcome indicators are recorded as “no practice”. Labor Market Regulation Doing Business presents the data for the labor market regulation indicators in an annex. The report does not present rankings of economies on these indicators or include the topic in the aggregate distance to frontier score or ranking on the ease of doing business. Detailed data collected on labor market regulation are available on the Doing Business website (http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploretopics/labor-market-regulation). The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Hiring To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions (i) whether xed-term contracts are prohibited for about the worker and the business are used. permanent tasks; (ii) maximum cumulative duration of xed-term contracts; (iii) length of the The worker: probationary period; (iv) minimum wage. - Is a cashier in a supermarket or grocery store, age 19, with one year of work experience. Working hours - Is a full-time employee. (i) maximum number of working days allowed per - Is not a member of the labor union, unless membership is mandatory. week; (ii) premiums for work: at night, on a weekly rest day and overtime; (iii) whether there are The business: restrictions on work at night, work on a weekly rest - Is a limited liability company (or the equivalent in the economy). day and for overtime work; (iv) whether nonpregnant - Operates a supermarket or grocery store in the economy’s largest and nonnursing women can work same night hours business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second as men; (v) length of paid annual leave. largest business city. - Has 60 employees. Redundancy rules - Is subject to collective bargaining agreements if such agreements cover (i) whether redundancy can be basis for terminating more than 50% of the food retail sector and they apply even to rms that workers; (ii) whether employer needs to notify are not party to them. and/or get approval from third party to terminate 1 - Abides by every law and regulation but does not grant workers more redundant worker and a group of 9 redundant bene ts than those mandated by law, regulation or (if applicable) collective workers; (iii) whether law requires employer to bargaining agreements. reassign or retrain a worker before making worker redundant; (iv) whether priority rules apply for redundancies and reemployment. Redundancy cost (i) notice period for redundancy dismissal; (ii) severance payments due when terminating a redundant worker. Job quality (i) whether law mandates equal remuneration for work of equal value and nondiscrimination based on gender in hiring; (ii) whether law mandates paid or unpaid maternity leave; (iii) length of paid maternity Page 59   leave; (iv) whether employees on maternity leave the economy receives 0 points for the strength of insolvency framework index, if time, cost and outcome indicators are recorded as “no practice”. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Labor Market Regulation Doing Business presents the data for the labor market regulation indicators in an annex. The report does not present rankings of economies on these indicators or include the topic in the aggregate distance to frontier score or ranking on the ease of doing business. Detailed data collected on labor market regulation are available on the Doing Business website (http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploretopics/labor-market-regulation). The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information. What the indicators measure Case study assumptions Hiring To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions (i) whether xed-term contracts are prohibited for about the worker and the business are used. permanent tasks; (ii) maximum cumulative duration of xed-term contracts; (iii) length of the The worker: probationary period; (iv) minimum wage. - Is a cashier in a supermarket or grocery store, age 19, with one year of work experience. Working hours - Is a full-time employee. (i) maximum number of working days allowed per - Is not a member of the labor union, unless membership is mandatory. week; (ii) premiums for work: at night, on a weekly rest day and overtime; (iii) whether there are The business: restrictions on work at night, work on a weekly rest - Is a limited liability company (or the equivalent in the economy). day and for overtime work; (iv) whether nonpregnant - Operates a supermarket or grocery store in the economy’s largest and nonnursing women can work same night hours business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second as men; (v) length of paid annual leave. largest business city. - Has 60 employees. Redundancy rules - Is subject to collective bargaining agreements if such agreements cover (i) whether redundancy can be basis for terminating more than 50% of the food retail sector and they apply even to rms that workers; (ii) whether employer needs to notify are not party to them. and/or get approval from third party to terminate 1 - Abides by every law and regulation but does not grant workers more redundant worker and a group of 9 redundant bene ts than those mandated by law, regulation or (if applicable) collective workers; (iii) whether law requires employer to bargaining agreements. reassign or retrain a worker before making worker redundant; (iv) whether priority rules apply for redundancies and reemployment. Redundancy cost (i) notice period for redundancy dismissal; (ii) severance payments due when terminating a redundant worker. Job quality (i) whether law mandates equal remuneration for work of equal value and nondiscrimination based on gender in hiring; (ii) whether law mandates paid or unpaid maternity leave; (iii) length of paid maternity leave; (iv) whether employees on maternity leave receive 100% of wages; (v) availability of ve fully paid days of sick leave a year; (vi) eligibility requirements for unemployment protection. Details – Labor Market Regulation in Sierra Leone Answer Hiring Page 60   Fixed-term contracts prohibited for permanent tasks? Yes days of sick leave a year; (vi) eligibility requirements for unemployment protection. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Details – Labor Market Regulation in Sierra Leone Answer Hiring Fixed-term contracts prohibited for permanent tasks? Yes Maximum length of a single xed-term contract (months) 12.0 Maximum length of xed-term contracts, including renewals (months) No limit Minimum wage applicable to the worker assumed in the case study (US$/month) 84.5 Ratio of minimum wage to value added per worker 1.1 Maximum length of probationary period (months) 6.0 Working hours Standard workday 8.0 Maximum number of working days per week 5.5 Premium for night work (% of hourly pay) 15.0 Premium for work on weekly rest day (% of hourly pay) 100.0 Premium for overtime work (% of hourly pay) 50.0 Restrictions on night work? No Whether nonpregnant and nonnursing women can work the same night hours as men Yes Restrictions on weekly holiday? No Restrictions on overtime work? No Paid annual leave for a worker with 1 year of tenure (working days) 19.0 Paid annual leave for a worker with 5 years of tenure (working days) 22.0 Paid annual leave for a worker with 10 years of tenure (working days) 28.0 Paid annual leave (average for workers with 1, 5 and 10 years of tenure, in working days) 23.0 Redundancy rules Dismissal due to redundancy allowed by law? Yes Third-party noti cation if one worker is dismissed? Yes Third-party approval if one worker is dismissed? No Third-party noti cation if nine workers are dismissed? Yes Third-party approval if nine workers are dismissed? No Retraining or reassignment obligation before redundancy? Yes Page 61   Third-party Doing approval Business 2018 if nine workers Sierra are dismissed? Leone No Retraining or reassignment obligation before redundancy? Yes Priority rules for redundancies? Yes Priority rules for reemployment? Yes Redundancy cost Notice period for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 1 year of tenure 13.0 Notice period for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 5 years of tenure 13.0 Notice period for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 10 years of tenure 13.0 Notice period for redundancy dismissal (average for workers with 1, 5 and 10 years of tenure) 13.0 Severance pay for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 1 year of tenure 8.4 Severance pay for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 5 years of tenure 47.0 Severance pay for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 10 years of tenure 132.0 Severance pay for redundancy dismissal (average for workers with 1, 5 and 10 years of tenure) 62.5 Job quality Equal remuneration for work of equal value? No Gender nondiscrimination in hiring? No Paid or unpaid maternity leave mandated by law? Yes Minimum length of maternity leave (calendar days)? 84.0 Receive 100% of wages on maternity leave? Yes Five fully paid days of sick leave a year? Yes Unemployment protection after one year of employment? No Minimum contribution period for unemployment protection (months)? n.a. Business Reforms in Sierra Leone In the year ending June 1, 2017, 119 economies implemented 264 total reforms across the di erent areas measured by Doing Business. Doing Business has recorded more than 2,900 regulatory reforms making it easier to do business since 2004. Reforms inspired by Doing Business have been implemented by economies in all regions. The following are the reforms for Sierra Leone implemented since Doing Business 2008. = Doing Business reform making it easier to do business. = Change making it more di cult to do business. DB2018 Starting a Business: Sierra Leone made starting a business easier by combining multiple registration procedures. Trading across Borders: Sierra Leone made trading across borders easier through a series of initiatives, including the elimination of export permits and the implementation of pre-arrival processing. DB2017 Starting a Business: Sierra Leone made starting a business easier by reducing registration fees. Page 62   Minimum contribution period for unemployment protection (months)? n.a. Doing Business 2018 Sierra Leone Business Reforms in Sierra Leone In the year ending June 1, 2017, 119 economies implemented 264 total reforms across the di erent areas measured by Doing Business. Doing Business has recorded more than 2,900 regulatory reforms making it easier to do business since 2004. Reforms inspired by Doing Business have been implemented by economies in all regions. The following are the reforms for Sierra Leone implemented since Doing Business 2008. = Doing Business reform making it easier to do business. = Change making it more di cult to do business. DB2018 Starting a Business: Sierra Leone made starting a business easier by combining multiple registration procedures. Trading across Borders: Sierra Leone made trading across borders easier through a series of initiatives, including the elimination of export permits and the implementation of pre-arrival processing. DB2017 Starting a Business: Sierra Leone made starting a business easier by reducing registration fees. DB2015 Getting Electricity: Sierra Leone made getting electricity easier by eliminating the need for customers to submit an application letter inquiring about a new connection before submitting an application—and made the process faster by improving sta ng at the utility. Registering Property: Sierra Leone made registering property easier by introducing a fast-track procedure. Getting Credit: Sierra Leone improved its credit information system by beginning to distribute both positive and negative data and by increasing the system’s coverage rate. Paying Taxes: Sierra Leone made paying taxes more complicated for companies by introducing a capital gains tax. DB2013 Registering Property: Sierra Leone made registering property easier by computerizing the Ministry of Lands, Country Planning and the Environment. Getting Credit: Sierra Leone improved access to credit information by establishing a public credit registry at its central bank and guaranteeing borrowers’ right to inspect their personal data. DB2012 Getting Credit: Sierra Leone improved its credit information system by enacting a new law providing for the creation of a public credit registry. Trading across Borders: Sierra Leone made trading across borders faster by implementing the Automated System for Customs Data (ASYCUDA). Enforcing Contracts: Sierra Leone made enforcing contracts easier by launching a fast-track commercial court. Resolving Insolvency: Sierra Leone established a fast-track commercial court in an e ort to expedite commercial cases, including insolvency proceedings. DB2011 Dealing with Construction Permits: Sierra Leone made dealing with construction permits easier by streamlining the issuance of location clearances and building permits. Registering Property: Sierra Leone lifted a moratorium on sales of privately owned properties. Paying Taxes: Sierra Leone replaced sales and service taxes with a goods and service tax. DB2010 Starting a Business: Sierra Leone made starting a business easier by establishing a one-stop shop for company registration. Page 63   Doing Business 2018 DB2010 Sierra Leone Starting a Business: Sierra Leone made starting a business easier by establishing a one-stop shop for company registration. Registering Property: Sierra Leone made transferring property more di cult by reinstating a moratorium on the authorization of property transfers by the director of surveys and lands. Getting Credit: Sierra Leone strengthened its secured transactions system through a new company act that allows the use of xed and oating charges and automatically extends a security interest to the products, proceeds and replacements of the collateral. Protecting Minority Investors: Sierra Leone strengthened investor protections through a new company act enhancing director liability and improving disclosure requirements. Paying Taxes: Sierra Leone made paying taxes easier for companies by improving training and equipment at the tax authority, publishing a consolidated income tax act and introducing a value added tax system that replaces 4 di erent sales taxes. Trading across Borders: Sierra Leone made trading across borders more costly through an increase in some fees, though it also reduced the time required for trade. Resolving Insolvency: Sierra Leone improved its insolvency process through a new company act that encourages nancially distressed companies to rst try to reorganize rather than going straight into liquidation. DB2009 Starting a Business: Sierra Leone reduced the time, cost and number of procedures to start a business by making the use of a lawyer optional and abolishing other registration formalities, including paying taxes up front and obtaining exchange control permission from the central bank. Dealing with Construction Permits: Sierra Leone made dealing with construction permits easier by better enforcing the rules and regulations on risk-based inspections during construction and by issuing a schedule of inspections together with the building permit. Registering Property: Sierra Leone reduced the time needed to transfer property by lifting a ban on obtaining the director of survey’s signature on the cadastral map—a ban that had been imposed to prevent a common scam in which the same property would be sold several times over to di erent people. Trading across Borders: Sierra Leone made trading across borders easier by eliminating the requirement for an export license for co ee. DB2008 Paying Taxes: Sierra Leone made paying taxes less costly for companies by reducing the sales tax rate. Page 64   DB2008 Paying Doing Taxes: Sierra Business 2018Leone made Leone Sierra paying taxes less costly for companies by reducing the sales tax rate. Page 65