Legal & Regulatory Reform

In many countries, poorly designed, duplicative, or unnecessary laws and regulations create roadblocks for entrepreneurs trying to establish or expand their businesses. Such regulations create opportunities for corruption and deter businesses from registering, forcing them into the informal sector where they do not have access to legal protections or the finance they need to grow. Another common problem is lack of enforcement when appropriate laws and regulations exist on the books but are not implemented in practice. The Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) believes that the best approach to addressing these issues is to help private sector associations become a voice of business in public policy debate so that entrepreneurs can jointly identify problem areas and work with governments toward concrete solutions.

After identifying reform priorities, a challenging next step for reformers in developing countries can be conducting an effective advocacy campaign. While many CIPE partners are exercising often newfound freedoms to debate, critique, and propose policy alternatives, the idea of participatory decision-making still may be misunderstood or out-of-practice. Yet, it is through such coordinated advocacy efforts that the private sector can become a real advocate for change. Organizations with a successful advocacy plan can not only propose policy alternatives and watch their successful adoption, they also set a path for future reformers.

As CIPE partners work to agree on and solidify their legislative recommendations and priorities, CIPE is able to provide support and information through toolkits and guidebooks, analysis and proposal examples, and lessons learned from experiences around the world.