Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status
In April 2014, the Government of Benin launched the entreprenant status, a simplified and free legal regime offered to small informal businesses to enter the formal economy. This paper presents the short-term results of a randomized impact evaluati...
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| Format: | Working Paper |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2015
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/12/25660436/finding-path-formalization-benin-early-results-after-introduction-entreprenant-legal-status http://hdl.handle.net/10986/23472 |
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okr-10986-234722021-06-14T10:20:57Z Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status Benhassine, Najy McKenzie, David Pouliquen, Victor Santini, Massimiliano BUSINESS FACILITATION DEPOSIT LIABILITY QUALITY OF SERVICES CHECKS ACCOUNTING ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT TAX EXEMPTION LEGAL ENVIRONMENT CERTIFICATE SALES DUMMY VARIABLES MEDIUM ENTERPRISES OPTION EXCHANGE BANKING SYSTEM INFORMATION BANK ACCOUNT DEVELOPING COUNTRIES SELLING MONITORING ACCESS TO BANK FINANCIAL STATEMENTS IMPACTS LOAN TRADE SECTOR TAX OWNERSHIP QUALITY DUMMY VARIABLE BENEFICIARIES INTERNATIONAL BANK OPEN ACCESS ENABLING ENVIRONMENT INFORMATION SERVICES BUDGET ECONOMIC ACTIVITY SMALL BUSINESS INSTITUTIONS INTERNATIONAL FINANCE INFORMATION BANKS ADVERTISING TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE BUSINESS REGULATION COMMERCE PHONE NUMBER ONE-STOP SHOP COMMERCIAL BANK INFORMATION SERVICES CONTRACTS IMPACT EVALUATION TAX REGIME LICENSE TRADING TAX EXEMPTIONS PRODUCTIVITY BUSINESS SERVICES MARKETS DIRECT COSTS INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL PRODUCTS LOANS BUSINESS ENTRY ARTISANS BUSINESS REGISTRATION DATABASES CASH TRANSFERS ACCOUNT BANK FINANCING FINANCE TAXES TAX FORMS PHONE HUMAN CAPITAL GOOD TAX RATE INSPECTION BUSINESS MANAGEMENT CONTACT INFORMATION BUSINESS PLAN TRANSPARENCY RESULTS ACCESS TO BANKS BUSINESS PERFORMANCES TURNOVER FUTURE MOBILE PHONE COMPETITIVENESS ELECTRICITY RETURNS TAX REGIMES CONTRACT PROTOCOLS FIRM PERFORMANCE TAX RATES COST INFORMATION BANKS SHARES MARKET NEW MARKETS COMMERCIAL LAW BANK ACCOUNTS LEVY ADMINISTRATION RESULT BOOKKEEPING BANK LOAN REGISTRATION SYSTEM BANK LOANS BUSINESS ACTIVITY NETWORK BUSINESSES BUSINESS COMMERCIAL BANKS SHARE TAX SYSTEM COLLATERAL PERFORMANCE INSPECTIONS BUSINESS PLANS INSTITUTION PROFIT PROTOCOL ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS ACCOUNTS CHECK DEBIT CARD COMMUNICATION CHAMBER OF COMMERCE UNFAIR COMPETITION CUSTOMERS DATABASE PROFITS IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES LIMITED LIABILITY BUSINESS PERFORMANCE IMPLEMENTATION SMALL BUSINESSES PERFORMANCES REGISTRATION PROCESS BUSINESS TRAINING TAX OBLIGATIONS MICROENTERPRISES In April 2014, the Government of Benin launched the entreprenant status, a simplified and free legal regime offered to small informal businesses to enter the formal economy. This paper presents the short-term results of a randomized impact evaluation testing three different versions of the entreprenant status on business registration decisions, each version including incremental incentives to registration: (i) information on the new legal status and its benefits, (ii) business training, counseling services, and support to open a bank account, (iii) tax mediation services. The study included 3,600 informal businesses operating with a fixed location in Cotonou, Benin, which were randomly allocated between three treatment groups and one control group. One year after the program launch, all versions of the program had significant impact on formalization rates. The impact was 9.1 percentage points in the first treatment group; 13 percentage points in the second group; and 15.8 percentage points in the last group. The program had a higher impact on male business owners, with more education, operating outside Dantokpa Market, in sectors other than trade, and that before being offered the incentives to formalization had characteristics similar to businesses that were already formal. Data from a second follow-up survey, which is expected to take place in March 2016, will explore the impacts on other outcomes, like business performances or access to banking. 2015-12-22T16:25:24Z 2015-12-22T16:25:24Z 2015-12 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/12/25660436/finding-path-formalization-benin-early-results-after-introduction-entreprenant-legal-status http://hdl.handle.net/10986/23472 English en_US Policy Research Working Paper;No. 7510 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/ World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper Africa Benin |
| repository_type |
Digital Repository |
| institution_category |
Foreign Institution |
| institution |
Digital Repositories |
| building |
World Bank Open Knowledge Repository |
| collection |
World Bank |
| language |
English en_US |
| topic |
BUSINESS FACILITATION DEPOSIT LIABILITY QUALITY OF SERVICES CHECKS ACCOUNTING ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT TAX EXEMPTION LEGAL ENVIRONMENT CERTIFICATE SALES DUMMY VARIABLES MEDIUM ENTERPRISES OPTION EXCHANGE BANKING SYSTEM INFORMATION BANK ACCOUNT DEVELOPING COUNTRIES SELLING MONITORING ACCESS TO BANK FINANCIAL STATEMENTS IMPACTS LOAN TRADE SECTOR TAX OWNERSHIP QUALITY DUMMY VARIABLE BENEFICIARIES INTERNATIONAL BANK OPEN ACCESS ENABLING ENVIRONMENT INFORMATION SERVICES BUDGET ECONOMIC ACTIVITY SMALL BUSINESS INSTITUTIONS INTERNATIONAL FINANCE INFORMATION BANKS ADVERTISING TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE BUSINESS REGULATION COMMERCE PHONE NUMBER ONE-STOP SHOP COMMERCIAL BANK INFORMATION SERVICES CONTRACTS IMPACT EVALUATION TAX REGIME LICENSE TRADING TAX EXEMPTIONS PRODUCTIVITY BUSINESS SERVICES MARKETS DIRECT COSTS INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL PRODUCTS LOANS BUSINESS ENTRY ARTISANS BUSINESS REGISTRATION DATABASES CASH TRANSFERS ACCOUNT BANK FINANCING FINANCE TAXES TAX FORMS PHONE HUMAN CAPITAL GOOD TAX RATE INSPECTION BUSINESS MANAGEMENT CONTACT INFORMATION BUSINESS PLAN TRANSPARENCY RESULTS ACCESS TO BANKS BUSINESS PERFORMANCES TURNOVER FUTURE MOBILE PHONE COMPETITIVENESS ELECTRICITY RETURNS TAX REGIMES CONTRACT PROTOCOLS FIRM PERFORMANCE TAX RATES COST INFORMATION BANKS SHARES MARKET NEW MARKETS COMMERCIAL LAW BANK ACCOUNTS LEVY ADMINISTRATION RESULT BOOKKEEPING BANK LOAN REGISTRATION SYSTEM BANK LOANS BUSINESS ACTIVITY NETWORK BUSINESSES BUSINESS COMMERCIAL BANKS SHARE TAX SYSTEM COLLATERAL PERFORMANCE INSPECTIONS BUSINESS PLANS INSTITUTION PROFIT PROTOCOL ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS ACCOUNTS CHECK DEBIT CARD COMMUNICATION CHAMBER OF COMMERCE UNFAIR COMPETITION CUSTOMERS DATABASE PROFITS IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES LIMITED LIABILITY BUSINESS PERFORMANCE IMPLEMENTATION SMALL BUSINESSES PERFORMANCES REGISTRATION PROCESS BUSINESS TRAINING TAX OBLIGATIONS MICROENTERPRISES |
| spellingShingle |
BUSINESS FACILITATION DEPOSIT LIABILITY QUALITY OF SERVICES CHECKS ACCOUNTING ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT TAX EXEMPTION LEGAL ENVIRONMENT CERTIFICATE SALES DUMMY VARIABLES MEDIUM ENTERPRISES OPTION EXCHANGE BANKING SYSTEM INFORMATION BANK ACCOUNT DEVELOPING COUNTRIES SELLING MONITORING ACCESS TO BANK FINANCIAL STATEMENTS IMPACTS LOAN TRADE SECTOR TAX OWNERSHIP QUALITY DUMMY VARIABLE BENEFICIARIES INTERNATIONAL BANK OPEN ACCESS ENABLING ENVIRONMENT INFORMATION SERVICES BUDGET ECONOMIC ACTIVITY SMALL BUSINESS INSTITUTIONS INTERNATIONAL FINANCE INFORMATION BANKS ADVERTISING TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE BUSINESS REGULATION COMMERCE PHONE NUMBER ONE-STOP SHOP COMMERCIAL BANK INFORMATION SERVICES CONTRACTS IMPACT EVALUATION TAX REGIME LICENSE TRADING TAX EXEMPTIONS PRODUCTIVITY BUSINESS SERVICES MARKETS DIRECT COSTS INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL PRODUCTS LOANS BUSINESS ENTRY ARTISANS BUSINESS REGISTRATION DATABASES CASH TRANSFERS ACCOUNT BANK FINANCING FINANCE TAXES TAX FORMS PHONE HUMAN CAPITAL GOOD TAX RATE INSPECTION BUSINESS MANAGEMENT CONTACT INFORMATION BUSINESS PLAN TRANSPARENCY RESULTS ACCESS TO BANKS BUSINESS PERFORMANCES TURNOVER FUTURE MOBILE PHONE COMPETITIVENESS ELECTRICITY RETURNS TAX REGIMES CONTRACT PROTOCOLS FIRM PERFORMANCE TAX RATES COST INFORMATION BANKS SHARES MARKET NEW MARKETS COMMERCIAL LAW BANK ACCOUNTS LEVY ADMINISTRATION RESULT BOOKKEEPING BANK LOAN REGISTRATION SYSTEM BANK LOANS BUSINESS ACTIVITY NETWORK BUSINESSES BUSINESS COMMERCIAL BANKS SHARE TAX SYSTEM COLLATERAL PERFORMANCE INSPECTIONS BUSINESS PLANS INSTITUTION PROFIT PROTOCOL ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS ACCOUNTS CHECK DEBIT CARD COMMUNICATION CHAMBER OF COMMERCE UNFAIR COMPETITION CUSTOMERS DATABASE PROFITS IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES LIMITED LIABILITY BUSINESS PERFORMANCE IMPLEMENTATION SMALL BUSINESSES PERFORMANCES REGISTRATION PROCESS BUSINESS TRAINING TAX OBLIGATIONS MICROENTERPRISES Benhassine, Najy McKenzie, David Pouliquen, Victor Santini, Massimiliano Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status |
| geographic_facet |
Africa Benin |
| relation |
Policy Research Working Paper;No. 7510 |
| description |
In April 2014, the Government of Benin
launched the entreprenant status, a simplified and free
legal regime offered to small informal businesses to enter
the formal economy. This paper presents the short-term
results of a randomized impact evaluation testing three
different versions of the entreprenant status on business
registration decisions, each version including incremental
incentives to registration: (i) information on the new legal
status and its benefits, (ii) business training, counseling
services, and support to open a bank account, (iii) tax
mediation services. The study included 3,600 informal
businesses operating with a fixed location in Cotonou,
Benin, which were randomly allocated between three treatment
groups and one control group. One year after the program
launch, all versions of the program had significant impact
on formalization rates. The impact was 9.1 percentage points
in the first treatment group; 13 percentage points in the
second group; and 15.8 percentage points in the last group.
The program had a higher impact on male business owners,
with more education, operating outside Dantokpa Market, in
sectors other than trade, and that before being offered the
incentives to formalization had characteristics similar to
businesses that were already formal. Data from a second
follow-up survey, which is expected to take place in March
2016, will explore the impacts on other outcomes, like
business performances or access to banking. |
| format |
Working Paper |
| author |
Benhassine, Najy McKenzie, David Pouliquen, Victor Santini, Massimiliano |
| author_facet |
Benhassine, Najy McKenzie, David Pouliquen, Victor Santini, Massimiliano |
| author_sort |
Benhassine, Najy |
| title |
Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status |
| title_short |
Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status |
| title_full |
Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status |
| title_fullStr |
Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Finding a Path to Formalization in Benin : Early Results after the Introduction of the Entreprenant Legal Status |
| title_sort |
finding a path to formalization in benin : early results after the introduction of the entreprenant legal status |
| publisher |
World Bank, Washington, DC |
| publishDate |
2015 |
| url |
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/12/25660436/finding-path-formalization-benin-early-results-after-introduction-entreprenant-legal-status http://hdl.handle.net/10986/23472 |
| _version_ |
1764453939451789312 |