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Corruption in public sector named biggest obstacle to do business in Riga: survey

Xinhua, July 2, 2015 Adjust font size:

When it comes to doing business in the Latvian capital city Riga, corruption in the public sector creates the biggest obstacle, a new survey of entrepreneurs has shown.

According to the survey conducted by the Employers' Confederation of Latvia, entrepreneurs in Pieriga, a region around the Latvian capital, feel that their operations are hampered mostly by rival businessmen's activities aimed at restricting competition.

Inaccessibility of infrastructure and difficulties getting the necessary licences and permits were the main problems cited by entrepreneurs in the north-eastern Latvian region of Vidzeme, and in the western region of Kurzeme businesspeople also complained about the lack of infrastructure and corruption in the public sector.

In the eastern Latvian region of Latgale, the polled entrepreneurs named poor labour safety and a lack of transparency in municipal tenders as the main problems preventing them from doing their business successfully.

In the central Latvian region of Zemgale, the main obstacles to do business, in entrepreneurs' view, include red tape in central government and municipal tenders, as well as attempts by other market players to restrict competition.

As for the obstacles named most frequently by entrepreneurs in all Latvia's regions, 59 percent cited high tax rates, 45 percent named changeable laws and regulations, and 42 percent complained about taxation laws and their administration. Endit