Chapter five: Corporate governance Table 5.3: Starting a business Starting a business Doing business 2007 Doing business 2008 Doing business 2009 … 128 125 8 8 7 73 73 40 Rank Procedure (number) Duration (days) Source: World Bank Doing Business Survey 2009. 529. Registering property. Formal property titles help promote the transfer of land, encourage investment and give entrepreneurs access to the formal credit market. However, a large proportion of property in developing economies is not formally registered. Informal titles cannot be used as security in obtaining loans. This limits financing opportunities for businesses. Lesotho is ranked 135 out of 181 economies in efficient ways of registering property in the “Doing Business Survey 2009”. In Lesotho, land belongs to the state. Table 5.4: Registering property Registering property Rank Procedure (number) Duration (days) Doing business 2007 Doing business 2008 Doing business 2009 … 133 135 6 6 6 101 101 101 Source: World Bank Doing Business Survey 2009. 530. Getting credit. Firms consistently rate access to credit as among the greatest barriers to their operation and growth. The introduction of an official Credit Registry, which collects and distributes credit information on borrowers, can ease access to credit. Lesotho is ranked 84 as regards this aspect. The major obstacle to doing business in Lesotho is access to credit. 531. Protecting investors. Companies grow by raising capital, either through a bank loan or by attracting equity investors. Sales of shares allow companies to expand without it being necessary to provide collateral and repay bank loans. Investors, however, worry about their money and look for loans that protect them. A World Bank study found that the presence of legal and regulatory protections for investors explains up to 73 per cent of a decision to invest. Good protection for minority shareholders is associated with larger and more active stock markets. Thus, governments and businesses have an interest in reforms that increase investor protection. With regard to protecting investors, “Doing Business Survey 2009” ranks Lesotho 142 out of 181 economies worldwide. Figure 5.2 illustrates the protecting investors index in Lesotho compared with selected economies. 147