Wait No More

This report illustrates how Caribbean countries experience the smallest unit of public policy: the government transaction. Government transactions–requesting a birth certificate, registering a property, or opening a business, for example–are how citizens and companies connect with the government. Efficient government transactions enhance the business climate, citizen perception of government, and access to crucial public programs and services. In the Caribbean, however, government transactions are often headaches: on average, they take more than four hours to complete, and more than 30 percent of transactions require three or more visits to public offices. The present material empirically confirms a reality known anecdotally but previously unquantified and offers a path to escape the bureaucratic maze.