Second-world country

I wrote a post awhile ago about government interference with tariffs and red tape hindering growth.

Here's some more interesting facts that make you wonder what these people are thinking:

• In Lima, Peru, to legally establish a one-person garment workshop takes 289 days of bureaucratic toil, costing $1,231, 31 times the monthly minimum wage.
  
• In the Philippines, purchasing land can involve up to 168 steps, interacting with 53 public and private agencies, and take from 13 to 25 years.
  
• In Egypt, buying land can involve more than 77 procedures at 31 public and private agencies, and can take from 5 to 14 years.
  
• In Haiti, to buy land you need to jump over 111 bureaucratic hurdles, and
  wait for at least 12 years.
  

These governments are hindering growth and I'm sure their people and economy would be a lot better if some all of the red tape were cut.

"The more sophisticated a society and its economy becomes, the easier it is for its citizens to do what they need to do." - Gerry McGovern

(The above are just a few examples from Hernando De Soto's groundbreaking book,
The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else.)