Almost unnoticed in the turmoil surrounding numerous scandals, the Chinchilla Administration’s vow to make the country an easier place to do business seems to have borne some fruit.

The nation jumped 12 places in the Doing Business ranking by the World Bank. Vice President Luis Liberman, among others in both the Oscar Arias and Chinchilla administrations, have been working on the problem.

Previously, the survey has given Costa Rica a very low ranking due to difficulties caused by stifling bureaucracy for running a business here. But both administrations, spanning 2006-12, have cleared away some underbrush.

For 2013, the country is ranked at 110 out of 185 countries, a lot better than their 2012 ranking of 122, but a long way from where Liberman would like to see the nation.

The country jumped 14 places in the obtaining credit category, 11 in ease of granting construction permits, 11 in international trade and 10 in payment of taxes. The last undoubtedly because of on line methods put in place.

But the country backslid three places in the opening of a new business, something that is vital for brisk foreign investment. According to the annual study, it takes 12 steps and about 60 exhausting days to open a new firm here, the longest in Latin America.

But Economy Minister Mayi Antillon notes that a new electronic access, www.crearempresa.go.cr, reduces to 20 days the time needed to establish a new firm–if there are no unexpected complications.

Shirley Saborio, director of the Costa Rican Union of Private Sector Chambers and Associations, while happy with the improvement, says the most urgent work needs to be done with obtaining environmental and health permits.

Setena and other environmental agencies have been recognized for years for their leisurely assessment of new business establishment. The Ministry of Health, although thorough, has the same problem.