MANILA, Philippines?The Philippines ranked 148th out of 183 economies in terms of ease of doing business, based on a recent study by the International Finance Corp.

According to the unit of the World Bank group, the processes involved in starting a business in the Philippines and securing construction permits are the biggest roadblocks for entrepreneurs.

In its Doing Business 2011 report, IFC said the Philippines ranked 156th in both the ?starting a business? and ?dealing with construction permits? categories of the survey.

The country?s dismal showing in these categories was mainly attributed to the length of time it would take to secure relevant permits, the number of steps related to business and construction permit applications, and the costs associated with getting applications approved.

In the ?starting a business? category, the country had the most number of procedures, placed at 15, to secure all business registrations and permits. It tied with Brunei Darussalam, and stood behind China by just one procedure. The average for the East Asia and Pacific region was 7.8 steps.

The cost entailed in starting a business?at 29.7 percent of income per capita?was higher than the regional average of 27.1 percent.

The number of days it takes to secure construction permits in the Philippines is high at 169. In contrast, it takes only 25 days to secure the same permits in Singapore.

The costs associated with securing construction permits in the country was the highest in the region, at 778.5 percent of income per capita, more than thrice the regional average of 168.7 percent.

Reacting to the report, Trade Undersecretary and Board of Investments managing head Cristino Panlilio said the results were a cause for concern.

?We are worried about all these things,? Panlilio said. ?We?ve assigned a task force to get all the inputs and factors affecting the results of these ratings. We want to categorize which are immediately controllable, and those that will take longer, and are even impossible, to address.?

He expressed optimism that the country would score better in all relevant competitiveness surveys by 2012.

?Our goal is to get into the top 50 percent, to at least be in the midpoint, of the rankings,? Panlilio said.