Vanuatu: New businesses registered (number)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2018, Vanuatu's new businesses registered (number) rose 53.6% on 2017 (from 168 to 258).

Across the 11 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2017), the average change was +31% and a typical year strayed about 90.2% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 278.3% in 2010 and the biggest yearly fall was 65.2% in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2009 to 2018 the straight-line trend is upward, about 18.39 a year. A straight line explains 69% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

Closest to Vanuatu in the 2018 ranking

• Afghanistan — 4th of 8: 4,274
• Tajikistan — 5th of 8: 831
• Solomon Islands — 6th of 8: 444
• Kiribati — 8th of 8: 2

What this measures

New businesses registered are the number of new limited liability corporations (or its equivalent) registered in the calendar year.

Limitations: The definition of entrepreneurship used is limited to the formal sector. Yet, it should be noted that the exclusion of the informal sector is based on the difficulties of quantifying the number of firms that compose it, rather than on its relevance for developing economies. Data collected from economies categorized as offshore financial centers by Eurostat are excluded from the analysis, because registered entities in these countries may not fit the objective of the Entrepreneurship Database aiming at measuring formally registered companies with actual economic activities.

All 13 values

New businesses registered (number) in nearby economies

• Australia — 316,561 (2024)
• Brunei Darussalam — 157 (2024)
• Cambodia — 5,138 (2024)
• China — 286,640 (2024)
• Fiji — 1,665 (2024)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 145,053 (2024)
• Indonesia — 182,200 (2024)
• Japan — 41,946 (2024)
• Kiribati — 2 (2018)
• Korea, Rep. — 128,455 (2023)
• Lao PDR — 7,941 (2024)

More private sector & trade data for Vanuatu

• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$515 million (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$78 million (2025)
• Merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports) — 50.98% (2023)
• Merchandise exports by the reporting economy, residual (% of total merchandise exports) — 0% (2023)
• Merchandise exports by the reporting economy (current US$) — US$62.98 million (2023)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 68.32% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in East Asia & Pacific (% of total merchandise imports) — 30.48% (2023)
• Merchandise imports by the reporting economy, residual (% of total merchandise imports)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Vanuatu's new businesses registered (number)?

258 in 2018, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2006?

It is up 386.79% from 53 in 2006 (14.1% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 258 in 2018 and the lowest 23 in 2009.

Is the latest change in new businesses registered (number) unusual for Vanuatu?

In 2018, Vanuatu's new businesses registered (number) rose 53.6% on 2017 (from 168 to 258). Across the 11 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2017), the average change was +31% and a typical year strayed about 90.2% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IC.BUS.NREG, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.