Data

The World Bank Enterprise Surveys offer both indicators and firm-level data (microdata).

Explore indicators in this page. For access to the microdata, visit the Data Portal by selecting "Access microdata".

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Formal Sector Enterprise Surveys

The Formal Sector World Bank Enterprise Surveys (WBES) offer an expansive array of economic microdata on more than 253,000 businesses in 168 economies, which have been collected through over 405 WBES across the globe and are used to construct over 150 indicators. These nationally representative surveys cover a broad range of business topics including access to finance, corruption, infrastructure, crime, competition, and performance measures. Both the indicators and microdata are used by policymakers, researchers, and businesses to understand and improve the economic conditions across economies.

The indicators from the WBES are available in this website and in the Data Portal. For firm-level microdata, please access the Data Portal through the "Access microdata" button in the banner of this page. 

Note that data users should exercise caution when comparing raw data and point estimates between surveys that did and did not adhere to the Global Methodology.

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Download a custom set of indicators

The Enterprise Analysis Unit has aggregated the firm-level data from the Formal Sector World Bank Enterprise Surveys (WBES) in indicators. These can be viewed and downloaded at the economy-level. When an economy is selected, all editions using the Global Methodology that are available for that economy will show. Options include viewing data by firm subgroups with the corresponding standard errors and number of observations.

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        Resources

        Catalog of other firm-level surveys carried out by the World Bank

        This page provides information about other firm-level surveys conducted by the World Bank, which are collected through the form available in the right-side column of this page.

        World Bank users are encouraged to submit details about their own firm-level surveys

        The World Bank Enterprise Surveys (WBES) are firm-level surveys of a representative sample of an economy's private sector. 

        Employment indicators

        Download Employment Indicators.

        Replication of WBES Indicators

        Download Zip file with the WBES indicators replication package. 

        Informal Sector Enterprise Surveys

        The Informal Sector World Bank Enterprise Surveys offer microdata on over 47,000 unregistered businesses in more than 60 cities across 17 economies, and  over 90 indicators based on this microdata. The indicators and microdata can be used to answer policy questions, such as “What types of informal businesses are prevalent?” and “Why are these businesses not registered?”

        The indicators and firm-level microdata from the Informal Sector Enterprise Surveys are available in the Data Portal. Please access the Data Portal through the "Access microdata" button in the banner of this page. 

        Informal Sector completed surveys:

        • East Asia & Pacific: Cambodia: Battambang, Phnom Penh, Siemreap and Siahnoukville; Indonesia: Jakarta, Surabaya, Denpasar, Medan, Pontianak, and Makassar; Lao PDR: Pakse, Vientiane.
        • Latin America & Caribbean: Peru: Lima and Trujillo.
        • Middle East & North Africa: Iraq: Baghdad, Basra, Najaf, Sulaymaniyah.
        • South Asia: Bangladesh: Dhaka, Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar; India: Hyderabad, Jaipur,  Kochi,  Ludhiana,  Mumbai,  Sehore,  Surat,  Tezpur,  Varanasi; Nepal: Kathmandu, Biratnagar, Dhankuta, Janakpur, Birgunj, Pokhara, Butwal, and Nepalgunj.
        • Sub-Saharan Africa: Central African Republic: Bangui, Berberati; Congo, Dem. Rep.: Bukavu, Bunia, Goma, Kananga, Kinshasa, Kisangani, Lubumbashi, Matadi, and Mbuji-Mayi; Ghana: Accra, Kumasi, Tamale; Mozambique: Beira, Maputo, Nampula; Federal Republic of Somalia: Basaso, Mogadishu; Sudan: Khartoum, Omdurman, Port Sudan; Tanzania: Dar es Salaam; Zambia: Kitwe, Lusaka, Ndola; Zimbabwe: Harare.

         

        Resources

        Catalog of other firm-level surveys carried out by the World Bank

        This page provides information about other firm-level surveys conducted by the World Bank, which are collected through the form available in the right-side column of this page.

        World Bank users are encouraged to submit details about their own firm-level surveys

        The World Bank Enterprise Surveys (WBES) are firm-level surveys of a representative sample of an economy's private sector. 

        Informal Sector Enterprise Survey Indicators

        Download Informal Sector Enterprise Survey Indicators.

        Informal Sector Enterprise Survey Indicator Descriptions

        Download Informal Sector Enterprise Survey Indicator Descriptions.

        Micro Enterprise Surveys and Other Surveys

        The Micro Enterprise Surveys provide data for businesses with 1-4 workers across 35 economies around the world.

        Other business surveys carried out by the Enterprise Analysis Unit include:

        • Covid-19 surveys in 2020-2022. To explore the indicators, visit this page.  
        • Topic Surveys - private sector surveys on specific topics such as innovation, tourism, among others.

        Indicators and firm-level microdata from the Micro Enterprise Surveys and Other Surveys are available in the Data Portal. Please access the Data Portal through the "Access microdata" button in the banner of this page. 

        Resources

        Catalog of other firm-level surveys carried out by the World Bank

        This page provides information about other firm-level surveys conducted by the World Bank, which are collected through the form available in the right-side column of this page.

        World Bank users are encouraged to submit details about their own firm-level surveys

        The World Bank Enterprise Surveys (WBES) are firm-level surveys of a representative sample of an economy's private sector. 

        Micro Enterprise Surveys microdata

        Access Micro Enterprise Surveys microdata.

        Covid-19 Enterprise Surveys and Others

        Access Covid-19 Enterprise Survey indicators. 

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