2A.1 Overview of Firm-Level Data

But potential exists even in some of the lower-productivity services. The existence of productivity gaps between low- and high-income countries in the productivity of low-skill services (highlighted in chapter 1) provides some hope that a productivity catch-up is possible.

The next chapters will look more deeply at the potential contribution of digital technologies to productivity and jobs and at the role of services firms as upstream enablers and downstream complements of the activities to which they are linked.

Finally, as chapters 3 and 4 will explore, the growing importance of digital technologies can increase opportunities for scale and innovation among low-skill services, while increased linkages of the global innovator services with other sectors can spread the productivity benefits more widely.

Annex 2A Data Sources

The firm-level analysis conducted in this chapter relies on firm-level data from 20 low- and middle-income countries (table 2A.1) as well as additional aggregated data from statistical sources—covering 56 countries in total across all income groups. Only in 11 countries were panel data available (of which two countries, South Africa and Turkey, allowed access to the data only in a secured data room).

TABLE 2A.1 Overview of Firm-Level Data Country or territory Year Number of firms Source Description

Firm-level data sources

Bangladesh 2013 3,336,726 Census Establishment-level; includes informal enterprises; no capital information available

Cabo Verde 2014 9,185 Census Establishment-level; no capital information available

Cambodia 2011 505,134 Census Establishment-level; includes informal enterprises; no capital information available

Côte d’Ivoire 2003–12 (panel) 60,558 Census

Firm-level El Salvador 2006–17 (panel) 150,406 Census Establishment-level; no capital information available Kazakhstan 2009–19 (panel) 72,689 Financial data Establishment-level Kosovo 2005–14 (panel) 177,736 Business registry Firm-level; no capital information available Moldova 2003–14 (panel) 288,188 Financial data Establishment-level Table continues on the following page

TABLE 2A.1 Overview of Firm-Level Data (continued) Country or territory Year Number of firms Source Description

Mozambique 2016 42,884 Census Firm-level; no capital information available North Macedonia 2011–16 (panel) 311,143 Business registry Firm-level Paraguay 2014 3,210 Survey Establishment-level; no capital information available

Peru

2007–12 (panel) 42,698 Survey Rwanda 2014 7,912 Census Establishment-level Establishment level. No capital information available.

Sierra Leone 2016 15,777 Census

Firm-level; no capital information available Serbia 2007–17 (panel) 73,019 Business registry Firm-level South Africa 2010–14 (panel) 112,247 Administrative data Firm-level Turkey 2007–16 (panel) 2,984,534 Administrative data Firm-level Uganda 2010 4,705 Survey Firm-level; no capital information available

Vietnam 2009–14 (panel) 2,704,884 Census Zambia 2010 7,053 Survey Establishment-level Establishment-level; no capital information available

Comparator data sources

European Union (EU) Varies

Non-EU OECD countries

1995–17 (varies by country) United States 1998–17

Varies Structural Business Statistics survey (Eurostat and national statistical offices) Only aggregated information available

Varies Surveys and censuses (OECD)

Only aggregated information available 3,653,746 US Census Bureau Only aggregated information available

Note: OECD = Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

All but two countries cover formal firms only; hence, for consistency, the results presented in this chapter focus on formal firms. Countries differ in the type of data available, and not all countries report the capital stock of firms or the use of intermediate inputs.

Annex 2B Alternative Measures of Scale

The main analysis in this chapter focused on the average number of employees as well as the distribution of employment among firms as a measure of scale. These are not the only