Enterprise Survey of Micro Firms 2022

The variable naming reflects whether or not the respective variable is also present in the ES or ESIS databases, for cross-size/registration-status comparability. In particular, all variables the first letter of which matches the section of the questionnaire are also present in the standard ES (not only in India but including most other ES). The variables starting with letter i are also present in the ESIS. All the variables that are specific to ESM start with the letter m. The variables with msc in the name are specific to the India ESM, and thus may not be found in the implementation of the rollout in other countries. All variables are numeric with the exception of those variables with an x at the end of their names, which are alpha-numeric.

There are 2 establishment identifiers, idstd and id. The first is a global unique identifier. The second is a country unique identifier. The variables a2 (sampling region), a6a (sampling establishment’s size), and a4a (sampling sector) contain the establishment’s classification into the strata chosen for each country using information from the sample frame. The strata were defined according to the guidelines described above. As these stratification variables contain information from the sampling frame, they may not coincide with the reality of individual establishments as more accurate information is collected through the detailed ESM interview.

As noted above, there are two levels of stratification: industry (variable a4a) and region (a2). Different combinations of these variables generate the strata cells for each industry/region combination (variable strata). A distinction should be made between the variable a4a and d1a2_v4/d1a2 (industry expressed as ISIC rev. 4.1 and 3.1, respectively). The former gives the establishment’s classification into one of the chosen industry-strata based on the sample frame, whereas the latter gives the establishment’s actual industry classification (four-digit code) based on the main activity at the time of the survey.

The survey was implemented following a two-stage procedure. Sometimes, first a screener questionnaire is applied over the phone to determine eligibility and to make appointments. Then a face-to-face interview takes place with the Manager/Owner/Director of each establishment. However, sometimes the phone numbers were unavailable in the sample frame, and thus the enumerators applied the screeners in person. The variables a4b_v4 and a6c contain the industry and size of the establishment from the screener questionnaire. Note that there are variables for size (section L) that reflect more accurately the reality of each establishment. Users are advised to use these variables for analytical purposes.

Most of the questions in the ESM instrument refer to the information about the last completed fiscal year. For India 2022 ESM, this date was March 31, 2021. For questions pertaining to monetary amounts, the unit is the Indian rupee.