not have state participation or is below 10%, those firms and their subsidiaries are excluded from the. This extra step helped to update/remove linkages that were no longer valid as of 2019.

- 4.2.2 Cleaning Rules: Ensuring alignment with conceptual framework and SOE harmonized definition

- _Drop sectors not included in the database:_ As per the global SOE definition described earlier, we exclude public administration, defense, social security (including pension funds), education, human health, social work activities, and activities of extraterritorial organizations sectors, among other activities.<sup>43</sup>

- _Drop entities that are not aligned with the SOE definition:_ ORBIS includes ministries, public authorities, regulators, and Central Banks as entities. We carefully reviewed that those are not counted as SOEs.<sup>44</sup>

- _Keep domestic firms only:_ Although the database allows to trace both domestic and foreign-based firms linked to a specific country-government, for the purpose of the subsequent data validation and for the creation of the country-level dashboards (e.g., revenues as % GDP), only domestic firms are kept in the database. Domestic firms are defined as those with the same country ISO code as the government.<sup>45</sup>

- _Drop entities that refer to branches as opposed to companies_ : Using the ORBIS interface branch variable, we delete all branches that are not SOEs because they are not separate legal entities.

- 4.2.3 Country Team Validation: Data Validation and Integration

Even after combining the information from ORBIS and the SOE Supplementary databases, important data gaps remain. To address this issue, we engaged with country teams and country experts to help review the information collected and to retrieve as much of the missing information as possible. The steps carried out through the Country Team Validation are the following:

- 1) _Validate the list of SOEs identified by the methodology._ If there are firms that are not SOEs, either because they are incorrectly identified or have gone through a privatization or liquidation process, they are eliminated. Also, the country team provides information on any missing SOEs and any relevant variables.

- 2) _Validate that the information from the different modules of the database is correct._ Country teams help to complete the data that are missing across the different modules by suggesting alternative sources of information or reach out to relevant government counterparts to collect missing information (e.g., IGAPE in Angola, FONAFE in Peru). For example, in some instances, ORBIS reports more than one value of the shareholding percentage. In this case, the country team needs to determine which value is correct.

> 43 Creative arts and entertainment activities related to libraries, museums, botanical gardens, and reserve activities (Code 90-91 in the NACE sector classification) are also excluded from the database.

> 44 In the case that the regulator also has a dual role as a market player such as a port authority that also operates the port, then it is included as an SOE. It required a careful review of those entities and related activities by the SOE global team and country-level teams.

> 45 For example, SONANGOL and its domestic subsidiaries are captured in the database as long as the unique identifiers of those firms (first 2 digits referring to the country of operation) coincide with the Government of Angola (AO). The foreign subsidiaries are identified and traced but only used for some overall indicators (e.g., presence across countries and type of sectors).

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