Whether firms adopt energy-management measures is different from the question of how a country generates electricity. World Bank Enterprise Surveys indicator IC.FRM.ENGM.ZS asks whether establishments adopted energy-management measures over the previous three years to reduce emissions, waste, or pollution, then reports the share answering yes. The supplied extract contains the latest non-missing value for 158 countries and areas, but those observations span 2021–2025. To avoid treating different survey years as one current ranking, the main map and tables use only the 62 observations actually dated 2025.
Among those 62 same-year observations, the median is 36.08% and the simple mean is 36.22%. The middle half ranges from 20.64% to 50.24%. Belgium, Finland, France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands are all above 70%, while Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Qatar are below 2%. These percentages measure adoption of a surveyed practice. They do not directly measure how much energy a firm saved, how many tonnes of emissions were avoided, or whether a country’s power system is low-carbon.
Table of Contents
The indicator asks whether firms adopted energy-management measures over the previous three years
The World Bank Enterprise Surveys indicator description ties this measure to survey variable GE.8d. The underlying question asks whether the establishment adopted any energy-management measures over the last three years to reduce emissions, waste, or pollution. The indicator is therefore best read as the share of surveyed firms reporting that they took such an action, not as a physical measure of energy efficiency.
A higher value does not tell us how ambitious the action was. One establishment might make a modest operational change while another installs major equipment, and both can count as an adoption response if they satisfy the survey question. The dataset also does not provide the energy saved, capital expenditure, technology type, or verified emissions reduction associated with each response. Those outcomes require separate firm- or sector-level evidence.
Using only 2025 avoids mixing five different survey years
The latest-value extract contains 62 observations from 2025, 48 from 2024, 43 from 2023, 4 from 2022, and 1 from 2021. Enterprise Surveys are not conducted in every economy in the same year, so a simple ranking of all 158 latest values would mix different business environments and reference periods. This article avoids that problem by treating 2025 as a synchronized cross-section.
| Latest observation year | Countries/areas |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 62 |
| 2024 | 48 |
| 2023 | 43 |
| 2022 | 4 |
| 2021 | 1 |
The result is not a complete ranking of every country in the world. It is a comparison of the 62 economies with an observation dated 2025 in the supplied World Bank series. Countries with a 2024 or 2023 value are not assigned zero and are not backfilled into the 2025 map. A blank area should therefore be interpreted as unavailable for this synchronized year, not as no firm adoption.
The 2025 median is 36.08%, close to one firm in three
The median across the 62 observations is 36.08% and the mean is 36.22%. The first quartile is 20.64% and the third quartile is 50.24%, so the middle half lies between roughly one-fifth and one-half of firms. The mean and median are unusually close for a cross-country percentage distribution, but that does not imply countries are similar. The range still stretches from below 1% to almost 74%.
| 2025 share of firms | Countries/areas |
|---|---|
| Below 10% | 6 |
| 10% to <25% | 17 |
| 25% to <50% | 23 |
| 50% to <75% | 16 |
| 75% to 100% | 0 |
There are 6 observations below 10%, 17 from 10% to below 25%, 23 from 25% to below 50%, and 16 from 50% to below 75%. No 2025 observation reaches 75%; Belgium is the highest at 73.996%. This distribution is useful for seeing where adoption is common or uncommon, but it should not be converted into a global firm-weighted average because each country-level observation receives equal weight in the simple mean.
Belgium, Finland, France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands exceed 70%
Belgium records 74.00%, Finland 73.83%, France 72.37%, Switzerland 72.15%, and the Netherlands 70.77%. Norway follows at 68.48%, Denmark at 66.48%, and Guatemala at 63.46%. Austria is 58.16%, Australia 57.09%, Gabon 55.56%, Germany 54.48%, India 54.33%, Malawi 52.78%, and Chile 52.72%. The upper group therefore includes countries from several regions, even though European economies are prominent among the very highest values.
| Country/area | Share of firms |
|---|---|
| Belgium | 74.00% |
| Finland | 73.83% |
| France | 72.37% |
| Switzerland | 72.15% |
| Netherlands | 70.77% |
| Norway | 68.48% |
| Denmark | 66.48% |
| Guatemala | 63.46% |
| Austria | 58.16% |
| Australia | 57.09% |
| Gabon | 55.56% |
| Germany | 54.48% |
| India | 54.33% |
| Malawi | 52.78% |
| Chile | 52.72% |
The concentration of high values in parts of Europe is a geographic pattern, not a causal finding. This single indicator does not tell us whether regulation, energy prices, technology subsidies, management practices, sector composition, or firm size explains the differences. Guatemala, Gabon, India, Malawi, and Chile also appear above 50%, which is a reminder that the pattern cannot be reduced to one region or income group without additional analysis.
Low values do not mean firms take no energy-efficiency action
At the lower end, Saudi Arabia records 0.49%, Egypt 0.97%, Qatar 1.59%, Kuwait 5.45%, Guinea-Bissau 6.56%, and Panama 9.72%. These numbers refer to a specific Enterprise Surveys question about adoption over the previous three years for reducing emissions, waste, or pollution. They should not be generalized into a claim that firms in those economies do not conserve energy, comply with environmental rules, use efficient equipment, or purchase renewable electricity.
Enterprise Surveys are designed as representative firm-level surveys of the formal private sector under the World Bank methodology, but country survey coverage, sampling frames, and sector composition should still be checked when making detailed causal comparisons. This page therefore limits itself to the reported percentage and its geographic distribution rather than assigning causes that are not contained in the source dataset.
Power-system indicators and firm behavior can be compared conceptually, but they are not the same measure
Green Map also publishes country maps of fossil-fuel, coal, and natural-gas shares of electricity generation. Those indicators describe the composition of national electricity production. IC.FRM.ENGM.ZS describes actions reported by firms. A low-fossil electricity system does not automatically imply a high adoption rate among firms, and a fossil-heavy system does not prove that firms are inactive on energy management.
Reading the two layers together can help separate supply-side energy structure from business-level responses. However, the reference years also differ: the related electricity-mix maps use 2021 data, while this firm-adoption map uses 2025 survey observations. A statistical relationship between them would require a dedicated analysis with aligned years, matching economies, and appropriate controls.
Data source and mapping method
The statistical source is World Bank World Development Indicators series IC.FRM.ENGM.ZS – Firms adopting energy management measures to reduce emissions (% of firms), based on World Bank Enterprise Surveys. The Enterprise Surveys indicator description states that the measure is constructed from survey variable GE.8d and asks about adoption during the previous three years to reduce emissions, waste, or pollution. The indicator was first released in July 2024.
- World Bank – IC.FRM.ENGM.ZS
- World Bank Enterprise Surveys – Indicator Description
- World Bank Enterprise Surveys – Data
All distribution statistics, rankings, and map values on this page are recalculated from the 62 observations dated 2025. World Bank regional and income-group aggregates are excluded. ISO-3 codes match 51 observations directly to the Natural Earth low-resolution country boundary layer. Very small islands and separately reported areas can have a valid statistical value without appearing as an independent filled polygon at this scale.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as an energy-management measure in this indicator?
The World Bank Enterprise Surveys question asks whether the establishment adopted any energy-management measures during the previous three years to reduce emissions, waste, or pollution. The indicator is the share answering yes.
Which country has the highest 2025 value in this comparison?
Belgium is highest among the 62 same-year observations at about 74.00%, followed by Finland at 73.83%, France at 72.37%, Switzerland at 72.15%, and the Netherlands at 70.77%.
Does the 36.08% median mean 36% of all firms worldwide adopted measures?
No. It is the middle country-level percentage among the 62 economies with a 2025 observation. It is not weighted by the number of firms in each economy and is not a global firm-level adoption rate.
Why use 62 observations instead of all 158 latest values?
The 158 latest observations span 2021–2025. Restricting the map and main ranking to the 62 values actually dated 2025 avoids mixing different survey years into one country comparison.
Related Articles
These Green Map articles provide energy-system context while keeping national electricity structure separate from the firm-level adoption measure used here.
- Fossil-Fuel Electricity Share by Country | 2021 Map
- Coal Dependence in Electricity | 2021 World Map
- Natural Gas Electricity Share Map | 2021 Country Comparison
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