This report examines the ownership and governance practices of state‑owned enterprises (SOEs) across 58 jurisdictions, including OECD Members and partner economies. Released periodically since 2018, it is underpinned by the OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State‑Owned Enterprises (the SOE Guidelines), the leading international standard that helps policymakers evaluate and improve the legal, regulatory and institutional frameworks for the ownership and governance of SOEs. The report is based primarily on information provided by participating jurisdictions through the OECD Working Party on State Ownership and Privatisation Practices (WPSOPP), the custodian of the SOE Guidelines. Covering all thematic areas of the Guidelines, it brings together comparative evidence and analysis to highlight key developments, emerging trends and evolving practices in SOE ownership and governance.
For the first time, this edition draws on the OECD Global State-Owned Enterprises Dataset, providing comparative analysis on the scale, performance and economic significance of SOEs globally and complementing the analysis of ownership and governance practices covered by the report. In the dataset, an enterprise is classified as an SOE if the aggregate direct and indirect equity holdings of domestic or foreign state entities amount to at least 25%. The analysis in the report also builds on OECD country reviews and other relevant data and analysis, as well as publicly available information and selected external sources.
The report is organised into seven chapters. Following an overview of the global SOE landscape in Chapter 1, the subsequent chapters examine: professional and active state ownership; ensuring a level playing field; disclosure, transparency and accountability; the composition and responsibilities of SOE boards; and sustainability and state ownership. This edition also includes a thematic chapter on anti-corruption and integrity, drawing on the OECD Guidelines on Anti-Corruption and Integrity in State‑Owned Enterprises and recent monitoring of the implementation of related measures across the SOE sector.
This report was developed by Nina Chitaia, Karoline Irmscher, Suzannah Hewson and Alba Ruiz Casas, with inputs from Jorge Gálvez Méndez, under the guidance of Sara Sultan, Head of the SOE Unit, and Serdar Çelik, Head of the OECD Capital Markets and Financial Institutions Division. Chapter 1 and the OECD Global SOE Dataset were developed by Alejandra Medina, Head of the Financial Economics Unit, and Gülgün Arıkan of the same unit. This report benefited from the invaluable contributions of delegates to the WPSOPP and partner organisations.