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Bringing the results of economic appraisals and environmental assessments before technical and political decision-makers in ways that are clear, concise and transparent is essential if planning and decision making procedures are to achieve a sustainable transport system. This report makes recommendations for good practice in the transport sector on the basis of reviews of recent experience in infrastructure planning and policy development in seven countries.
Governments in developed countries have long used, directly or indirectly through their tax systems, policies that subsidise or otherwise encourage the population at large to acquire assets such as financial savings, home ownership, retirement funds, education (human capital) or business capital. These policies seldom reach the poor. In fact, for the poor these policies often do not stimulate saving but rather discourage it. However, the evidence reported in this book is that the poor want to save, and can do so in modest amounts. In fact, they will do so, often with sacrifices greater than either policy makers or the more well-off might imagine. Extending asset-building policies to the poor can represent an effective attack on both poverty and economic and social alienation of the poor, because it has positive welfare effects that income support alone cannot provide.
This book establishes the context for a fruitful debate on the merits and demerits of asset building for the poor by setting out the basic ideas involved in asset-building programmes and proposals. It also outlines the social policy advantages that their proponents claim, and documents what the existing programmes and demonstration projects look like.Many countries around the world have introduced systems of asset declarations for public officials in order to prevent corruption. These systems vary greatly from country to country. The impact of such systems on the actual level of corruption is not well known.
This study provides a systematic analysis of the existing practice in the area of asset declarations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and in some OECD member states in Western Europe and North America. It examines the key elements of asset declaration systems, such as policy objectives, legal frameworks and the institutional arrangements; the categories of public officials who are required to submit declarations, and types of required information; procedures for verifying declared information, sanctions for violations, and public disclosure. The study also discusses the cost-effectiveness and overall usefulness of declaration systems. It includes four case studies covering Lithuania, Romania, Spain and Ukraine, and many additional country examples and references.
The study presents policy recommendations on the key elements of asset declaration systems. These recommendations will be useful for national governments and international organisations engaged in development, reform and assessment of asset declarations systems on a country level.
What is asset management? How do road administrations achieve an integrated approach to asset management? How does this differ from the management of individual assets? What are the implications for data collection and management? What does it mean for road administrations and road sector policy?
This report examines the requirements of asset management systems, the integration of existing component systems into a comprehensive approach to asset management, the incorporation of a business-like approach, performance monitoring and the implementation of such systems.
Asian-Pacific countries have made significant efforts to address weaknesses in their procurement frameworks and practices. To support these efforts and to assist the ADB/OECD Anti-Corruption Initiative’s 28 member countries in strengthening their public-procurement mechanisms, the Initiative conducted a Regional Seminar on Fighting Bribery in Public Procurement in November 2007. This volume compiles the experience that experts from Asian and Pacific countries – as well as beyond the region – shared during the seminar. It is addressed to policy makers and experts who wish to learn from other countries’ experiences in strengthening frameworks to protect public procurement from bribery and corruption risks.
Young adults who have lived in out-of-home care at some point during their childhood often struggle to build stable lives. This is not surprising: typically young care leavers not only have to overcome a difficult childhood, but also tend to receive less support during the crucial years of early adulthood than youth living with their parents. In response to their poor socio-economic outcomes, many agencies responsible for improving outcomes for young people are experimenting with transition programmes for young adults leaving care. This policy report identifies the key challenges that care leavers face and provides a range of good practice examples in OECD countries to promote cross-country learning, help strengthen the international evidence base and support countries to improve their policies for young people leaving their care.
Irrespective of current views on the future of nuclear power programmes, concerns are arising with respect to the long-term ability to preserve safety competence because student enrolments in nuclear engineering are decreasing rapidly and experienced staff are reaching retirement age. "Assuring Nuclear Safety Competence into the 21st Century" was discussed in depth by workshop participants. The need for a long-term strategic view was emphasised, and policy recommendations were made. These proceedings will be of particular interest to those playing a policy role in the nuclear industry, regulatory bodies and the education sector.
Illustrated with graphics and maps, the Atlas of Gender and Development gives readers a unique insight into the impact of social institutions − traditions, social norms and cultural practices − on gender equality in 124 non-OECD countries.
Gender inequality holds back not just women but the economic and social development of entire societies. Overcoming discrimination is important in the fight against poverty in developing countries and for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Tackling these inequalities is not easy: in many countries, discrimination against women is deeply rooted in social institutions such as the family and the law. These long-lasting codes of conduct, norms, traditions, and informal and formal laws determine gender outcomes in education, health, political representation and labour markets.
The OECD organised a conference on FDI, in Shanghai, China, in December 2002. Some of the questions addressed in this book include: What lessons can be drawn from experiences with policies for attracting FDI, including strategies based on tax and other incentives? How can MNEs contribute to promote the developmental benefits of FDI? How can FDI and portfolio investments best complement each other in support of development? Are there effective ways to achieve synergies between FDI and official development aid in leveraging private investment for development projects in LDCs?
Attractiveness for investment in innovation is high on the policy agenda in many countries as innovation is a key factor of growth and competitiveness in OECD countries. Virtually all governments are keen to attract international investment by multinational enterprises (MNEs) as a means to promote growth and employment, create new jobs and bring in new technologies.
While all countries and regions have some policy measures in place that are aimed at increasing their attractiveness for innovation, it is less clear if these policies are effective.
This report analyses the current trends in international investment in innovation and the attractiveness policies already implemented. These are often based on the more traditional instruments for attracting international investment. The book also explores in more detail the role of investment incentives that governments tend to give to international investors: their rationale, their impact and their usefulness.
The evidence presented in this report raises clear policy issues and questions existing policies. A number of policy principles are formulated to guide policy makers.
Currently, there is a lack of consensus amongst OECD Member countries as to how profits should be attributed to a permanent establishment (PE). As a first step in remedying this situation a working hypothesis has been developed as to the preferred approach for attributing profits to the PE. The basis for the working hypothesis is to examine how far the approach of treating the PE as a hypothetical distinct and separate enterprise can be taken and how the guidance in the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines could be applied, by analogy, to attribute profits to a PE. This discussion draft contains the results of testing the working hypothesis in general (Part I) and to PEs of banks (Part II). Public comments are invited in order to assist in the development of an OECD consensus on the attribution of profits to a PE.
Public policies and services, such as education, health, welfare, infrastructure and sanitation, are increasingly developed and provided via different levels of government (national, regional and local), creating co-ordination and governance challenges. This report describes how Brazil’s 33 courts of accounts can use their oversight function – including audits – to help make such decentralised policies more effective and coherent. It presents the results of a 3-year project to improve how the courts can work together, using the area of education as a pilot for testing the use of indicators in the strategic selection of audits. The report offers a model for audit institutions to assess multi-level governance, and explores governance models for stronger collaboration among the courts of accounts in Brazil. These approaches may inspire and inform other supreme audit institutions with responsibilities for auditing decentralised policies and programmes involving central, regional and local governments.
Since the IEA’s last review in 2018, Australia has significantly raised its climate ambitions, with the 2022 Climate Change Act doubling the target for emissions reductions by 2030 and setting the goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050.
To match these increased ambitions, Australia is seeking to update its existing strategies, starting with the preparation of a new emissions reduction plan for 2050. Emission reductions and energy efficiency improvement rates need to double by 2030, and further steps will be required to achieve the government’s clean electricity target. Such efforts would support both climate and energy security goals.
To support its clean energy transition, Australia needs to strengthen its resilience to supply disruptions across all fuels, whether from climate change impacts or global energy price shocks. Flexibility, fuel availability and resilient infrastructure will become even more vital as Australia’s energy system incorporates very high shares of variable renewables and is likely to face more frequent and more extreme weather events. Gas market reforms can help ensure energy security during the transition.
In this report, the IEA provides energy policy recommendations to help Australia effectively manage the transformation of its energy sector in line with its goals.
This book presents an in depth analysis of the contribution of services to the Australian economy, the regulatory environment of the services sector and its performance in an international context. The analysis highlights the importance of co-ordinated domestic policy action, priorities for promoting behind-the-border regulatory reforms in strategic international markets, and the benefits of an ambitious bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral trade policy agenda that contributes to rules-based certainty and predictability in services trade globally.
This profile provides a concise and policy-relevant overview of health and the health system in Austria as part of the broader series of the State of Health in the EU country profiles. It provides a short synthesis of: the health status in the country; the determinants of health, focussing on behavioural risk factors; the organisation of the health system; and the effectiveness, accessibility and resilience of the health system.
This profile is the joint work of the OECD and the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, in co-operation with the European Commission.
This profile provides a concise and policy-relevant overview of health and the health system in Austria as part of the broader series of the State of Health in the EU country profiles. It provides a short synthesis of: the health status in the country; the determinants of health, focussing on behavioural risk factors; the organisation of the health system; and the effectiveness, accessibility and resilience of the health system. This edition has a special focus on the impact of COVID‑19.
This profile is the joint work of the OECD and the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, in co-operation with the European Commission.
This profile provides a concise and policy-focused overview of the state of health and the healthcare system in Austria, as a part of the broader series of Country Health Profiles from the State of Health in the EU initiative. It presents a succinct analysis encompassing the following key aspects: the current health status in Austria; the determinants of health, focusing on behavioural risk factors; the organisation of the Austrian healthcare system; and an evaluation of the health system's effectiveness, accessibility, and resilience. Moreover, the 2023 edition presents a thematic section on the state of mental health and associated services in Austria.
This profile is the collaborative effort of the OECD and the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, carried out in cooperation with the European Commission.
Which alternative motor fuels will be in common use tomorrow? Which criteria should be used to assess them? No simple answers exist. Complex trade-offs are involved in the decision-making process. But the most important ingredient for making informed choices is sound information produced by a transparent methodology. Automotive Fuels for the Future offers a digest of basic data on the critical fuel choices for the future. It is a well-balanced compendium of concise technical information, as well as an overview of the essential issues in deciding among alternative fuels. Fuels such as natural gas, LPG or alcohols and biodiesel derived from different feedstocks are considered over the entire cycle from production to use. They are analysed in terms of environmental effects, safety, availability and cost. Their weaknesses and strengths are judged against the yardsticks of established gasoline and diesel technologies. This publication from IEA/AFIS, the information service of the IEA Implementing Agreement on Advanced Motor Fuels, makes this information accessible to the general reader.
This OECD Emission Scenario Document (ESD) is intended to provide information on the
sources, use patterns and release pathways of chemicals used in automotive refinishing industry. The information can be used to estimate releases of chemicals to the environment.