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Using the principles of responsible business conduct identified in the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, this report reviews three key areas of corporate action: accounting for greenhouse gas emissions; achieving emissions reductions; and engaging suppliers, consumers and other stakeholders.
Études économiques de l'OCDE : Afrique du Sud 2010 comprend des chapitres consacrés aux thèmes suivants : surmonter la crise économique et trouver une nouvelle trajectoire de croissance viable, renforcer le dispositif de la politique macroéconomique et combler le déficit d'utilisation de la main-d’œuvre.
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a highly influential instrument for monitoring the quality of education systems and provides a strong evidence base for informed policy making and education research. PISA also has a proven potential to trigger reforms and stimulate stakeholder involvement in the process.
Notwithstanding the importance of its ranking, the full strength of PISA unfolds when data it delivers is utilised in the national policy domain. Linking PISA outcomes and policy choices, and monitoring the impact on education quality is thereby a demanding task, which requires sound analytical capacity, and also knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of the respective education system. The OECD Directorate for Education addresses the demand of non-member economies for policy support in understanding and analysing PISA data in the broader context of education system management and policy formulation.
This report explains the reasons for the dramatically low performance of Kyrgyz students in the 2006 PISA survey, despite significant resources and efforts invested in education by schools, parents and government. The report reveals that a number of policy areas are in need of urgent attention and recommends ways to close the currently existing gap between aspirations and education reform achievement.
Ce rapport annuel dresse un état des mesures prises au cours des douze mois écoulés par les 41 gouvernements adhérents pour renforcer la contribution des Principes directeurs à un meilleur fonctionnement de l’économie mondiale. En neuf ans, les principes directeurs se sont imposés comme l’un des grands instruments mondiaux de la responsabilité d’entreprise comme en témoignent le dernier conseil ministériel de 2009 de l’OCDE et le sommet du G8 de L’Aquila. Cette édition 2009 contient les résultats de la Table ronde de l'OCDE sur la responsabilité des entreprises : « Pouvoir des consommateurs et conduite responsable des entreprises ».
Migrants contribute to the economic growth of their host countries in many ways, bringing new skills and competencies with them and helping to reduce labour shortages. An aspect that has received only limited attention up to now is migrants’ contribution to entrepreneurial activity and employment creation in their host countries. In OECD countries, entrepreneurship is slightly higher among immigrants than natives and the total number of persons employed in migrant businesses is substantial, although the survival rate of these businesses is often lower than that of their native counterparts. Migrant entrepreneurship has gone beyond traditional ethnic businesses, into a wide range of sectors and innovative areas.
Greater knowledge of migrant entrepreneurship is essential if policy makers are to better support migrant enterprises and their role in economic growth and job creation. In addition, increasing awareness of the positive role that migrants can play as entrepreneurs could contribute to a more balanced public debate on immigration. Taking a cross-country perspective, this publication sheds light on these issues and more, discussing policy options to foster the development and success of migrant businesses. It is a compilation of papers presented at a June 2010 conference organised by the OECD Secretariat, with the financial support of the Swedish and Turkish authorities, and the Dutch-Turkish Businessmen Association (HOTIAD).
The contracting out of government functions and services to external providers is an established practice in many developed and developing countries. On the one hand, it can offer essential support to states that have to deliver basic services urgently; on the other, it risks bypassing governments and undermining their long-term recovery. The OECD’s Partnership for Democratic Governance was formed in 2007 to gather evidence on this issue.
This handbook does not take a view for or against contracting out; nor is it a technical manual. The handbook is for field practitioners and government policy makers in countries that are either emerging from conflict or are otherwise considered to be fragile. Its aim is to help them make more informed choices about the types of contracting that are best suited to their country. It is a tool to assess whether contracting out might be a possible way forward – either temporarily or over a longer period of time – for delivering a core service (such as basic education, healthcare, water and sanitation) or a government function (such as managing public finances and human resources). The handbook illustrates these points with the aid of case studies ranging from Afghanistan to Haiti and Liberia.
As the hubs of economic activity, cities drive the vast majority of the world’s energy use and are major contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions. Because they are home to major infrastructure and highly concentrated populations, cities are also vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, such as rising sea levels, warmer temperatures and fiercer storms. At the same time, better urban planning and policies can reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions and improve the resilience of urban infrastructure to climate change, thus shaping future trends.
This book shows how city and metropolitan regional governments working in tandem with national governments can change the way we think about responding to climate change. The chapters analyse: trends in urbanisation, economic growth, energy use and climate change; the economic benefits of climate action; the role of urban policies in reducing energy demand, improving resilience to climate change and complementing global climate policies; frameworks for multilevel governance of climate change including engagement with relevant stakeholders; and the contribution of cities to “green growth”, including the “greening” of fiscal policies, innovation and jobs. The book also explores policy tools and best practices from both OECD and some non-member countries.
Cities and Climate Change reveals the importance of addressing climate change across all levels of government. Local involvement through “climate-conscious” urban planning and management can help achieve national climate goals and minimise tradeoffs between environmental and economic priorities at local levels. The book will be relevant to policy makers, researchers, and others with an interest in learning more about urbanisation and climate change policy.
Nanotechnology has its origin in the converging abilities of physics, chemistry and materials science. Its purpose is the manipulation of atoms and molecules in order to create new properties of materials and systems for a wide variety of applications in a very broad range of sectors. Nanotechnology is forecast to create large markets and many new jobs and may be the springboard for industrial renewal and long-term growth. Governments around the world have targeted this emerging technology in their R&D investments and are strategising about the best ways to promote the responsible development and use of nanotechnology given the absence of any in-depth analysis of its commercialisation.
What are the potential economic impacts of nanotechnology, how are companies using nanotechnology for innovation, and what are the key challenges in its commercialisation? These are some of the issues that this book addresses, based on a large number of company case studies in several countries.
Adequate airport capacity is crucial to allowing the global economy to grow. Present regulatory arrangements are not efficient because the airline and airport markets have changed enormously over recent years. There is scope to do much better.
The challenge is to create conditions for efficient infrastructure development in a sector where in some circumstances some airports have market power and might abuse this position. It is important that regulatory intervention only occurs where it is actually needed as it is costly in terms of administrative effort and altering the market. All regulatory controls on the pricing of aviation services carry the risk of getting investment incentives wrong. A number of regulators are beginning to experiment with this key control, with promising results.
This report reviews recent experience with airport regulation on the basis of discussions at the International Transport Forum between leaders of airlines and airports together with regulators and economists. Liberalisation of aviation markets combined with privatisation of most airlines, and now many airports have changed aviation markets rapidly and profoundly. Regulatory models have tended to evolve more slowly and need reform if they are not to become a drag on global growth.
The global financial crisis has offered an important opportunity for Southeast Asian countries to rethink past growth strategies and project new development visions. This inaugural edition of the Southeast Asian Economic Outlook looks at current efforts to rebalance growth for the region and at what form growth will take in the future.
The analyses and discussions presented in this volume highlight the need to implement five-year development plans with a view to rebalancing growth and instituting a credible fiscal policy framework conducive to greater fiscal discipline. In particular, well-designed fiscal rules, independent fiscal agencies and a medium-term budgetary framework are crucial elements. Although such institutions are becoming increasingly important across OECD countries, there is room for improving the institutional settings in Southeast Asia.
The 2010 Outlook also addresses the fact that the future development of Southeast Asian countries is likely to be uneven across sectors and economies, unless necessary measures are taken. Sectors of new growth in the region will need to be supported by going beyond the current narrow range of electronic products and developing more niche and speciality products that are priorities of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Another area of policy action proposed is to develop more integrated transport networks. Given the huge investment needs for infrastructure development, new financing methods, such as infrastructure revenue bonds, should be further explored to promote public-private partnerships in the region.
The UNECA-OECD 2009 Mutual Review of Development Effectiveness in Africa: Promise and Performance provides a focussed and accessible set of information on main commitments made by Africa and its development partners, the extent to which these have been delivered and their results, and the key future policy priorities.
La Valutazione reciproca dell’efficacia dello sviluppo in Africa: promesse e risultati, elaborata dall’UNECA/OCSE nel 2009 intende fornire delle risposte chiare e precise ai principali impegni assunti dai paesi africani e dai loro partner allo sviluppo, analizzare gli impegni portati a termine e i risultati ottenuti fino ad oggi e determinare le priorità delle politiche future.
L’Examen mutuel de l’efficacité du développement en Afrique 2009 : Promesses et résultats,réalisé par la CEA-ONU et l’OCDE, apporte des réponses claires et précises aux quatre questions suivantes :
- Quels sont les principaux engagements souscrits par les pays africains et par leurs partenaires au développement ?
- Ces engagements ont-ils été respectés ?
- Quels sont les résultats obtenus à ce jour ?
- Quelles sont à présent les priorités pour l’avenir ?
Andalusia is the most populous region in Spain with over 8 million people. Historically a crossroads of three cultures – Hispanic, Jewish and Arabic – it has enjoyed remarkable growth and development over the past decades, but still lags behind the Spanish averages in key socio-economic indicators.
The recent economic crisis has affected Andalusia more than other regions. How can the region and its universities fuel local growth and create jobs and new businesses? How can the Andalusian University System improve students’ learning and employment outcomes? How can the region capitalise on its existing assets and promising clusters?
This publication is part of the series of OECD reviews of Higher Education in Regional and City Development. These reviews help mobilise higher education institutions for economic, social and cultural development of cities and regions. They analyse how the higher education system impacts upon regional and local development and bring together universities, other higher education institutions and public and private agencies to identify strategic goals and to work towards them.
Trop de travailleurs quittent définitivement le marché du travail pour des raisons de santé ou à cause d’une incapacité, et rares sont les personnes qui conservent un emploi lorsque leur capacité de travail est réduite. C’est là une tragédie sociale et économique commune à la quasi-totalité des pays de l’OCDE, qui est à l’origine d’un paradoxe apparent méritant explication : alors qu’en moyenne la santé s’améliore, pourquoi de nombreux individus en âge de travailler quittent-ils la population active pour vivre de leurs prestations de maladie de longue durée ou d’invalidité ?
Ce rapport, le dernier de la série de l’OCDE intitulée Maladie, invalidité et travail : surmonter les obstacles synthétise les conclusions du projet et étudie les facteurs qui peuvent expliquer ce paradoxe. Il met en lumière le rôle des institutions en place et des politiques mises en œuvre et conclut qu’il est essentiel pour les principaux acteurs – travailleurs, employeurs, médecins, organismes publics et prestataires de services – de rehausser les attentes et d’améliorer les incitations. À partir d’un examen des bonnes et mauvaises pratiques observées dans les pays de l'OCDE, le rapport suggère qu’une série de réformes de fond s’impose afin de promouvoir l’emploi des personnes atteintes de problèmes de santé.
Le rapport examine plusieurs options d’arbitrage essentielles entre des politiques de diminution du nombre de nouveaux bénéficiaires du régime d’invalidité et d’augmentation du nombre de sorties de ce régime, de maintien dans l’emploi ou de recrutement de personnes souffrant de problèmes de santé. Il s’interroge sur la nécessité de dissocier chômage et invalidité en tant qu’aléas distincts, souligne combien il importe de disposer d’une meilleure base de données d’observation et insiste sur les difficultés de mise en œuvre des politiques retenues.
Dans la même série
Vol. 1 : Norvège, Pologne et Suisse (2006)
Vol. 2 : Australie, Luxembourg, Espagne et Royaume-Uni (2007)
Vol. 3 : Danemark, Finlande, Irlande et Pays-Bas (2008)
Canada : des possibilités de collaboration (2010)
Sweden: Will the Recent Reforms Make It? (2009, en anglais uniquement)
Too many workers leave the labour market permanently due to health problems or disability, and too few people with reduced work capacity manage to remain in employment. This is a social and economic tragedy common to virtually all OECD countries. It also raises an apparent paradox that needs explaining: Why is it that the average health status is improving, yet large numbers of people of working age are leaving the workforce to rely on long-term sickness and disability benefits?
This report, the last in the OECD series Sickness, Disability and Work: Breaking the Barriers, synthesises the project’s findings and explores the possible factors behind the paradox described above. It highlights the roles of institutions and policies and concludes that higher expectations and better incentives for the main actors – workers, employers, doctors, public agencies and service providers – are crucial. Based on a review of good and bad practices across OECD countries, this report suggests a series of major reforms are needed to promote employment of people with health problems.
The report examines a number of critical policy choices between: tightening inflows and raising outflows from disability benefit, and promoting job retention and new hiring of people with health problems. It questions the need for distinguishing unemployment and disability as two distinct contingencies, emphasises the need for a better evidence base, and underlines the challenges for policy implementation.
Education is a central priority for the State of Santa Catarina. Its policy makers are firmly committed to provide a relevant and efficient education system that responds to the requirements of the global economy and will allow the state to be competitive, both nationally and internationally .
This OECD review gives a brief overview of education in Santa Catarina and its development. It presents an analysis of the system from pre-school to tertiary education and lifelong learning, and identifies key directions for policy reform in light of the challenges encountered by officials, communities, enterprises, educators, parents and students. It concludes with a set of key recommendations concerning the structure of the system and its labour market relevance; access and equity; governance and management; research, development and innovation; internationalisation; and financing.
Les marchés des biens et services ont beaucoup changé au cours des 20 dernières années. Les réformes des régulations, les marchés internationaux, de nouvelles technologies, et un rôle plus proéminent des services dans l’activité économique – tout cela a servi de moteur à des changements bien souvent bénéfiques pour les consommateurs. La variété et la complexité accrue de nombreux marchés font qu’il est de plus en plus difficile de comparer et de déterminer la valeur des biens et services. Les défis auxquels font face les consommateurs ont créé des défis similaires pour les autorités gouvernementales chargées de les protéger contre la fraude et les pratiques commerciales injustes.
Cet ouvrage se penche sur l’évolution des marchés et donne un aperçu des améliorations possibles dans le domaine des politiques de consommation. Il étudie, pour la première fois, comment l’étude de l’économie du comportement est en train de transformer la manière dont les décideurs politiques abordent différents problèmes.
This review is the first to analyse e-government at the country level using a revised framework designed to capture the new challenges faced by countries today. It highlights the richness of initiatives and actions taken by Denmark in relation to a number of areas, including the impact of e-government on public sector modernisation and efficiency efforts, the impact of e-government organisational structure and arrangements on e-government development and administration, the need to address issues related to user take-up and the assessment of benefits realisation of e-government projects. As these are not unique to Denmark, but are commonly shared by a number of OECD countries, the study provides useful tools to support e-government policy making in all OECD countries.