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Like other Nordic countries Norway has been investing heavily in family policy to enable combining work and family life. Nevertheless, between 2009 and 2022 the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) in Norway dropped from 2 children to 1.4 children per woman. What is happening, and why? Can Norwegian parents still reconcile work and family commitments? What role do demographic trends play for the future of the Norwegian society? Should we worry? These are some of the questions that this study addresses. It illustrates various aspects of fertility trends, as well as changes in the Norwegian labour market as well as in Norway’s comprehensive system of public family support. The study also looks at social attitudes and how these might be affecting family formation and fertility trends. The final chapter projects demographic, economic, fiscal and social outcomes under different fertility trend scenarios.

As countries seek to learn from the COVID-19 crisis and increase their resilience for the future, evaluations are important tools to understand what worked or not, why and for whom. This report is the first of its kind. It evaluates Luxembourg’s responses to the COVID-19 crisis in terms of risk preparedness, crisis management, as well as public health, education, economic and fiscal, and social and labour market policies. While Luxembourg’s response to the pandemic has been particularly agile, preserving the country’s resilience will require maintaining high levels of trust in government, reducing inequalities, and laying the foundations for inclusive growth. The findings and recommendations of this report will provide guidance to public authorities in these efforts.

This report uses rich administrative data from different registers in Finland to evaluate the impact of two types of training available to jobseekers: labour market training; and self-motivated training. Training outcomes are examined that go beyond the probability of employment and how different population groups are affected. The report also assesses the framework for impact evaluation of active labour market policies (ALMPs) in Finland, covering the whole cycle of evidence-based policy making from strategy and planning of evaluations, resources, data collection and evaluation methodologies to dissemination of evidence and use in policy making. Finally, the report makes recommendations for improving the effectiveness of Finland’s ALMPs and strengthening the capacity of the Finnish authorities in conducting ALMP impact evaluations. This report is the eleventh in a series of country reports on policies to connect people with better jobs. It was produced as part of the OECD’s project with the European Commission which aims to raise the quality of the data collected and their use in the evaluation of the effectiveness of ALMPs.

This report on Latvia is the fifth country study published in a series of reports looking into how policies connect people with jobs. It focuses on Latvia's long-term unemployed and those at risk of long-term unemployment. The report analyses linked administrative microdata to evaluate quantitatively the impact of activation policies elaborated in Latvia’s Inclusive Employment Strategy 2015-2020. More specifically, it assesses the effectiveness of training measures, employment subsidies and a programme promoting regional mobility. This report derives policy lessons from the empirical results to help the Latvian authorities adjust the activation strategies and measures in order to strengthen labour market participation of the unemployed and improve their labour market outcomes, helping them move into more productive and better quality jobs.

The COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated the long-standing skills shortages in the health workforce across countries. Equipping health workers with the right skills is essential to respond to future health crises, to prepare for increasing use of digital technologies, and to plan for demographic change. This joint report by the OECD and ILO aims to enable more resilient health workforces by helping countries to assess future demand in terms of both numbers of health workers and skills needs, and to prepare appropriate policy responses. The report provides a comparative overview of practices in 16 countries to anticipate future skill needs in the health workforce, and of how such information is used by policy makers and social partners to foster a better alignment with labour market needs. Analysis is based on interviews with institutions that are responsible for anticipating skill needs in the health workforce, a virtual peer-learning workshop and desk research.

The publication is produced by the OECD-Eurostat Entrepreneurship Indicators Programme based on official statistics. The 2017 edition features a new trends chapter, which also introduces recent developments related to the emergence of the "gig economy" and the use of digital tools by micro-enterprises.

This publication presents an original collection of indicators for measuring the state of entrepreneurship and its determinants, produced by the OECD-Eurostat Entrepreneurship Indicators Programme. The 2016 edition introduces data from a new online small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) survey prepared by Facebook in co-operation with the OECD and the World Bank. It also features a special chapter on SME productivity, and indicators to monitor gender gaps in entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurship at a Glance, a product of the OECD-Eurostat Entrepreneurship Indicators Programme, presents an original collection of indicators for measuring the state of entrepreneurship, along with key facts and explanations of the policy context. The 2015 edition features a special chapter on the international activities of SMEs.

This fourth edition of Entrepreneurship at a Glance presents an original collection of indicators for measuring the state of entrepreneurship and its determinants, produced by the OECD-Eurostat Entrepreneurship Indicators Programme. The 2014 edition contains new indicators at the regional level, and a thematic chapter on innovation activities by firms of different size.

Entrepreneurship at a Glance, a product of the OECD-Eurostat Entrepreneurship Indicators Programme, presents an original collection of indicators for measuring the state of entrepreneurship, along with key facts and explanations of the policy context. This third issue features a special chapter on the profile of the entrepreneur, as well as longer time series and breakdowns by sector for the main indicators.

This publication examines how to strengthen the scope and effectiveness of entrepreneurship policies for women. It examines both dedicated measures for women and ensuring that mainstream policies for all entrepreneurs are appropriate for women. Evidence is offered on the gender gap in entrepreneurship and its causes. At the heart of the report are 27 policy insight notes by leading international experts on the role of public policy in facilitating entrepreneurship by women and how policies can be strengthened. They highlight many long‑standing issues related to the scope and effectiveness of women’s entrepreneurship policies – many of which have been exacerbated by the COVID‑19 pandemic – and point the way to more effective policy. Issues addressed include fostering a gender‑sensitive entrepreneurship culture, building entrepreneurship skills for women, improving women’s access to financial capital, supporting networks for women entrepreneurs and creating supportive regulatory environments. Issues in the design and delivery of policy support are also addressed. The report was prepared by the OECD in collaboration with members of the Global Women’s Entrepreneurship Policy Research Project (Global WEP), a network of established researchers from over 30 counties.

This book presents a 'toolbox' of instruments for entrepreneurship development in what often appear to be the most hostile environments for economic development in our cities, showing how entrepreneurship can indeed prosper given the right stimulus.  It is based on the proceedings of the conference on Entrepreneurship and Economic Development in Distressed Urban Areas held 7-8 October 2003 in Rome, and organised by the OECD LEED Programme, in collaboration with the EU, the municipality of Rome, and Risorse per Roma.

This report assesses whether training workers in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Korea is adequate, relevant, and aligned to skills needs. It analyses policy options to expand access to training for SMEs, remove the barriers to training participation/provision, and ensure that training provided by SMEs supports their growth and encourages innovation, particularly in the context of the 4th industrial revolution. Based on this analysis, this report provides actionable policy recommendations as well as good practice examples from OECD countries.

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have recorded impressive economic growth rates since 2000, driven mainly by the export of commodities and labour. However, the end of the commodity super-cycle and the recent economic slowdown highlighted the risks inherent in this reliance on minerals exports and remittances, as well as the challenges to be overcome to achieve more stable and inclusive growth. The Central Asian countries have long recognised the importance of enhancing the competitiveness of their economies, diversifying the production structures and improving the resilience to external shocks. This will require ambitious reforms in three areas: governance, connectivity, and business environment. This publication focuses mostly on aspects of the business environment and reflects several years of OECD work with Central Asian countries on access to finance, business internationalisation and skills development. Each of the country case studies presented here is the result of a country-specific project carried out by the OECD, hand-in-hand with the governments of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan.

This joint OECD-ILO publication provides guidance on how local and regional governments can foster business-education partnerships in apprenticeship programmes and other types of work-based learning, drawing on case studies across nine countries. There has been increasing interest in apprenticeships which combine on the job training with classroom-based study, providing a smooth transition from school to work. There are benefits to both individuals and employers from participating in apprenticeships, including increased productivity and job quality. Successful implementation is contingent on having a high level of employer engagement at the local level, notably in the design, development and delivery of programmes.