Browse by: "2016"

Peru has experienced significant improvements in economic growth, well-being and poverty reduction since the introduction of macroeconomic reforms, economic openness and more effective social programmes in the 1990s. However, the country still faces structural challenges to escape the middle-income trap and consolidate its emerging middle class. This report provides policy actions to tackle the main bottlenecks to boost inclusive development and well-being in Peru. In particular this report presents an in-depth analysis and policy recommendations to boost economic diversification and productivity, improve connectivity and reduce informality. Policy actions in these areas demand better institutions and improvements in areas and markets, including research and development and innovation, fiscal policy, education and skills, logistics and transport infrastructure as well as labour and product markets.

Cities are places where opportunities for prosperity coexist with stark inequalities between the richest and the poorest. Cities produce and attract highly educated workers and innovative employers. It is usually easier in cities than in other parts of the country for individuals to climb up the income, education or jobs ladder. But cities, especially the largest ones, also concentrate inequalities, both in income and in other well-being aspects,  that remain remarkably high in many OECD economies. Access to opportunities seems stalled for many low-income urban residents, who often live in distressed neighbourhoods.  This report provides ground-breaking, internationally comparable data on economic growth, inequalities and well-being at the city level in OECD countries. It provides empirical evidence on how cities are diverging from, or converging with, other parts of the country, and of the extent of inequality within cities. Finally, it proposes a framework for action, to help national and local governments reorient policies towards more inclusive growth in cities – a new approach to growth that ensures that no part of society is left behind.

This study examines the multi-level governance framework for public investment in Colombia. It provides a diagnosis of the strengths and challenges of the Colombian system and includes comparative data and a set of benchmarks to promote exchange of good practices and promote learning. It makes recommendations for how to further improve the system, make more effective use of existing resources and catch up to OECD countries in terms of infrastructure development . The review also suggests a set of indicators against which Colombia can measure its progress.

Regions and cities are where the effects of policies to promote economic growth and social inclusion are felt in day-to-day life. The OECD Regional Outlook 2016 examines the widening productivity gap across regions within countries, and the implications of these trends for the well-being of people living in different places. It discusses how structural policies, public investment and multi-level governance reforms can help boost productivity and address inclusion. Drawing on a survey of OECD countries, the Outlook  highlights country practices in regional, urban, and rural development policy that guide public investment. The Special Focus Part II on rural areas looks at different types of rural area and their productivity performance trends, and suggests that countries move towards a “Rural Policy 3.0”. The Policy Forum on Regions and Cities: Implementing Global Agendas includes chapters by many leading global organisations on how regions and cities can be instrumental in achieving the targets of agreements such as the Paris Accord and the Sustainable Development Goals.  Individual country profiles provide an overview of regional, urban and rural development policies as well as performance in terms of productivity and well-being among different regions.

This is the eighth edition of Society at a Glance, the biennial OECD overview of social indicators. This report addresses the growing demand for quantitative evidence on social well-being and its trends. It updates some indicators included in the previous editions published since 2001 and introduces several new ones, with 25 indicators in total. It includes data for the 35 OECD member countries and where available data for key partners (Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia and South Africa); other G20 countries (Argentina and Saudi Arabia) are also included. The report features a special chapter on the NEET challenge and what can be done for jobless and disengaged youth. It also provides a guide to help readers in understanding the structure of OECD social indicators. All indicators are available as a web book and an e-book on OECD iLibrary.
 

Ireland has made considerable progress in rebounding from the crisis, but, like other OECD countries, continues to grapple with how to address lingering socio-economic impacts and ensure inclusive growth growing forward. Multi-faceted interventions, targeting disadvantaged populations and the places they live, can lead to more effective and inclusive policies. Ignoring the relationship between people and place will, in contrast, lead to further entrenched disadvantage. This report looks at some of the ways in which Ireland can build on an already comprehensive series of reforms to better weave together current policies and practices.

The new OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-Owned Enterprises provide an internationally agreed benchmark to help governments assess and improve the way they exercise their ownership functions in state-owned enterprises. Good corporate governance of state-owned enterprises is a key reform priority in many countries. Improved efficiency and better transparency in the state owned sector will result in considerable economic gains, especially in countries where state ownership is important. In addition, creating a level playing field for private and state-owned enterprises will encourage a sound and competitive business sector. The Guidelines, first adopted in 2005, provide a set of good practices on the legal and regulatory framework for state-owned enterprises (SOEs), the professionalisation of the state ownership function and the corporate governance arrangements of SOEs. This new version of the recommendation was developed in the light of almost a decade of experiences with its implementation and a number of thematic and comparative studies, developed on the basis of the earlier version of the Guidelines, that showed the need for, and supported, their revision, including in areas such as disclosure and transparency, public-private competition, board practices and funding and financing of SOE.

The MENA region registered relatively dynamic economic growth and investment rates during the first decade of the century, even during the global economic and financial crisis. This was helped by important reforms by many governments to increase economic openness, diversification, private sector development and institutional reform. The participation of Tunisia and Jordan in the Open Government Partnership, the massive investment in infrastructure by Morocco and Egypt to increase connectivity and improve participation in global trade, and the efforts of the United Arab Emirates to diversify its economy demonstrate the great potential of the region to achieve progress. However, recent political instability and security threats have considerably slowed economic prospects. Reforms have not succeeded in tackling deeper structural challenges, such as corruption, unemployment, uneven development and unequal opportunities, especially for disadvantaged regions, women and youth. Appropriate policy responses are needed to regain stability and lay the foundations for a more open economy and a more inclusive development model. While the MENA region is profoundly heterogeneous, there are significant common economic and institutional trends that support the need for more concerted action to exploit the immense potential of the region and ensure its fruitful integration into the global economy.

La région MENA a enregistré dans les dix premières années du siècle des taux de croissance économique et d’investissement relativement élevés, même pendant la crise économique et financière mondiale. Ce dynamisme résulte en partie des importantes réformes mises en place par de nombreux gouvernements en faveur de l’ouverture économique, de la diversification, du développement du secteur privé et de la réforme des institutions. La participation de la Tunisie et de la Jordanie au Partenariat pour un gouvernement transparent, les investissements massifs effectués par le Maroc et l’Égypte dans les infrastructures pour améliorer la connectivité et la participation aux échanges mondiaux et les efforts de diversification économique des Émirats arabes unis témoignent de l’importance des possibilités de progrès de la région. Cependant, l’instabilité politique récente et les menaces qui pèsent sur la sécurité altèrent considérablement les perspectives de croissance économique. Les réformes ne sont pas parvenues à remédier aux problèmes structurels les plus profonds, comme la corruption, le chômage, les disparités de développement et l’inégalité des chances qui touche particulièrement les régions défavorisées, les femmes et les jeunes. Il faut trouver des solutions adaptées pour rétablir la stabilité et jeter les bases d’une économie plus ouverte et d’un modèle de développement plus inclusif. Malgré sa grande hétérogénéité, la région MENA présente sur le plan des évolutions économiques et institutionnelles d’importants points communs, qui confirment qu’il faut une action plus concertée pour exploiter l’immense potentiel de la région et assurer le succès de son intégration dans l’économie mondiale.

This report describes a paradigm shift in road safety policy, being led by a handful of countries, according to the principles of a Safe System. A Safe System is based on the premise that road crashes are both predictable and preventable, and that it is possible to move towards zero road deaths and serious injuries. This, however, requires a fundamental rethink of the governance and implementation of road safety policy.
To stem the road death epidemic, the United Nations have set the target of halving traffic fatalities by 2020. Every year, 1.25 million people are killed in road crashes and up to 50 million are seriously injured. Road crashes kill more people than malaria or tuberculosis and are among the ten leading causes of death. Their economic cost is estimated at 2-5% of GDP in many countries. Written by a group of international road safety experts, this report provides leaders in government, administrations, business and academia with emerging best practices and the starting point to chart their own journeys towards a Safe System.
 

The MENA region registered relatively dynamic economic growth and investment rates during the first decade of the century, even during the global economic and financial crisis. This was helped by important reforms by many governments to increase economic openness, diversification, private sector development and institutional reform. The participation of Tunisia and Jordan in the Open Government Partnership, the massive investment in infrastructure by Morocco and Egypt to increase connectivity and improve participation in global trade, and the efforts of the United Arab Emirates to diversify its economy demonstrate the great potential of the region to achieve progress. However, recent political instability and security threats have considerably slowed economic prospects. Reforms have not succeeded in tackling deeper structural challenges, such as corruption, unemployment, uneven development and unequal opportunities, especially for disadvantaged regions, women and youth. Appropriate policy responses are needed to regain stability and lay the foundations for a more open economy and a more inclusive development model. While the MENA region is profoundly heterogeneous, there are significant common economic and institutional trends that support the need for more concerted action to exploit the immense potential of the region and ensure its fruitful integration into the global economy.