OECD Regions at a Glance 2016
OECD Regions at a Glance shows how regions and cities contribute to national economic growth and well-being. This edition updates more than 40 region-by-region indicators to assess disparities within countries and their evolution over the past 15 years. The report covers all the OECD member countries and, where data are available, Brazil, People’s Republic of China, Colombia, India, Latvia, Lithuania, Peru, the Russian Federation and South Africa.
New to this edition:
- A comprehensive picture of well-being in the 391 OECD regions based on 11 aspects that shape people's lives: income, jobs, housing, education, health, environment, safety, civic engagement and governance, access to services, social connections, and life satisfaction.
- Recent trends in subnational government finances and indicators on how competencies are allocated and co-ordinated across levels of governments.
Where productivity gains are happening
Regions with the highest productivity in the country (known as ‘frontier regions’) play a central role in productivity growth and in the process of diffusing productivity gains within the country. A better understanding of the profiles of lagging regions and of how they can catch up is key to achieving inclusive growth. Between 1995 and 2013, the labour productivity in frontier regions increased by a yearly average of 1.6% compared to 1.3% for the lagging regions, widening the regional productivity gap by around 50%, from USD 21 000 to USD 31 000. This suggests that lagging regions benefit only partially from the growth of frontier regions. After the economic crisis of 2008, the gap stabilised, mainly due to the slowdown of productivity growth in the frontier regions ().