Browse by: "2015"

The Better Life Index was introduced by the OECD as a tool to chart the multi-dimensional well-being of OECD member countries, Brazil and the Russian Federation. However, the Better Life Index relies only on aggregate country-level indicators, and hence is insensitive to how multi-dimensional well-being outcomes are distributed within countries. This paper discusses how a distribution-sensitive Better Life Index could be designed and implemented. Based on five concrete recommendations for the design of the index, a family of indices is suggested. These indices are shown to be decomposable in interpretable building blocks. While a rich and comprehensive micro-level data set is necessary to implement the distribution-sensitive Better Life Index, no such data set is currently available for all OECD member countries. The paper proposes a ‘synthetic’ data set that relies on information about macro-level indicators and micro-level data from the Gallup World Poll. The implementation of the distribution-sensitive Better Life Index is illustrated with this synthetic data set. While the small sample size and other survey features of the Gallup World Poll imply a number of potential biases, illustrative calculations based on this synthetic data set indicates that, when taking distribution into account, Nordic countries are top-ranked whereas Greece, the Russian Federation and Turkey occupy the bottom positions. The results indicate sizeable losses due to multi-dimensional inequality for OECD member countries. Moreover, there are large differences in the level and composition of multi-dimensional inequality.

This paper presents and analyses new datasets of de jure Currency-Based Measures (CBMs) directed at banks in a sample of 49 countries between 2005 and 2013. These measures are bank regulations that apply a discrimination−e.g. a less favourable treatment−on the basis of the currency of an operation, typically foreign currencies. The new data shows that CBMs have been increasingly used in the post-crisis period, including for macro-prudential purposes. In particular, some Emerging Market Economies, including some OECD countries, have increasingly resorted to and tightened their CBMs, especially to manage capital inflows. Information from these new datasets is also matched with measures on countries’ inability to borrow in domestic currency on international markets, defined as the original sin concept. With the exception of China, only countries suffering from original sin used and tightened CBMs on banks’ foreign exchange liabilities.

This paper builds a welfare measure encompassing household disposable income, unemployment and longevity, while using two different sets of “shadow prices” for non-income variables. The valuations of vital and unemployment risks estimated from life satisfaction data (“subjective shadow prices”) and those derived from model-based approaches and calibrated utility functions (“model-based shadow prices”) are shown to be broadly consistent once a number of conditions are fulfilled. Subjective shadow prices appear to be inflated by the downward bias on the income variable in life satisfaction regressions conducted at the individual level, while the latter bias is largely removed when running regressions at the country level. On the other hand, model-based shadow prices are typically underestimated as: i) the valuation of the unemployment risk is assumed to take place under the veil of ignorance (i.e. for a representative agent that has no information on her current or future unemployment situation); ii) the standard model relies on a Constant Relative Risk Aversion (CRRA) utility function, which has no specific relative risk aversion parameter for unemployment and vital risks; iii) the Value of Statistical Life that is used in standard calibration pertains to the adult lifespan while life expectancy at birth covers the entire lifetime.

Economic policies shape how much people earn, as well as how stable their income and jobs are. The level and stability of earnings both matter for well-being. Standard economic aggregates do not measure accurately the economic uncertainty which households are facing. This paper shows that household-level economic instability is only very loosely related to macroeconomic volatility. It uses several household-level databases to document how structural reforms aimed at boosting growth influence household-level economic stability. Movement from less to more productive processes and firms is at the heart of economic growth, which suggests a trade-off between growth and micro-level stability. Certain policy changes boost growth but increase micro-level instability: they include reductions in tax progressivity or social transfers (including unemployment benefits), as well as moves from very to moderately tight restrictions on the flow of goods and services and on the firing of regular workers. However, the analysis also uncovers that moving to highly competitive policies in general reduces micro-level instability. This finding points to a case for comprehensive rather than marginal reform in tightly regulated countries, since a comprehensive agenda can deliver higher growth without the instability costs that a more marginal reform can entail.

JEL classification: D12, D22, J08, O40
Keywords: Stability, households, economic growth, reforms, microdata

Across OECD countries, 5% of students expect to work as teachers: 3% of boys and 6% of girls. The academic profile of students who expect to work as teachers varies, but in many OECD countries,students who expect to work as teachers have poorer mathematics and reading skills than other ambitious students who expect to work as professionals but not as teachers. PISA shows that, on average, a higher percentage of students expects to work as teachers in countries where teachers’ salaries are higher.

This report focuses on data comparability of scale scores in the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). Valid cross-cultural comparisons of TALIS data are vital in providing input for evidence-based policy making and in promoting the equity and effectiveness of teacher policies. For this purpose, an investigation of data comparability is a prerequisite for any meaningful cross-cultural comparison. TALIS involves a large number of countries and economies, and has used rather strict conventional statistical methods to test comparability. Thus, many scales in TALIS do not reach the level of comparability that allows direct comparisons of scale scores. To facilitate the effective data analysis of TALIS and maximise its policy implications, this project: (1) uses a more flexible statistical method to test comparability, and (2) investigates the level and sources of scale data incomparability. With teacher and principal self-report data from the two rounds of TALIS (2008 and 2013), three studies are carried out to address these issues. Study 1 compares the conventional statistical method with more flexible Bayesian approximate invariance testing in scale data comparability testing. Study 2 investigates whether scale characteristics (e.g. scale length, item length, number of response options, and self-evaluative components) are associated with data comparability in principal and teacher scales. Finally, Study 3 examines the specific cultural variations that contribute to the lack of comparability. It tests the comparability of the Satisfaction with Current Work Environment scale (a key outcome construct in TALIS) between each participating country or economy with a pooled international average reference group. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications for large-scale survey design and data analyses such as using more flexible psychometric method to test comparability and using fewer response options in items forming scales.

This study on Human Resource Management (HRM) in States Affected by Fragility and/or Conflict has been produced by the INCAF Secretariat in response to a request made by the INCAF Task Team on Implementation and Reform during its meetings of 25-26 March 2014. The purpose of this publication is to: - provide a shared understanding of HRM issues to policy makers and practitioners involved in states affected by fragility and/or conflict (SFC)2 - outline a set of common challenges faced by INCAF members in relation to HRM in SFC - serve as a peer-learning tool by sharing ideas and experiences on innovative practices and reforms among members of the OECD/DAC’s International Network on Conflict and Fragility (INCAF), or from other organisations working in SFC

Ten years after the 2005 WTO Ministerial Conference agreed on a mandate to operationalise aid for trade, this paper assesses the achievements and challenges of the WTO-led Initiative. After outlining the achievements, the paper discusses where to put the emphasis, how to expand partnerships, how to enhance effectiveness; and, most importantly, how to retain interest in using aid to make trade work for the poor. In conclusion, the paper proposes that the Initiative could focus on promoting connectivity, boosting sustainable investment, promoting green growth, and supporting the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. The paper suggests that these aims can best be achieved through regional approaches for tackling trade-related binding constraints with development finance from a combination of different sources, including providers of South-South co-operation and with engagement of the private sector.

Canada
Liability and compensation

France
Liability and compensation
Nuclear safety and radiological protection

Greece
Organisation and structure

Hungary
General legislation

India
Liability and compensation

Japan
Liability and compensation

Korea
Liability and compensation

Lithuania
General legislation
Transport of radioactive material

Slovak Republic
International co-operation
Liability and compensation

Slovenia
General legislation

Switzerland
Liability and compensation

United States
Radioactive waste management

European Atomic Energy Community
Non-legally binding instruments
International relations

International Atomic Energy Agency
Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS)
Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management (JC)
The Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage (CSC)
International Expert Group on Nuclear Liability (INLEX)
Legislative assistance activities

OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA)
GIF Framework Agreement extended for ten years
Technology Roadmap: Nuclear Energy
Steering Committee Policy Debate: Health Effects of Low-dose Radiation

Slovak Republic
Further developments in cases related to the challenge by Greenpeace Slovakia to the Mochovce nuclear power plant

United States
Judgment of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission denying requests from petitioners to suspend final reactor licensing decisions pending the issuance of a final determination of reasonable assurance of permanent disposal of spent fuel

While the basic principles of cost-benefit analysis (CBA) are long-standing, the challenges entailed in applying these principles are constantly evolving. This paper reviews recent developments in environmental CBA since the publication of an OECD volume on this topic by Pearce et al. (2006). The character and direction of these developments also evolves over time and the current review reflects this process.

This paper investigates the relationship between local air pollution and urban structure with an emphasis on urban fragmentation. Using a unique dataset of 249 Large Urban Zones (LUZ) across Europe, a Bayesian Model Averaging selection method is employed to empirically identify the determinants of within-LUZ concentration of three air pollutants: NO2, PM10 and SO2 for the year 2006. Several indices of land use are considered among possible determinants. These are supplemented by a dataset on various economic, demographic and meteorological variables that can explain the variation of air pollution. The results of this econometric analysis support the hypothesis that urban structure has significant effects on pollution concentration. In particular, they suggest that fragmented urban areas experience higher concentrations of NO2 and PM10 and that densely populated urban areas suffer from higher SO2 concentration. The findings suggest that policies favouring continuous urban areas may result in environmental improvements.

This report provides an overview of spatial and land-use planning systems in OECD countries1 focusing on: (i) the governance systems across countries, (ii) the institutional and legal frameworks for spatial planning, and (iii) the various policy instruments used at different levels of territorial governance to articulate spatial development objectives, manage physical development and protect the environment. The report draws on available academic literature and policy documents. The analysis shows a strong relationship between governance models and authority and competences for spatial planning. Spatial plans at various spatial scales are used to create the preconditions for harmonising socio-economic development goals with environmental protection imperatives. Environmental assessment constitutes another key regulatory instrument. National plans, programmes, regional development and land-use plans as well as sector plans and policies are subjected to Strategic Environmental Assessment. Individual projects resulting from these policy instruments are subjected to Environmental Impact Assessment in most countries. In all countries, environmentally-related permits work together with environmental assessments to ensure that environmental considerations are taken into account in the siting of industrial installations and mega-infrastructure projects that would have significant impacts on the environment. The main challenges associated with environmental assessment in most countries include the political nature of the assessment process, the cost (time and money) of assessment particularly to businesses, limited consultation periods, limited technical capacity of institutions, the endeavour for independence and quality of the assessment and the absence of robust legislative frameworks.

Building on the OECD’s Better Life Initiative and new work using geospatial analysis, this paper investigates how reported life satisfaction relates to some of the urban structure indicators. To this end, it merges OECD household survey data with urban structure data from OECD’s Metropolitan Database, which includes a number of city-level indicators such as population and road density, as well as localised measures of land-use. The merged data permit analysis for five countries: France, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden. The findings from this analysis provide some evidence of a trade-off between home size and distance to the city centre, although the statistical power of this effect is relatively weak. Interestingly, regression analysis suggests that overall city-level compactness has a clear negative relationship with life satisfaction, regardless of whether individuals live in the urban core or in peri-urban areas. Land-use fragmentation is also found to have a negative relationship with individuals’ life satisfaction. These general patterns are for the most part robust to various statistical tests. They also hold when econometric analysis is conducted at the country level. Residents of cities with greater levels of centralisation – i.e. a greater share of the population living in the city centre – exhibit measurably lower levels of life satisfaction. A naïve interpretation of this result would suggest that anti-sprawl policies do not in fact improve overall welfare. This study does not support this conclusion. It does, however, give cause for consideration before accepting ‘win-win’ arguments for ‘smart growth,’ often brought forward to support increasingly concentrated, high-density development. The evidence presented here suggests that such policies are not without their welfare trade-offs, and that there will be winners and losers from their implementation. While high-density policies can clearly make a positive contribution to reducing local and global environmental externalities, many of these benefits are deferred and may largely accrue to future generations. A key general lesson from this study is that compensation of the losers may improve the equity effects of these policies, as well as prove more expeditious from a political economy perspective. One of the simplest approaches to compensation would be to balance pecuniary incentives for smart growth, such as higher development taxes or fees, with compensatory policies, such as subsidies or tax or fee offsets in other domains. The main policy conclusion from this study is that smart growth policies should include distributional analysis and recommendations for addressing concerns about inequalities flowing from the scoping and implementation of policies.