Browse by: "M"

Un environnement économique favorable est crucial pour stimuler la productivité en Belgique et l’inclusivité, et est le principal moteur de la prospérité économique à long terme. Ce document analyse l’impact de l’environnement économique sur la performance de productivité. La gestion des innovations, la diffusion technologique, l’investissement des secteurs privé et public ainsi que les politiques de concurrence et de régulation ont tous un impact sur la croissance de la productivité. Les défis clefs pour la Belgique incluent la modulation des exonérations fiscales en vigueur en faveur des activités de recherche-développement afin d’améliorer leur utilisation et leur efficacité ; la réduction des charges administratives sur les entreprises, l’amélioration de l’accès à la finance pour les jeunes entreprises innovantes et la stimulation de la culture entrepreneuriale en matière de jeunes pousses.

Despite the ambitious carbon reduction targets set by policy makers worldwide, current investments fall well short of the net-zero emissions scenario. This paper analyses the factors holding back corporate green investment, with a particular focus on the role of firm capacity – specifically financing constraints and weak green management practices – and its interaction with environmental policy. Combining a variety of econometric techniques, including panel data models, difference-in-differences settings and instrumental variable approaches, our cross-country analysis on large listed companies shows that: i) both financing constraints and a lack of green managerial capacity reduce firms’ probability of investing in green technologies, leading to higher emission intensity; ii) well-designed environmental policies can mitigate these impacts. A case study using more granular data on Portuguese firms further shows that: iii) green investment is more elastic to financing conditions than other types of investment; iv) investment in integrated technologies is more sensitive to financing conditions and to managerial capacity compared to end-of-pipe solutions. Lastly, the paper discusses a wide range of policy options that may be considered to foster the green transition through upgrading firms’ capacity.

This Policy Brief focuses on how countries can create opportunities for a green and inclusive economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. A green recovery will significantly enhance the resilience of economies and societies in the face of both the severe recession and accelerating environmental challenges. The Brief also undertakes a preliminary review of announced recovery and stimulus policies in OECD and Key Partner countries. While many countries are focusing on measures that can drive sustainability while boosting jobs, income and growth, a number of countries are proposing measures that support environmentally damaging activities. Measuring and evaluating the environmental impacts of recovery policies over time is crucial, and a set of indicators, covering a broad array of critical environmental dimensions, is proposed for this purpose.

Canada’s immigration policy aims to promote economic development by selecting immigrants
with high levels of human capital, to reunite families and to respond to foreign crises and offer
protection to endangered people. Economic-class immigrants, who are selected for their skills,
are by far the largest group. The immigration system has been highly successful and is well run.
Outcomes are monitored and policies adjusted to ensure that the system’s objectives are met. A
problematic development, both from the point of view of immigrants’ well-being and increasing
productivity, is that their initial earnings in Canada relative to the native-born fell sharply in
recent decades to levels that are too low to catch up with those of the comparable native-born
within immigrants’ working lives. Important causes of the fall include weaker official language
skills and a decline in returns to pre-immigration labour market experience. Canada has
responded by modifying its immigration policy over the years to select immigrants with better
earnings prospects, most recently with the introduction in 2015 of the Express Entry system. It
has also developed a range of settlement programmes and initiatives to facilitate integration.
This chapter looks at options for further adjusting the system to enhance the benefits it
generates.

This article outlines how the global development set-up looks today. The picture is of a complex “ecosystem”, with many different types of organisations delivering assistance in a variety of different forms. This complexity presents both opportunities and threats to the developing countries on the receiving end. Without some oversight and guidance, the system could become burdensome and inefficient. The article describes how the DAC is in a unique position to keep track of the trends and to help to bring harmony to the system. It describes these issues in relation to the more than 200 “multilateral donors” – such as the United Nations, the World Bank and the global funds – which today receive or serve as a channel for 40% of all aid. The challenge is to ensure this is being delivered effectively and that efforts are as co-ordinated as possible, both with each other and with the priorities of the developing countries in which they work. As an example, the latest global plans to tackle climate change are a test case for the development community: the article explores how this can be done without increasing the complexity further.

Against the background of rising anti-globalisation sentiment, this report argues that, while there are good reasons for some people to be angry, trade is not the root of many problems, nor can it solve them on its own. What is needed is an integrated approach to make the whole system work better for more people. This means three things. First, creating the environments where benefits from trade can materialise through domestic policies that encourage opportunity, innovation and competition by cutting unnecessary trade costs and investing in people and digital and physical infrastructure. Second, doing more to bring everyone along, including in lagging regions where trade shocks can be concentrated. Third, making the international system work better, harnessing the full range of international economic co-operation tools to level the international playing field, addressing the gaps in the rules and doing more to ensure that everyone, from companies to countries, plays by the rules.

The realization of world-class universities is a dream of every researcher and national government. However, making them and maintaining their status is difficult even in highly developed industrial countries. Consequently, national governments tend to concentrate financial investment in their top universities, usually with the support of leading members of the academic community.
It is not clear that such sponsored development of a limited number of universities is truly the most efficient approach to enhancing the quality of research and development in any one country. Similar to the effect of Korea’s BK21 scheme, dispute among researchers was widespread when the Japanese government endeavoured to select around 30 “top” universities.
In order to provide sustainable incentives, foster accountability and promote competition among institutions, national policies must aim for the enrichment of “flagship universities” while continuing to support the knowledge infrastructure for “ordinary” ones. This article analyses Japanese “World-Class Universities” policies from the perspectives of both researchers and the national government. This topic is treated as an issue facing most OECD countries.

Malawi provides valuable experience on the advantages of a holistic approach when attempting reforms, and on how to manage longer reform programmes. Since 1995, the budget process has been based on the principles of the Medium-term Expenditure Framework. This article presents the findings of a comprehensive review of the MTEF in 1999/2000 which examined its strengths and weaknesses, the possible causes and the proposed reforms required. MTEF Phase II is targeted at strengthening the management and co-ordination of the budget process, ensuring that there is political leadership of the budget process, improving policy and budget scrutiny processes, and strengthening financial accountability systems. The article also draws on a review of the education sector for a line ministry perspective on whether and how budgetary reforms assist in improving service delivery.

Malaysia has sustained over four decades of rapid, inclusive growth, reducing its dependence on agriculture and commodity exports to become a more diversified, modern and open economy. GDP per capita is now higher than in a number of OECD economies, while poverty and income inequality have declined considerably. Growth has also been remarkably resilient in the face of external shocks. Going forward, the Malaysian government's 11th Malaysia Plan (2016-20) emphasises the need for greater inclusiveness. Continued, gradual fiscal consolidation is a key policy priority, building on earlier energy and food subsidy rationalisation and on the introduction of a goods and services tax. So is continued prudent monetary and financial policy. Further reforms are needed for Malaysia to become a high-income nation around 2020: productivity growth needs to be reinvigorated through various structural reforms while growth needs to become more inclusive.

The Malian economy faces the challenge of reducing its over-dependence on cotton and gold. In order to do so, a search for “green gold” — commercial agriculture beyond cotton — is underway. Mali has started to exploit export market opportunities for horticulture products in Europe as well as in neighbouring countries. Moreover, the country is currently testing the introduction of domestic wheat production for local processing. Although donors are increasingly supporting the development of these new agricultural products, the reform of the cotton sector continues to receive their special attention. Moreover, certain agricultural sub-sectors such as livestock and fishing receive only limited support. The development of a vibrant private sector in agriculture requires further improvements in government policies and donor support, but also more active private sector participation. The government should re-engage in agricultural diversification, and donors should strive to increase the sustainability of their interventions. To this end, greater co-ordination between donors and government is needed in tandem with strengthening the capacity of the local private actors. The study highlights progress towards better donor co-ordination in agriculture and encouraging results, especially with respect to facilitating access to credit for farmers and fostering producers’ organisations. At the same time, it argues that there remains ample room for improvement. Donors tend to crowd in certain segments of the agricultural value chain and to specialise in specific export crops (e.g. the mango sector where 12 donors are currently operating) at the expense of some other important areas, which require additional support (e.g. livestock, transport infrastructure and logistics). A more balanced and coherent approach is warranted.