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Portugal’s services markets are among the most heavily regulated in the OECD. As vital inputs into the business sector, services provided by professionals, such as lawyers and engineers, generate up to 1.8 times their value in outputs by firms that use them. However, structural flaws in the regulation make professional services highly expensive for firms, diminishing their ability to compete effectively. Regulatory restrictions also hamper innovation and efficiency within the professions. Against this backdrop, this report examines regulations for 13 self-regulated professions (lawyers, solicitors, notaries, bailiffs, architects, engineers, technical engineers, certified accountants, auditors, economists, customs brokers, nutritionists and pharmacists). From 923 pieces of legislation analysed, the report makes 348 individual recommendations for amending or removing provisions to improve competition, and makes a detailed inventory of the analysis underlying the work. Analysis of Portuguese legislation and professions was complemented by research into international experiences and wide consultations with stakeholders from the public and private sectors. The OECD recommendations aim to remove or modify overly restrictive provisions in order to facilitate the access or exercise of the professions, to benefit businesses and consumers alike. This report identifies the sources of those benefits and gives estimates of their impact. Provided all recommendations are fully implemented, the benefit to the economy from lifting the barriers in the 13 liberal professions is estimated at around EUR 130 million a year.
Portugal’s services markets remain among the most heavily regulated in the OECD. Inland and maritime transports in Portugal are a vital part of the business environment, ensuring the movement of goods and passengers and inputs for the business sector. Regulatory restrictions limit the ability of firms to effectively compete in the markets, whether as providers or customers, while hampering innovation, efficiency and productivity. Against this backdrop, this report analyses Portuguese regulations for road, railway and maritime transport, and many ancillary services (such as vehicle inspection centres), as well as Portugal’s ports. The report examines 1 064 pieces of legislation and makes 417 individual recommendations for amending or removing restrictive provisions to improve competition, and makes a detailed inventory of the analysis underlying the work. Analysis of Portuguese legislation was complemented by research into international experiences and wide consultations with public and private sector stakeholders. The OECD recommendations aim to remove or modify the provisions to benefit businesses and consumers alike. This report identifies the sources of those benefits and gives estimates of their impact. Provided all recommendations are fully implemented, the benefit to the economy from lifting the barriers in the land and maritime transport sectors is estimated to be around EUR 250 million a year.
This review analyses regulatory barriers to competition in the sectors of freight transport and retail and wholesale trade in Tunisia, with the goal of helping Tunisian authorities make regulation more pro-competitive while fostering long-lasting growth. This report is based on a competition assessment of laws and regulations conducted by the OECD developing recommendations to promote the competitive and efficient functioning of markets under review. It also includes estimates of how the implementation of certain recommendations could impact the economy.
Germany has continued to improve its environmental performance over the past decade. It has ambitious climate targets with the aim to reach climate neutrality by 2045 and achieve negative emissions after 2050. Nevertheless, Germany will need to further accelerate climate action, particularly in the buildings and transport sectors, and address the triple crisis of energy, climate and biodiversity in an integrated and holistic manner. As part of its energy crisis response, Germany has taken a series of measures, which are historic in size and scope. They are set to massively accelerate its green energy transition in the coming years. It is also scaling up its engagement on climate change adaptation across all government levels and has initiated an ambitious programme to foster investments in nature-based solutions. This is the fourth OECD Environmental Performance Review of Germany. It provides 28 recommendations to help Germany further improve its environmental performance.
Ireland’s progress in delinking the economy from environmental pressures has been uneven in the last decade. Greenhouse gas emissions, waste generation and nutrient pollution rose with strong economic growth between the mid-2010s and the inception of the COVID‑19 pandemic. The country’s dispersed settlement pattern implies that roads are the dominant transport mode. Climate, circular economy and biodiversity policies have gained renewed impetus, with various ambitious policy initiatives and large public investment plans. These need to be swiftly implemented to alleviate the growing pressures from intensification of agricultural practices, demographic development, urban sprawl and road traffic. Encouraging businesses and households to take action is key. This requires providing consistent price signals for the use of energy and natural resources and for better managing travel demand, while taking into account affordability, employment impact and regional disparities.
This is the third Environmental Performance Review of Ireland. It evaluates progress towards green growth and sustainable development, with a special chapter focusing on sustainable mobility and freight.
Luxembourg has made progress in decoupling environmental pressures from economic growth, treating wastewater and managing waste and materials. It has also positioned itself as an international centre for green finance. Yet, it remains one of the most carbon- and material-intensive economies in the OECD. The country is a crossroads for freight traffic and attracts thousands of daily cross-border commuters. This exacerbates greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution and road congestion. Urban sprawl, landscape fragmentation and agriculture exert strong pressures on biodiversity.
To steer its economy towards a greener model, Luxembourg has set ambitious environmental objectives. Greening taxation, providing stronger price signals, promoting eco-innovation and the circular economy, mainstreaming biodiversity into all policies, and investing in low-carbon infrastructure and sustainable mobility, should be priorities.
This is the third Environmental Performance Review of Luxembourg. It evaluates progress towards green growth and sustainable development, with special chapters focusing on two major issues: air quality and mobility, and biodiversity.
Switzerland has taken steps to improve the environmental performance of its agricultural, energy and transport sectors. The country is a top OECD performer in terms of greenhouse gas emissions intensity and it should be commended for its innovative approach towards rehabilitation of its river system. Yet unsustainable consumption patterns and high levels of municipal waste generation, as well as high percentages of threatened species, are areas of concern. As a major financial centre, Switzerland has a key role to play in promoting green finance.
This is the third Environmental Performance Review of Switzerland. It evaluates progress towards sustainable development and green growth, with special features on: water management and biodiversity conservation and sustainable use.
The Environment Ministers of OECD member countries endorsed the Guidelines for moving towards Environmentally Sustainable Transport (EST) at their meeting in May 2001. These Guidelines are based on the results and conclusions of the EST project involving many OECD and non-OECD countries and provide a solution to making transport policy more sustainable and enhancing quality of life. They have been developed to enable economic development and individual welfare without causing undue health and environmental impacts and depletion of finite resources.
The EST Guidelines will assist governments at all levels in the development and implementation of strategies towards EST. Effective implementation of the EST Guidelines requires strategies that accommodate the particular geographic and socio-economic conditions of countries or regions.These guidelines guidelines represent a desirable and feasible approach for the transport sector that may also be of value in the sustainable development of other sectors.
The OECD works on finding evidence-based solutions to a range of social, economic and environmental challenges, promoting “Better Policies for Better Lives”. The global spread of coronavirus in 2020 has made the commitment to this motto all the more relevant. This edition of the OECD Secretary-General's Report to Ministers outlines the main achievements of the OECD in 2019. It describes the OECD’s work on economics, employment, education, health, inequalities, the environment, tax and many other fields in the context of a rapidly changing world. It includes the activities of the Secretary-General and his office, as well as those of OECD directorates, agencies, special entities and advisory committees.
The OECD is one of the world’s largest and most trusted sources of comparable statistical data and research. It is also a unique forum and knowledge hub for exchange of experiences, best-practice sharing, and advice on public policies and global standard-setting. This year will mark the 60th anniversary of the Organisation, and this will be the opportunity to reflect on the past, and develop a vision for the future. More than ever, we need evidence-based policies geared towards building societies and economies that are more resilient, inclusive and sustainable.
This edition of the OECD Secretary-General's Report to Ministers outlines the main achievements of the OECD in 2020, notably the Organisation’s efforts to help manage the COVID-19 crisis and pave the way towards a stronger, more inclusive, resilient and green recovery. It describes the OECD’s work across major policy areas, with a focus on health, employment, inequalities, economics and tax, education, and the environment, among others. The report outlines the activities of the Secretary-General and his office, as well as those of OECD directorates, the Secretariats of Entities within the OECD family and OECD Social Partners.
The OECD works on finding evidence-based solutions to a range of social, economic and environmental challenges, promoting “Better Policies for Better Lives”. The OECD is one of the world’s largest and most trusted sources of comparable statistical data and research. The OECD serves as not only a pathfinder for new narratives and new initiatives at the global level, but also as a ‘do’ tank ready to support members and partners with our data, standards and evidence-based policy advice.
The 2018 edition analyses tourism performance and policy trends across 49 OECD countries and partner economies. It highlights the need for coherent and comprehensive approaches to tourism policy making, and the significance of the tourism economy, with data covering domestic, inbound and outbound tourism, enterprises and employment, and internal tourism consumption. Thematic chapters explore how understanding the potential impacts of megatrends can better shape the future of tourism, and the need for a shift towards investment and financing for sustainable tourism growth.
Tourism has been hit hard by the depth and duration of the crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Just as the sector was starting to rebound, the economic fallout from Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has dealt a fresh blow to recovery prospects. The 2022 edition of OECD Tourism Trends and Policies analyses tourism performance and policy trends to support recovery across 50 OECD countries and partner economies. It examines the key tourism recovery challenges and outlook ahead, and highlights the need for co-ordinated, forward-looking policy approaches to set tourism on a path to a more resilient, sustainable and inclusive future. Evidence on the significance of the tourism economy is presented, with data covering domestic, inbound and outbound tourism, enterprises and employment, and internal tourism consumption. Tourism policy priorities, reforms and developments are analysed and examples of country practices highlighted. Thematic chapters provide insights on building resilience in the tourism ecosystem and promoting a green tourism recovery.
Oil consumption is increasingly concentrated in transport and relatively limited fluctuations in transport demand can have increasingly significant effects on oil prices. This Round Table assesses the policy instruments available to address oil security and climate change and examines their interaction with measures to manage congestion and mitigate local air pollution. A number of incompatibilities and trade-offs are identified underlining the importance of integrated policy making. The report includes an examination of the factors that drive oil prices in the short and long term and a discussion of the outlook for oil supply.
Die Umweltergebnisse haben sich in Deutschland in den vergangenen zehn Jahren weiter verbessert. Das Land verfolgt ehrgeizige Klimaziele, um bis 2045 Klimaneutralität und nach 2050 Negativemissionen zu erreichen. Dennoch muss Deutschland seine Klimamaßnahmen vor allem im Gebäude- und im Verkehrssektor weiter beschleunigen und sich ganzheitlich mit der Energie-, Klima- und Biodiversitätskrise auseinandersetzen. Als Reaktion auf die Energiekrise wurde eine Reihe von Maßnahmen ergriffen, deren Größenordnung und Reichweite historisch sind. Diese dürften die Energiewende in den kommenden Jahren deutlich schneller voranbringen. Außerdem verstärkt Deutschland sein Engagement in der Klimaanpassung auf allen staatlichen Ebenen und hat ein ehrgeiziges Förderprogramm für Investitionen in naturbasierte Lösungen aufgelegt. Dies ist die vierte Ausgabe des OECD-Umweltprüfberichts Deutschland. Er enthält 28 Empfehlungen, die Deutschland helfen sollen, seine Umweltergebnisse weiter zu verbessern.
Die Schweiz hat Schritte unternommen, um ihre Umweltleistungen im Landwirtschafts-, Energieund Verkehrsbereich zu verbessern. In Bezug auf die Treibhausgasemissionen zählt sie zu den Spitzenreitern unter den OECD-Ländern und sie verdient Anerkennung für ihren innovativen Ansatz zur Revitalisierung ihrer Fliessgewässer. Problematisch sind hingegen nicht nachhaltige Konsummuster und das hohe Siedlungsabfallaufkommen ebenso wie die hohen Anteile von gefährdeten Arten. Als wichtiges Finanzzentrum kommt der Schweiz zudem eine Schlüsselrolle in der Förderung von grünen Investitionen zu. Bei diesem Bericht handelt es sich um den dritten OECD-Prüfbericht für die Schweiz.
Darin werden die Fortschritte in Bezug auf nachhaltige Entwicklung und umweltverträgliches Wachstum bewertet, wobei die Schwerpunkte auf der Wasserbewirtschaftung, der Erhaltung der Artenvielfalt und der nachhaltigen Nutzung von Ökosystemen liegen.