This profile identifies strengths, challenges and specific areas of action on cancer prevention and care in Latvia as part of the European Cancer Inequalities Registry, a flagship initiative of Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan. It provides a short synthesis of: the national cancer burden; risk factors for cancer (focusing on behavioural and environmental risk factors); early detection programmes; and cancer care performance (focusing on accessibility, care quality, costs and the impact of COVID-19 on cancer care).
This report presents a case study of applying the OECD anticipatory innovation governance framework to develop and manage anticipatory innovation ecosystems as vehicles for knowledge generation, innovation governance and co-ordinated action to achieve policy goals. Part I establishes the case for anticipatory innovation ecosystems and sets out how they can be governed through a multi-level approach. In Part II, opportunities and challenges for applying this approach in the Latvian context are identified, and recommendations are made for developing anticipatory innovation ecosystems in Latvia.
Economic and financial crimes are growing in numbers, complexity and reach, making them increasingly difficult to investigate and successfully prosecute. This report details efforts in Latvia to strengthen its criminal justice system against financial and economic crimes. It highlights the range of challenges common to numerous jurisdictions, and describes progress made in Latvia to address these challenges through interagency cooperation mechanisms. Finally, it provides recommendations for areas requiring further attention.
Understanding adults’ attitudes towards the environment is necessary to gauge the opportunities and challenges of creating effective and politically-feasible climate policies. Using data from the Wellcome Global Monitor 2020, the European Social Survey (Round 8), World Values Survey and EM-DAT, this paper examines how adults’ environmental attitudes vary within and across countries and details how environmental attitudes are associated with adults’ engagement in pro-environmental behaviours and support for environmentally-friendly policies. The paper explores whether the extent to which individuals prioritise the environment over the state of the economy or vice versa depends on individuals’ exposure to natural disasters or negative labour market conditions. Results indicate that people’s economic vulnerability and the sectors they work in impact their attitudes towards their environment and support for public policy. Furthermore, the findings suggest that increases in unemployment and exposure to natural disasters influence the extent to which individuals prioritise the environment.
The paper is the second in a series of two papers mapping young people’s environmental sustainability competence in EU and OECD countries that were prepared as background for the forthcoming OECD Skills Outlook 2023 publication. The papers are the results of a collaboration between the OECD Centre for Skills and the European Commission - Joint Research Centre (Unit B4) on students’ environmental sustainability competence. The first paper is titled ‘Young people’s environmental sustainability competence: Emotional, cognitive, behavioural and attitudinal dimensions in EU and OECD countries.
The paper is the first in a series of two papers mapping young people’s environmental sustainability competence in EU and OECD countries that were prepared as background for the forthcoming OECD Skills Outlook 2023 publication. The papers are the results of a collaboration between the OECD Centre for Skills and the European Commission - Joint Research Centre (Unit B4) on students’ environmental sustainability competence. The second paper is titled: ‘The environmental sustainability competence toolbox: From leaving a better planet to our children to leaving better children for our planet’.
The Pensions at a Glance database includes reliable and internationally comparable statistics on public and mandatory and voluntary pensions. It covers 34 OECD countries and aims to cover all G20 countries. Pensions at a Glance reviews and analyses the pension measures enacted or legislated in OECD countries. It provides an in-depth review of the first layer of protection of the elderly, first-tier pensions across countries and provideds a comprehensive selection of pension policy indicators for all OECD and G20 countries.
Le rattrapage par la Lettonie des pays les plus prospères de l’OCDE en termes de revenu par habitant s’est poursuivi pendant la pandémie, malgré la progression lente de la vaccination. Les autorités ont utilisé la politique budgétaire pour faire face aux difficultés du système de santé tout en protégeant les emplois et les entreprises, mais elle pourrait être exploitée davantage pour faire reculer les inégalités et la pauvreté, en particulier parmi les personnes âgées. La population de la Lettonie diminue depuis des décennies et cette tendance va se poursuivre. Cela signifie que les pouvoirs publics doivent s’attacher à rehausser le taux d’emploi des personnes d’âge actif. Pour ce faire, il faudra s’attaquer à l’ample écart de rémunération entre hommes et femmes qui dissuade ces dernières de travailler, repousser l’âge de la retraite et maintenir l’ensemble de la population en bonne santé. Or, les dépenses publiques de santé sont faibles, ce qui se traduit par un reste à charge élevé pour les patients, de nombreux besoins de soins non satisfaits et une espérance de vie courte, également imputable à des modes de vie laissant à désirer. Dans les temps à venir, la poursuite des progrès réalisés sur le plan économique nécessitera d’améliorer l’accès au crédit, de mettre fin aux problèmes persistants d’emploi informel et de corruption d’agents publics, et de favoriser une meilleure exploitation des opportunités d’exportation. En vue d’améliorer les résultats à l’exportation, il faudra redoubler d’efforts pour renforcer les compétences des jeunes et des adultes, afin que la transformation numérique de l’économie puisse se dérouler rapidement, réformer le système d’innovation pour intensifier les activités de recherche-développement (R-D) des entreprises et des universités, améliorer les infrastructures de transport et la gouvernance des entreprises publiques, et offrir à l’ensemble des entreprises un environnement plus propice à l’exercice de leurs activités.
THÈMES SPÉCIAUX : VIEILLISSEMENT, SOINS DE SANTÉ ET EXPORTATIONS
This paper investigates factors that contribute to the survival of export relationships at the firm and product levels using a large anonymised firm-level database for Latvia. It finds that some characteristics of exporting firms, such as a higher productivity level, larger size, lower indebtedness and higher profitability are associated with longer duration of export relationships. Firms that innovated prior to exporting are also likely to enjoy longer export spells, while participation in an EU-fund support programme did not alter duration. Younger staff and management of the firm are associated with a better survival of a new export product. Furthermore, this paper reveals novel roles of export product characteristics in survival, in particular an interesting tension between the complexity of new export products and their “distance” from the existing export bundle. While aiming high, that is, exporting products that are more complex, pays off as such products are associated with longer-lasting trade relationships, aiming too high, that is exporting new products that are far more complex than the exporter’s existing product bundle, tends to lower their survival probability.
Latvia has enjoyed continuing catch-up in per capita incomes with the more affluent OECD countries through the pandemic, despite slow progress in vaccination. Fiscal policy has handled the health-system challenges while protecting jobs and firms but could do more to ease inequality and poverty, especially among the elderly. Latvia’s population has been shrinking for decades and will continue to do so. This means it must focus on increasing employment among those of working age. That implies a need to tackle the large gender wage gap that is discouraging women’s labour force participation, delay retirement and keep everyone in good health. Nevertheless, public health-care spending is low, causing heavy out-of-pocket expenses, many unmet needs and, along with widespread poor lifestyle choices, short life expectancy. Looking ahead, further economic progress will depend on easing the supply of credit; overcoming remaining labour-market informality and official bribery and corruption; and encouraging greater exploitation of export-market opportunities. Enhancing export performance calls for redoubled efforts to boost skills of youth and adults so that digitalisation can proceed quickly, reforming the innovation system to intensify business and university R&D activities, improving transport infrastructure and the governance of state-owned enterprises, and smoothing the business environment for all firms.
SPECIAL FEATURES: AGEING, HEALTH CARE, EXPORTS
This profile provides a concise and policy-relevant overview of health and the health system in Latvia as part of the broader series of the State of Health in the EU country profiles. It provides a short synthesis of: the health status in the country; the determinants of health, focussing on behavioural risk factors; the organisation of the health system; and the effectiveness, accessibility and resilience of the health system. This edition has a special focus on the impact of COVID‑19.
This profile is the joint work of the OECD and the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, in co-operation with the European Commission.
Under Action 14, countries have committed to implement a minimum standard to strengthen the effectiveness and efficiency of the mutual agreement procedure (MAP). The MAP is included in Article 25 of the OECD Model Tax Convention and commits countries to endeavour to resolve disputes related to the interpretation and application of tax treaties. The Action 14 Minimum Standard has been translated into specific terms of reference and a methodology for the peer review and monitoring process. The minimum standard is complemented by a set of best practices. The peer review process is conducted in two stages. Stage 1 assesses countries against the terms of reference of the minimum standard according to an agreed schedule of review. Stage 2 focuses on monitoring the follow-up of any recommendations resulting from jurisdictions' stage 1 peer review report. This report reflects the outcome of the stage 2 peer monitoring of the implementation of the Action 14 Minimum Standard by Latvia, which is accompanied by a document addressing the implementation of best practices.
Regulators act as “market referees”, balancing often competing interests of stakeholders in the sector, including governments, current and future actors in the markets, and consumers. At the same time, markets are changing at an unprecedented pace due to new technologies, the international drive toward carbon-neutral economies, shifts in consumer needs and preferences, and, most recently, the profound changes brought by the coronavirus pandemic. Assessing the performance of economic regulators must therefore be a continuous process.
This progress review evaluates the changes put in place by Latvia’s Public Utilities Commission since the previous OECD performance assessment review in 2016, in the interest of increasing the effectiveness of its regulatory activities and improving final outcomes for consumers and the economy.
The Impact of Regulation on International Investment in Finland examines what drives FDI into Finland and which domestic regulatory aspects may discourage foreign investment. The report analyses trends in FDI flows towards Finland and other Nordic-Baltic countries and discusses the benefits of foreign investment for the Finnish economy. It provides a comparative overview of the regulatory frameworks in force in Finland and its Nordic-Baltic peers, outlining both economy-wide and sector-specific findings, and explores how changes in these regulatory frameworks are linked to changes in FDI inflows in the region. Foreign investors’ views on Finland’s business environment complement these findings. The report underlines potential areas for reform and suggests policy actions that could further improve Finland’s investment climate and contribute to attracting and retaining more FDI, while also strengthening its positive impact.
Cette base de données annuelles couvre un large éventail de statistiques sur le commerce international des pays de l'OCDE. Elle constitue une source fiable de données en valeur par produit et par pays partenaire. Chacun des trois premiers volumes des Statistiques du commerce international par produit présente les statistiques relatives à six pays, celles-ci étant publiées dès réception des données. Les quatrième et cinquième présentent sept pays et le sixième volume porte sur cinq pays ainsi que les deux groupements de pays de l'OCDE ; OCDE Total et UE28-Extra.
Pour chaque pays sont présentés des tableaux se référant aux sections et divisions de la classification Système Harmonisé SH 2012 (une et deux positions). Chaque tableau permet de visualiser à la fois les importations et les exportations des cinq années les plus récentes par produit pour plus de soixante-dix pays partenaires ou groupes de pays partenaires.
This reliable source of yearly data covers a wide range of statistics on international trade of OECD countries and provides detailed data in value by commodity and by partner country. The first three volumes of International Trade by Commodity Statistics each contain the tables for six countries, published in the order in which they become available. The fourth and fifth contain seven countries and the sixth volume includes five countries as well as the OECD country groupings OECD Total and EU28-Extra.
For each country, this publication shows detailed tables relating to the Harmonised System HS 2012 classification, Sections and Divisions (one- and two- digit). Each table presents imports and exports of a given commodity with more than seventy partner countries or country groupings for the most recent five-year period available.
Digitalizācija Latvijā analizē jaunākās attīstības tendences Latvijas digitālajā ekonomikā, pārskata ar digitalizāciju saistītās politikas un sniedz ieteikumus par politikas saskaņotības palielināšanu šajā jomā, pamatojoties uz ESAO Going Digital integrētās politikas struktūru.
Pārskatā tiek izmantots stratēģiska perspektīva, lai izpētītu trīs alternatīvus nākotnes scenārijus, kas var izveidoties globālās ekonomikas un sabiedrības digitālās transformācijas rezultātā. Tajā tiek pētīta arī sakaru tīklu un pakalpojumu pieejamība Latvijā, kā arī saistītās politikas un regulējumi. Turklāt pārskatā tiek aplūkotas fi zisku personu, uzņēmumu un valdības tendences digitālās tehnoloģijas izmantošanas jomā, kā arī izpētītas politikas, lai sekmētu izplatīšanu. Visbeidzot pārskatā tiek analizētas digitalizācijas radītās iespējas un izaicinājumi galvenajās jomās, sākot ar inovācijām un prasmēm un beidzot ar digitālo drošību un datu pārvaldību, kā arī novērtētas politikas reakcijas uz šīm pārmaiņām Latvijā.
Šī publikācija ir Going Digital in Latvia tulkojums, kas ir daļa no OECD Reviews of Digital Transformation sērijas, kas publicēts tikai angļu valodā.