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The second, third and fourth editions of the Frascati Manual, the OECD standard for measuring resources devoted to research and experimental development (R&D), published in 1970, 1976 and 1981, reflected on the accumulated experience of conducting national surveys and compiling international statistics comparing R&D efforts across countries. Successive editions improved, inter alia, the guidance’s alignment with other international statistical standards (2nd edition) and took into account how the data were being used. The scope of the manual was expanded to cover research in the social sciences and humanities (3rd edition). Greater stress was placed on “functional” classifications of R&D, such as socioeconomic objectives (3rd edition), and the specificities of higher education R&D (4th edition).

This publication presents recent evidence and analytical work on the impact and future perpectives of demographic trends in the workforce, taking also into account education, skills and geographical mobility. It pays particular attention to the labour mobility patterns generated by the development of free mobility in Europe and simlar developments in other parts of the world.

This Round Table examines the volume, costs, and possible ways of improving freight collection and delivery in uban areas.

OECD countries invest significant resources in evaluating agricultural pesticides before they are marketed (or re-evaluating pesticides that have been in use for many years) to ensure that they do not pose unacceptable risks to human health and the environment. Since many pesticides used in OECD countries are the same, governments have recognised the substantial benefits that can be gained if the task of pesticide evaluations for registration and re-registration is shared, rather than duplicating each others’ work. The OECD is working to establish the infrastructure that will facilitate such work sharing. The recent adoption of an OECD-wide future “vision,” with specific deadlines for work sharing, should lead to additional (and more routine) work sharing arrangements between governments and industry. This document provides responses to questions that are frequently asked by governments and industry about the concept of work sharing, and how it would operate in practice.

This brochure is published within the framework of the Scheme for the Application of International Standards for Fruit and Vegetables established by OECD in 1962. It comprises explanatory notes and illustrations to facilitate the uniform interpretation of the Fresh Figs Standard. This brochure illustrates the standard text and demonstrates the quality parameters on high quality photographs. Thus it is a valuable tool for the inspection authorities, professional bodies and traders interested in international trade in Fresh Figs. The electronic version of this brochure is available on the OECD website.

The balance of economic power is shifting. Countries that were once poor are becoming economic powerhouses. Yet poverty persists worldwide, depriving billions of people of basic necessities and the prospects of creating a better life. How are we responding to this challenge? This book explores the multi-faceted world of aid and development co-operation – a range of global, and sometimes contested, efforts aimed at reducing the impact of poverty. It traces the history of these efforts, explains where they come from and where they are going, and asks whether they are achieving as much as they could. It also examines some of the ways in which development efforts can be made more effective in achieving lasting benefits through good governance and the creation of a deeper partnership between developed and developing countries. And it looks at how the economic emergence of countries like China and India is bringing a new dynamic to development co-operation.

How did the sharpest global slowdown in more than six decades happen, and how can recovery be made sustainable? OECD Insights: From Crisis to Recovery traces the causes, course and consequences of the “Great Recession”. It explains how a global build up of liquidity, coupled with poor regulation, created a financial crisis that quickly began to make itself felt in the real economy, destroying businesses and raising unemployment to its highest levels in decades. The worst of the crisis now looks to be over, but a swift return to strong growth appears unlikely and employment will take several years to get back to pre-crisis levels. High levels of public and private debt mean cutbacks and saving are likely to become the main priority, meaning the impact of the recession will continue to be felt for years to come.

This book presents the results of the project on Young Adults with Low Levels of Education, conducted jointly by the OECD and the Canadian Policy Research Networks.  It examines the extent to which young men and women with low levels of education are marginalised, the role family background plays in making it possible to complete the recognised minimal level of education, and how immigrants overcome the cultural and language gaps to find employment.

For the potential advantages of migration to be harnessed, it is crucial that immigration be accompanied by integration, or effective mechanisms for ensuring that immigrants are incorporated into labour markets, the economy and society. While immigration policy is often determined, designed and funded at the national level, its impact on migrants and society is more strongly felt at the local level where other policies interact. This publication highlights principles and factors which are important in supporting integration locally. A comparison of local initiatives implemented in five OECD countries - Canada, UK (London), Spain, Italy, and Switzerland - answers key questions facing all policy makers and stakeholders working in this field. This book provides a set of concrete policy recommendations for implementation at both local and national levels.

Conducted jointly with UNESCO, UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), UNICEF and the World Bank, the fourth round of the Survey on National Education Responses to COVID-19 School Closures took place in April–July 2022. With responses from Ministries of Education in 93 countries, findings show education systems’ concerted effort to reach out to students and bring them back to school; the reinforcing of digitalised modes of learning; dialogue with families on the quality and cost-benefits of education; and long-term investments in the resilience of education systems.

“Too much red tape” is a common complaint from businesses and citizens in OECD countries. This report analyses proven approaches commonly adopted by governments to reduce and streamline  administrative procedures like one-stop shops (physical and electronic), simplification of permits and licence procedures, time limits for decision-making, methods to measure administrative burdens, regulatory-compliance assistance for small and medium-size companies, and increasing reliance on IT-based solutions.

This lavishly illustrated book tells the story of the development of the OECD from the founding of its predecessor organisation, the OEEC after World War II, to the transformation into the OECD in 1960, and its evolution since that time. Covering the stewardship of 6 Secretaries-General over a period of 50 years, the book describes what OECD does and how it does it.  An interesting chapter on a Day in the Life of a Chateau, tracks a typical day for a variety of OECD staffers, illustrating the breadth and variety of what people do at the OECD.  

This roadmap explores the potential improvement of existing technologies to enhance the average fuel economy of motorised vehicles; the roadmap’s vision is to achieve a 30% to 50% reduction in fuel use per kilometre from new road vehicles  including 2-wheelers, LDV s and HDV s) around the world in 2030, and from the stock of all vehicles on the road by 2050. This achievement would contribute to significant reductions in GHG emissions and oil use, compared to a baseline projection. Different motorised modes are treated separately, with a focus on LDV s, HDV s and powered two-wheelers. A section on in-use fuel economy also addresses technical and nontechnical parameters that could allow fuel economy to drastically improve over the next decades. Technology cost analysis and payback time show that significant progress can be made with low or negative cost for fuel-efficient vehicles over their lifetime use. Even though the latest data analysed by the IEA for fuel economy between 2005 and 2008 showed that a gap exists in achieving the roadmap’s vision, cutting the average fuel economy of road motorised vehicles by 30% to 50% by 2030 is achievable, and the policies and technologies that could help meet this challenge are already deployed in many places around the world.

To ensure that the tests used to address the safety of Manufactured Nanomaterials are consistent and defensible; the OECD launched the Sponsorship Programme for the Testing of Manufactured Nanomaterials (Testing Programme) in November 2007. This Testing Programme verifies the testing methods used on Manufactured Nanomaterials by pooling the expertise of OECD member countries, some non-member countries and other stakeholders to fund the safety testing of specific Manufactured Nanomaterials. This document is the summary of the dossier on Fullerenes (C60). The Summary includes information on physical and chemical properties; general information on exposure; hazards to the environment; and toxicological information.

In this document the importance of mechanistic consideration in quantitative structure-activity relationship ((Q)SAR) analysis, the critical role of mechanistic consideration in improving various (Q)SAR approaches and possible integrative approaches of combining chemoinformatics and bioinformatics are discussed, mainly using carcinogenicity as an illustrative toxicity endpoint. The principles and issues described in this document are general and may also be used for various types of chemical assessment. The intended target of readership is for global chemical hazard/risk assessors in regulatory agencies, industries, non-governmental organization and academia who require reliable and scientifically supportable (Q)SAR information and predictions in their assessments as well as for developers/researchers who endeavour to produce scientifically reliable (Q)SAR predictive models and tools.

Policy makers in OECD countries are concerned about whether they can maintain their current levels of corporate income tax revenues and how they can create an attractive investment climate for domestic and foreign investors. This report presents the recent trends in the taxation of corporate income in OECD countries and discusses the main drivers of corporate income tax reform and evaluates the gains of fundamental corporate tax reform. The corporate tax-induced distortions are discussed from a domestic and international tax point of view. This study also considers tax revenue and tax complexity issues. The book also explains a series of alternative systems that might be implemented.