This Survey is published on the responsibility of the Economic and Development Review Committee (EDRC) of the OECD, which is charged with the examination of the economic situation of member countries.The economic situation and policies of Sweden were reviewed by the Committee on 11 February 2019. The draft report was then revised in the light of the discussions and given final approval as the agreed report of the whole Committee on 1 March 2019.The Secretariat’s draft report was prepared for the Committee by Christophe André, Jon Kristian Pareliusen and Hyunjeong Hwang, with contributions from Andres Fuentes Hutfilter, under the supervision of Vincent Koen. Secretarial assistance was provided by Sisse Nielsen.The previous Survey of Sweden was issued in February 2017.

The expansion is strong. GDP has expanded at an average rate of close to 3% over the past five years (Figure A). The upswing has been broad-based, with robust consumption, investment and exports.

Sweden is a strong knowledge-based economy, well integrated in global value chains, which ensures high standards of living, well-being, income and gender equality, as well as a high environmental quality to its inhabitants. Growth has been broad-based over the past five years, with consumption, investment and exports all contributing significantly. Meanwhile, strong domestic demand has pushed up imports ().

This annex summarises recommendations made in previous Surveys and main actions taken since the OECD Economic Survey on Sweden was published in February 2017.

Swedish school results declined for two decades following a series of reforms in the early 1990s decentralising the school system and introducing choice, competition and management by objectives. The general aims and direction of reform were not destined to lower results, but weaknesses of reform design and implementation, against the backdrop of a deep recession, likely contributed to falling outcomes. Residential segregation and the current model of competition and choice increase school segregation and likely reduce equality of opportunity. A coherent set of reforms should strengthen central government institutions, rebuild a regional governance structure and increasingly target funding to pupils’ needs. Better steering of competition and school choice implies ensuring that grades fairly represent pupils’ skills and knowledge, that municipalities increasingly take the socio-economic mix of pupils into account in entry and investment decisions, and that entry and expansion of private schools are better coordinated to counter school segregation. Teaching needs to become more attractive to raise the quality of recruitment to the profession and to address current and future teacher shortages by improving teacher education, strengthening continuous learning and instigating more cooperation, feedback and support between colleagues.