Browse by: "2022"

Many of Asia’s retirement-income systems are ill prepared for the rapid population ageing that will occur over the next two decades. Asia’s pension systems urgently need to be reformed to ensure that they are both financially sustainable and provide adequate retirement incomes. This report examines the retirement-income systems of 11 non-OECD countries in the region, comparing the results with a selection of OECD countries. The report provides new data for comparing pension systems of different countries. It combines the OECD’s expertise in modelling pension entitlements with a network of national pension experts who provided detailed information at the country level, verified key results and provided feedback and input to improve the analysis.

This report examines the commercial availability and current uses of PFASs and non-PFAS alternatives in coatings, paints and varnishes (CPVs). From the wide range of applications that comprise the CPV sector, three applications have been examined more closely: coatings for cables and wiring, the front and backsheets of solar panels and household and architectural paints. The report suggests a number of policy recommendations and areas that may be considered for further work. These have been divided into those aimed at international organisations/national governments and those aimed at industry.

The purpose of Performance Standards (PS) is to provide a basis by which proposed similar or modified test methods, both proprietary (i.e., copyrighted, trademarked, or registered) and non-proprietary, can be deemed to be structurally and mechanistically similar to a Validated Reference Method (VRM) as well as can be shown to be scientifically valid, with sufficient reliability and relevance for the specific testing purposes. This document contains the Performance Standards (PS) for determining the reliability and relevance of similar and modified test methods for ocular hazard that are structurally and mechanistically similar to the in vitro macromolecular test method described in TG 496 and the DB-ALM protocol n. 157, in accordance with the principles of Guidance Document No. 34.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) regularly conducts in-depth peer reviews of the energy policies of its member countries. This process supports energy policy development and encourages the exchange of international best practices and experiences to help drive secure and affordable clean energy transitions.Poland’s energy policy aims to decarbonise its energy supply through expanding renewable energy, introducing nuclear energy, powering transportation through electricity, and increasing energy efficiency across the economy. A central aspect of Poland’s energy policy is reducing the reliance on coal, especially for electricity generation and building heating. There is a strong policy focus on energy security and ensuring a just transition that maintains affordable access to energy and protects vulnerable consumers, while promoting economic growth.Poland has made notable progress on energy transition. It has one of the fastest growing markets for distributed solar PV in Europe, and it has developed a strong programme to drive offshore wind deployment. Poland has also taken important steps to improve energy security, like diversifying energy imports away from Russia. However, the country’s energy mix is still dominated by fossil fuels. All sectors have considerable work ahead to meet targets for increasing the share of renewables, lowering energy demand and reducing emissions.In this report, the IEA provides a range of energy policy recommendations to help Poland smoothly manage the transition to an efficient and flexible low-carbon energy system.

Combatting climate change is among the most critical issues on the global policy agenda. The transition towards a greener economy will require a pivot towards more sustainable production processes and consumption patterns. Entrepreneurs have the potential to be a major driving force behind this effort through their capacity to develop and propagate innovative green solutions. To unlock this potential, it is crucial for policy makers to implement appropriate policies and measures that enable green entrepreneurs to thrive. This report identifies lessons from international policy practices in stimulating and supporting green entrepreneurship from three case study countries – Canada, Germany and Israel – to inform Denmark about effective policy practices and pitfalls to avoid as it implements initiatives to strengthen its green transition. Recommendations are offered across a number of areas such as promoting greater co-ordination between relevant policy actors, strengthening specialised support for green entrepreneurs and building green markets.

The International Energy Agency prepared this report, within the framework of a Global Environment Facility (GEF) programme aimed at supporting low- and middle-income economies in their transition to E-mobility. It is the first deliverable of Working Group Four on Charging, Grid Integration, Renewable Power Supply and Battery Re-use, Recycling and Safe Disposal. Its objective is to provide policy makers with a comprehensive overview of the ecosystem of public charging infrastructure (defined as infrastructure that is publicly accessible), as well as key recommendations for its efficient deployment. Although it focuses on charging systems for light-duty vehicles, the report also discusses implications for two- and three-wheelers, as well as heavy-duty vehicles. The findings summarised here are informed by the many contributions and insights provided by international stakeholders. The IEA’s analysis begins with a definition of charging infrastructure and describes the different business models associated with it. We present a number of policy examples and conclude with five key recommendations for ensuring the efficient roll-out of public charging infrastructure.

Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) is a quality system concerned with the organisational process and the conditions under which studies are planned, performed, monitored, recorded, archived and reported. The GLP Principles do not explicitly require procedures for continuous improvement outside of addressing formal inspection results. However, mechanisms for continual improvement are complementary to the GLP requirements and support that test facilities operate in a manner that assures the quality and validity of the studies conducted. This position paper provides an overview of available quality improvement tools that might be considered for GLP and their role and operation when used in test facilities.

Teachers and in-company trainers are central to vocational education and training (VET), as they support the school-to-work transitions of learners from diverse backgrounds. VET teachers develop learners’ skills in school-based settings, while in-company trainers support learners during their time in work-based learning. Countries use different strategies to ensure an adequate supply of well-prepared VET teachers and trainers. This report focuses on two aspects: entry requirements for the VET teaching and training profession to ensure quality and consistency; and initial education and training for VET teachers and trainers to ensure that they are well-prepared when taking up their role. It draws lessons from policies and practices in Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway for developing a skilled teaching and training workforce through entry requirements and training, while maintaining sufficient flexibility.

Under the BEPS Action 6 minimum standard on treaty shopping, members of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS have committed to strengthen their tax treaties by implementing anti-abuse measures. This report reflects the outcome of the fourth peer review of the implementation of the BEPS Action 6 minimum standard on treaty shopping. It includes the aggregate results of the review and data on tax treaties concluded by each of the 139 members of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS on 31 May 2021, and also contains the jurisdictional section for each member. This is the first peer review process governed by a revised peer review methodology.

Accelerating the transition to net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is urgently required to contain the risks of climate change. As countries seek to reduce GHG emissions, they can employ or reform a wide range of policy instruments. This report tracks how explicit carbon prices, energy taxes and subsidies have evolved between 2018 and 2021. This is an important subset of the policy instruments available to governments. All instruments considered in this report either directly change the cost of emitting GHG or change electricity prices. Reforming these instruments could help to meet climate targets, lead to cleaner air and water, and improve public finances. The report covers 71 countries, which together account for approximately 80% of global GHG emissions and energy use. Explicit carbon prices, as well as energy taxes and subsidies are detailed by country, sector, product and instrument. The use of a common methodology ensures comparability across countries. Summary indicators facilitate cross-country comparisons and allow policy makers and the public to keep track of progress made and identify opportunities for reform.

Latin American countries were hard hit by COVID-19 with rates of excess mortality above the OECD average. The pandemic brought additional stress to health systems already overstretched by a growing burden of chronic diseases, unequal access to health care services, overall under-investment in health and strong budgetary restrictions, and systemic inefficiencies. Doubling down on primary health care will be a cost-effective strategy to increase preparedness for future pandemics and address the structural challenges in the region. The report examines the experience of seven countries in Latin America – Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico and Peru – considering primary health care policies and actions taken to absorb the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and recover from it. The findings and recommendations of this report provide guidance to public authorities in the region in their efforts to better prepare and increase the resilience of health systems through stronger primary health care.

Principles and Practice of International Nuclear Law examines the various interrelated legal issues for the safe, efficient and secure use of nuclear energy. It provides an overview of the complex body of laws and legal regimes in international nuclear law, as well as the many developments that have unfolded in recent years impacting all aspects of nuclear safety, security, safeguards and liability. It also gives a concise overview of the main international institutions, and addresses such issues as radiological protection, nuclear safety, environmental protection, nuclear transport, nuclear security, safeguards, nuclear third party liability and compensation for nuclear damage, insurance, nuclear trade and project development.

The COVID-19 crisis has given renewed urgency to efforts to support the digitalisation of SMEs. However, many SMEs lag behind larger firms in the digital transition as a result of important barriers with respect to skills, innovation, infrastructure, regulation and finance. The SME digital gap slows productivity growth and increases inequalities among people, firms and places. In this context, the Government of Azerbaijan requested the OECD’s assistance in supporting the design and implementation of strategies and policies to foster the digital transformation of Azerbaijan’s SME sector.

Policies to promote employee health and well-being not only protect from occupational risks, but also provide benefits for individuals and employers. Unhealthy lifestyles, characterised by high levels of stress, sedentary behaviour and poor eating habits, affect the health of employees and negatively impact workplace productivity. Governments play a key role in promoting health and well-being in the workplace. This report analyses policy levers used by governments to incentivise employers to promote health and well-being at work in ten countries, including G7 countries and OECD countries in the Asia/Pacific region. These include regulation, financial incentives, guidelines, and certification and award schemes. The report also explores how governments can facilitate Environmental, Social and Governance investment to encourage health promotion at work.

This report analyses Bulgaria's legal framework for administrative penalties. Administrative penalties are crucial for ensuring accountability in the public administration. The report assesses the subjective scope of their application, the typologies and levels of administrative penalties, and the proceedings for applying them. The report highlights relevant good practices from other EU Member States, and provides recommendations on how to address key challenges as well as legislative proposals for building a comprehensive legal framework.

Start-ups and scale-ups often make outsized contributions to innovation and job creation. However, while entrepreneurial ecosystems in countries and regions are increasingly studied, less is known about differences by sector. What role do start-ups and scale-ups play in the development of different future growth sectors? What problems and bottlenecks does government policy need to address? To what extent do the start-up and scale-up contributions and obstacles vary by sector, and what is in common across sectors? This report examines the entrepreneurial ecosystems of three of Denmark's sector strongholds, sectors where future growth is likely to be generated - advanced production, energy technology and food and bio resources. A focus on Denmark includes the scale and nature of start-ups and scale-ups in different sectors, the bottlenecks, the current policies and how they can be refined. In addition, nine international policy experiences are presented as inspiring practices for Denmark and other countries - covering Austria, Canada, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Recommendations are offered for Denmark across areas such as entrepreneurial finance, networks, public procurement, and cluster management organisations, covering both cross-sector and sector-specific recommendations.

The German-speaking Community of Belgium is in the process of developing an overall vision for its education system (the “Gesamtvision Bildung”) to guide reforms across the education sector for greater quality and equity. To support this process, the OECD review offers an independent analysis of the German-speaking Community’s school system and assesses the system’s strengths and challenges from an international perspective. It provides a description of the system’s policies in international comparison and proposes options for future reforms, covering pre-primary to upper secondary education. The analysis addresses the funding and governance of school education, policies to support equity and inclusion, the evaluation system, school leadership and the development of the teaching profession. The report aims to highlight opportunities for the German-speaking Community to build on the strengths of its school system, enhance the effectiveness of its resource use and ensure that the system delivers the best outcomes for all students.

This report on Bulgaria is the eighth country study published in a series of reports looking into how policies connect people with jobs. It provides a detailed analysis of Bulgaria’s inactive and unemployed population and identifies groups of people who would benefit from measures and services provided by Bulgaria’s Public Employment Service. In addition, the report assesses Bulgaria’s labour market policies to reach out to inactive people and help them integrate in the labour market, and offers recommendations for improvement.

One of the key areas in fuel safety is the analysis of fuel behaviour under reactivity-initiated accident conditions. Reactivity-initiated accident fuel rod codes have been developed for a significant period of time and they all have shown their ability to reproduce some experimental results with a certain degree of adequacy. However, they sometimes rely on different specific modelling assumptions whose influence on the final results of the calculations is difficult to evaluate. This report summarises three phases of benchmark conducted by the NEA between 2010 and 2019 with codes for calculating fuel behaviour in reactivity initiated accidents. Building on previous NEA reports, it provides recommendations for future research and code enhancements for safety analysis regarding reactivity accidents.