Browse by: "2007"
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The challenges faced by Mexico’s rural areas are significant. Mexico's countryside is home to a large population (more than the overall population of many OECD countries) that is highly dispersed and largely living in poverty. The potential of these areas is however significant, as their vast (and young) human resources, their natural, cultural and physical assets could provide, in a more diversified economy, a greater contribution to national development.
This review shows that the challenges and potential of rural areas are spatially differentiated and therefore require a place-based policy approach. The Mexican government has had significant success in framing a multi-sector rural policy. Some of these accomplishments can provide examples of best practice for other OECD countries. The continuity and institutionalization of these advances are a priority. In addition, efforts should be devoted to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of rural development programmes and to guaranteeing coherence with other major sectoral policies. This will contribute to addressing the country's major territorial and individual inequalities and will transform rural regions into sources of national development.
This review discusses the challenges and opportunities of German rural areas. Significant differences between East and West persist and many of these have clear rural dimensions. Factors such as CAP reforms, ageing of the German population and migration trends will also have important rural implications. Many of these issues involve more than rural policy, but rural policy has a place in resolving all of the key issues. However, for rural policy to be an effective part of the policy process it will have to evolve beyond the existing limits in Germany. This review states that Germany's current approach to rural development and rural policy is mainly sectoral and thus does not fully capture the diversity of rural regions.
In many OECD countries, tertiary education systems have experienced rapid growth over the last decade. With tertiary education increasingly seen as a fundamental pillar for economic growth, these systems must now address the pressures of a globalising economy and labour market. Within governance frameworks that encourage institutions, individually and collectively, to fulfil multiple missions, tertiary education systems must aim for the broad objectives of growth, full employment and social cohesion.
In this context, the OECD launched a major review of tertiary education with the participation of 24 nations. The principal objective of the review is to assist countries in understanding how the organisation, management and delivery of tertiary education can help them achieve their economic and social goals. Poland is one of 14 countries which opted to host a Country Review, in which a team of external reviewers carried out an in-depth analysis of tertiary education policies. This report includes:
- an overview of Poland's tertiary education system;
- an account of trends and developments in tertiary education in Poland;
- an analysis of the strengths and challenges in tertiary education in Poland; and
- recommendations for future policy development.
This review of tertiary education in Poland forms part of the OECD Thematic Review of Tertiary Education, a project conducted between 2004 and 2008.
In many OECD countries, tertiary education systems have experienced rapid growth over the last decade. With tertiary education increasingly seen as a fundamental pillar for economic growth, these systems must now address the pressures of a globalising economy and labour market. Within governance frameworks that encourage institutions, individually and collectively, to fulfil multiple missions, tertiary education systems must aim for the broad objectives of growth, full employment and social cohesion.
In this context, the OECD launched a major review of tertiary education with the participation of 24 nations. The principal objective of the review is to assist countries in understanding how the organisation, management and delivery of tertiary education can help them achieve their economic and social goals. Estonia is one of 14 countries which opted to host a Country Review, in which a team of external reviewers carried out an in-depth analysis of tertiary education policies. This report includes:
- an overview of Estonia's tertiary education system;
- an account of trends and developments in tertiary education in Estonia;
- an analysis of the strengths and challenges in tertiary education in Estonia; and
- recommendations for future policy development.
This review of tertiary education in Estonia forms part of the OECD Thematic Review of Tertiary Education, a project conducted between 2004 and 2008.
As the share of the population aged 65 and over grows rapidly in the next decades across most of the OECD, the number of fall-related injuries could rise dramatically, and with it, the strains on hospitals, medical services, social services and public budgets. This OECD review of risk management policies focuses on Sweden because, with the ageing of its society already at a quite advanced stage, it exemplifies many of the current and future problems that OECD countries face in addressing fall-related injuries and fatalities among the elderly. The report looks at Sweden's policies in the area of older people's safety and well-being, seeking out and identifying good practices and areas where improvements could be made. It offers lessons that other countries can also draw from. While the report underscores the importance of the management of fall accidents, it also emphasizes the more general point that multidisciplinary and forward-looking approaches to safety and risk are essential for any policy concerning older people.
This review analyses the Swedish institutional framework for better regulation. In recent years Sweden has made a remarkable recovery, benefiting from deregulation efforts undertaken in the early to mid 1990s. Sweden places a strong emphasis on high standards of social welfare and a strong governance framework, which foster consensus. To preserve its ambitious social and environmental goals, Sweden needs to maintain its strong economic performance. A number of challenges should be addressed, such as the labour market, the performance of the public sector and the strengthening of competition. Entrepreneurship also should be stimulated, and further efforts have to be made to reduce administrative burdens. To create momentum for reform, Sweden needs to promote a strategic vision, improve the process for impact assessment, and strengthen co-ordination between national and local levels of government. The benefits of reform need to be more widely understood by all stakeholders and citizens. Regulatory reform will help Sweden take advantage of globalisation and technological innovation, and meet the demands of citizens for high-quality public services.
Sweden is one of many OECD countries to request a broad review by the OECD of its regulatory practices and reforms. This review presents an overall picture, set within a macroeconomic context, of regulatory achievements and challenges including regulatory quality, competition policy, and market openness. Its special focus is on regulatory governance across levels of government as well as environmental policy.
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In recent years Italy has moved towards greater devolution of regulatory powers at regional level, in a European context where this dimension becomes increasingly important. This review analyses first the institutional set-up for multi-level regulation, the specifics of power sharing between the State and the regions, as well as the horizontal and vertical co-ordination mechanisms in place in the country, before turning to the use of policy instruments and regulatory tools in four Italian regions: Veneto, Calabria, Campania and Tuscany.
Post-apartheid South Africa has succeeded in swiftly opening its economy to international trade and capital flows, and in stabilising the economy while achieving reasonably good growth performance, mainly driven by productivity gains. However, important socio-economic problems persist, especially unemployment, poverty and the exclusion of a large fraction of the population from the formal economy. The country is now in the middle of two more specifically economic transitions: i) responding to globalisation and ii) transforming the structure of the economy away from its former heavy dependence on primary resource production and associated commodity-based industries. In this context, enhancing innovation capabilities is key to a sustained improvement of living standards based on productivity-driven growth. This review assesses the national innovation system of South Africa from this perspective, identifying areas and means for improvement with an emphasis on the role of public research organisations and policies.
This comprehensive assessment of the innovation system of New Zealand examines how innovation has affected economic performance in New Zealand. It looks at who the actors are and how they are related to each other. And it examines in detail the role of the government and the effectiveness of the system. Finally, it makes a series of recommendations.
This OECD Review of Innovation Policy offers a comprehensive assessment of the innovation system of Luxembourg, focusing on the role of government. It provides concrete recommendations on reforms needed to ensure that additional public investment in R&D will yield the expected economic and social benefits.
The OECD Reviews of Innovation Policy offer a comprehensive assessment of the innovation system of individual OECD member and non-member countries, focusing on the role of government. A growing political awareness of the importance of innovation for the Chile’s future has recently translated into two bold decisions: the creation of an Innovation Council for Competitiveness entrusted with the mission of proposing guidelines for a long-term national innovation strategy; and the introduction of a specific mining tax to increase resources available to implement this strategy. This report assesses the current status of Chile’s innovation system and policies, and identifies where improvements are most needed in order to make the most efficient use of this additional public investment.
Economic reforms, including the launch of the “open door” policy, prepared the ground for the Chinese economy’s nearly three decades of extraordinary performance. China’s re-emergence as a major power in the world economy is one of the most significant developments in modern history...
This review of human resource management (HRM) in Belgian government is the first country review of its kind to be carried out by the OECD. It provides a detailed diagnosis and solutions for improving the management of government employees in the Brussels-Capital Region, Federal Government, Flemish Government, French Community and Walloon Region. The report compares the policies and practices of Belgium with those in other OECD countries, as well as those across different governments in Belgium. Recommendations suggest that governments should reform the intergovernmental framework on employment to remove rigidities and enhance co-operation, pay special attention to staff productivity and efficiency, and enhance the good governance of their HRM systems.
The OECD Principles for Private Sector Participation in Infrastructure aim to help governments work with private-sector partners to finance and bring to fruition infrastructure projects in areas of vital economic importance, such as transport, water and power supply and telecommunications. These Principles offer authorities a checklist of policy issues to consider in ensuring that citizens get the services they need at a fair cost and the private-sector partners obtain viable returns.
These Principles and Guidelines for Access to Research Data from Public Funding (hereafter the “Principles and Guidelines”) provide broad policy recommendations to the governmental science policy and funding bodies of member countries on access to research data from public funding. They are intended to promote data access and sharing among researchers, research institutions, and national research agencies, while at the same time, recognising and taking into account, the various national laws, research policies and organisational structures of member countries...
In March 2005, more than 100 countries endorsed the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness and made a firm commitment to measure their success, or failure, in making aid more effective. This landmark report provides the results of ground-breaking survey of 34 developing countries and 55 donors. It provides a snapshot of the state of affairs in 2005. For the first time, it assesses the effectiveness of aid, not only globally, but also for a range of donors. Generally encouraging, the results show that developing countries and donors are working hard to make aid work better. However, more effort is needed to improve efficiency and effectiveness.