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The OECD Development Assistance Committee's 1998 review of the UK's development aid programs and policies. It finds that the United Kingdom is changing its approach to international development policy. The new British Government, elected in May 1997, has created a Department for International Development (DFID), headed by a Secretary of State within the Cabinet. This body has a much wider range of responsibilities than its predecessors, notably in ensuring the coherence of all British policies affecting development. For the first time in two decades, the government issued a White Paper on International Development. This document commits the government to the goal of halving the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by 2015, along with other key international development goals. In its triennial review of British aid policies and programmes, the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) welcomed the United Kingdom's new policies. It viewed the creation of DFID, with its broader responsibilities covering the whole range of bilateral and multilateral aid, the emphasis on strengthened international co-ordination, and the new role in securing consistency across all British policies affecting development as promising steps. The DAC also noted that in focusing its efforts on the eradication of extreme poverty, DFID, like its DAC partners, will need to emphasize the shaping of its programmes and the testing of their outputs with respect to their impact on the poor.
In its triennial review of the Netherlands' aid policies and programmes, the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) was particularly interested in the Netherlands' ambitious, even daring, reorganisation of its development co-operation which was undertaken in 1996. This far-reaching reorganisation affects the budget process and staffing of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and embassies in recipient countries. The DAC also welcomed the planned focus of Dutch aid on poverty eradication through economic and social sector development and noted the four Dutch volume input targets.
The trend in the Dutch ODA effort, which declined between 1986 and 1994 as a share of Dutch GNP ration has turned around between 1994 and 1996. In 1996, The Netherlands was the fourth-ranking DAC Member in terms of ODA/GNP ratio and the fifth-ranking in absolute terms. The Committee commended the Netherlands on its ODA performance and hoped that the Dutch Information and Awareness Programme would continue to help inform the Dutch public, which has registered firm support for Dutch aid.
What is the impact of political decentralisation in Latin America? This book considers the problems raised by political decentralisation in the region and identifies the challenges ahead. Political decentralisation tends to devolve a certain amount of financial responsibility to the sub-national levels of government, hence potentially destabilising centrally established fiscal and budgetary targets. The question is, thus, a particularly timely one which seeks to reconcile enhanced democratisation with the fiscal rigour demanded by the international marketplace.
This book brings together papers presented at the eighth annual meeting of the "International Forum on Latin American Perspectives", sponsored jointly by the OECD Development Centre and the Inter-American Development Bank. The analyses of economic experts are confronted with the real-life experiences of practitioners from a number of Latin American countries, providing the reader with a stimulating exposé of the risks and benefits to economic development of the new decentralising trend. Of particular interest are the so-called "ten commandments" suggested by Ricardo Hausmann as a set of rules which should govern fiscal management in decentralised democracies. Discussion of these and other propositions makes for a lively, yet soundly based contribution to this very important debate.
The Belgian aid system has experienced serious problems in recent years and is now going through a crucial transition period. An action plan has been prepared by the Secretary of State for Co-operation and basic reforms are under way. This plan, entitled "Showing our colours -- Plan for the future of Belgian co-operation and development", was well received by the OECD's Development Assistance Committee (DAC). During its triennial peer review of Belgium's development co-operation policy and aid programme, the Committee also took note of the determination of the Secretary of State to design a co-operation programme that goes beyond economic and social considerations to take full account of the basic values of the society. In relation to general good practice among donors, the Committee indicated its support for a number of measures that might enhance the effectiveness of Belgium's development co-operation programme, including increasing efficiency by decentralising more executive functions and monitoring effectiveness through an active assessment, evaluation and feedback policy; raising staff skills through better training in key development subjects and by delegating authority both internally and to local offices; devising country strategies based on a new partnership approach; and focusing technical co-operation efforts on strengthening local capacity.
The OECD's annual Development Co-operation Report provides the most complete analysis of the aid efforts made over the past year and sets out the main lines of action required to build for the future. This year's edition examines the role development co-operation might play in the face of global economic, political, social and environmental changes as well as how the implementation of a real global development partnership strategy is coming on and how this strategy can become the cornerstone of development assistance.
Portugal's development co-operation programme is characterised by concentration bilaterally on the Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa, reflecting close links of history, language and culture. Those countries are now among the least developed countries.
Recently, Portugal has emphasized two new areas of development co-operation. First, private sector development, based on economic policy reforms supported by the international institutions, and on instruments which encourage the involvement of the Portuguese private sector. The second new area of emphasis is the strengthening of the governance systems in the PALOPs, the Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa, focusing particularly on legal systems and the judiciary, but also extending to parliamentary institutions, electoral systems, local governments and constitutional advice.
In its review of Portugal's programme the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) noted that Portugal has the potential to play a larger role, particularly in Mozambique and Angola, where critical post-conflict development needs have to be met. It noted that a new Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (the CPLP), including Brazil, has recently been formed to enhance dialogue and mutual development efforts.
Acts of vandalism or violence and the defacing of facilities are increasing in public transport systems. This report provides an analysis of the social and psychological causes which is a prerequisite to formulate corrective measures. A comparison of what a number of systems have experienced focuses attention on the scale of the problems involved and different ways of resolving them. The recommendations that can be made differentiate between the responsibilities of the operators, national governments and the various local authorities.
These proceedings of the Second International Symposium on Transport Economics, held on 10-11 October 1967 covered choice of transport investments, elements of transport demand, urban transport and imputation of transport intrastructure charges.
This 1963 report presents the articles on the avoidance of double taxation on income and capital, as agreed upon by the Fiscal Committee. Double taxation is the taxation of a single taxpayer with respect to the same subject matter over the same period in more than one country. This draft aims to inspire further conventions on the elimination of double taxation, a threat to trade and migration. The report includes commentaries on the articles, progress on the elimination of double taxation, and possible future developments.