Browse by: "2023"

While Central Asia has proven relatively resilient to the shocks of COVID-19, China’s slowdown and Russia’s war in Ukraine, declining trend rates of growth across the region, lacklustre productivity performance and lingering global uncertainty underscore the need to address weaknesses in the business and investment climate. The implementation of predictable rules, the creation of a level-playing field between firms and greater competition in markets, in particular, could encourage both local entrepreneurs and foreign investors to invest and grow in the region. This report presents an assessment of progress since the 2019-2020 analysis of the legal environment for business and investment in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan against the backdrop of the changing international context brought about by COVID and the war.

The SME Policy Index: Eastern Partner Countries 2024 – Building resilience in challenging times is a unique benchmarking tool to assess and monitor progress in the design and implementation of SME policies against EU and international best practice. It embraces the priorities laid out in the European Union’s SME Strategy for a sustainable and digital Europe and is structured around the ten principles of the Small Business Act for Europe, which provide a wide range of measures to guide the design and implementation of SME policies. This report marks the fourth edition in this series, following assessments in 2012, 2016, and 2020. It tracks progress made since 2020 and offers the latest key findings on SME development and related policies in the countries of the Eastern Partnership (EaP). It also identifies emerging challenges affecting SMEs in the region and provides recommendations to address them. The 2024 edition benefits from an updated methodology that also offers a deeper analysis of policies to support the digital transformation of SMEs.

Хотя Центральная Азия оказалась относительно устойчивой к потрясениям COVID-19, замедлению темпов роста в Китае и войне России на Украине, снижение темпов роста в регионе, низкая производительность труда и сохраняющаяся глобальная неопределенность указывают на необходимость устранения недостатков делового и инвестиционного климата. Внедрение предсказуемых правил, создание равных условий для компаний и усиление конкуренции на рынках, в частности, может стимулировать как местных предпринимателей, так и иностранных инвесторов к инвестированию и развитию в регионе. В настоящем отчете представлена оценка прогресса, достигнутого после проведения в 2019-2020 гг. анализа правовой среды для бизнеса и инвестиций в Казахстане, Кыргызстане, Таджикистане, Туркменистане и Узбекистане на фоне изменения международного контекста, вызванного COVID-19 и войной.

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing sanctions greatly complicated overland freight transport between Europe and China via the so-called Northern Corridor, which runs through the Russian Federation. This has prompted renewed attention to the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, a multimodal route running through Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Türkiye – the so-called “Middle Corridor”. The present report looks at the Middle Corridor’s potential and at the challenges that must be overcome to realise it, drawing on the perspective of relevant private-sector actors in the four Middle Corridor countries. Governments along the corridor have invested heavily to improve transport infrastructure, yet important bottlenecks remain due to the geography of the route, the number of border crossings and the lack of regional trade integration. This study, based on surveys from and interviews with the private sector, maps and sequences main reform priorities in relation to regional integration, infrastructure, trade facilitation and supra-national coordination. It suggests that the primary aim should be to develop the corridor not solely as a transit route for actors from outside the region but as an engine of integration and trade integration in Central Asia and the South Caucasus.

Показатели торговли Центральной Азии демонстрируют удивительную устойчивость к недавним экономическим потрясениям. Тем не менее, зависимость региона от ограниченного числа экспортных товаров и узкого круга торговых партнеров подвергает его значительным рискам. Поэтому правительства стран Центральной Азии уделяют первостепенное внимание улучшению транспортной доступности, чтобы лучше интегрироваться в глобальные цепочки создания стоимости, уменьшить географические неудобства и увеличить объем импорта и экспорта. Упрощение торговых процедур играет ключевую роль в достижении этих целей, снижая торговые издержки и способствуя интеграции. Однако Центральная Азия по-прежнему сталкивается с серьезными проблемами, и, несмотря на значительные улучшения, произошедшие за последние годы, она отстает от большинства регионов, охваченных Индикаторами ОЭСР по упрощению торговли (ИУТ). В настоящем отчете подводится итог прогресса ИУТ в Казахстане, Кыргызстане, Таджикистане и Узбекистане, впервые представлены предварительные результаты по Туркменистану и показаны области ИУТ, в которых возможно улучшение. В докладе также дается оценка сохраняющихся торговых барьеров и приводятся рекомендации по реформированию системы содействия торговле, включая необходимость приоритетного учета мнения торговых кругов для оптимизации процедур, цифровизации и гармонизации стандартов, а также внедрения системных механизмов сотрудничества с пограничными службами. Скоординированный подход к совершенствованию системы упрощения процедур торговли в регионе может существенно снизить торговые издержки, что приведет к росту товарооборота и темпов роста

Under the BEPS Action 5 minimum standard, members of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) have committed to counter harmful tax practices with a focus on improving transparency. One part of the Action 5 minimum standard is the transparency framework for compulsory spontaneous exchange of information on certain tax rulings. The exchange on tax rulings is a critical tool in improving access of tax administrations to information relevant to assess the corporate tax affairs of their taxpayers and to efficiently tackle tax avoidance and other BEPS risks. Over 140 countries and jurisdictions participate in the Inclusive Framework on BEPS and take part in the peer review process to assess their compliance with the transparency framework. Specific terms of reference and a methodology have been agreed for the peer reviews, focusing the assessment on five key elements: information gathering process, exchange of information, confidentiality of the information received, statistics on the exchanges on rulings, and transparency on certain aspects of intellectual property regimes. This report reflects the outcome of the seventh annual peer review of the implementation of the Action 5 minimum standard.

This report, jointly developed by the European Observatory, OECD, and WHO Europe, serves as a proof of concept for a Health Systems Performance Assessment (HSPA) dashboard. HSPA is pivotal for health system transformation, providing policymakers with key indicators to identify and address system performance issues. This brief represents a step towards more policy-friendly dashboards, emphasizing the need for a focused set of HSPA indicators aligned with policy goals. The brief highlights the alignment and complementarity of the WHO-Observatory global HSPA framework and OECD's renewed framework, which aid policymakers in navigating health systems with actionable, policy-relevant indicators. These frameworks establish connections between performance indicators, health system functions, and overarching goals, supporting a coherent policy dashboard. Tracer indicators, like workforce, digital health, and service delivery outcomes, are emphasized as crucial for assessing key policy areas. The report underscores the importance of investing in data collection and infrastructure at national and international levels to make HSPA effective. It advocates for continuous improvement and collaboration among major international organizations, including WHO, OECD, EU, and the Observatory, to align methodologies and support informed policy decision-making.

Over the past few decades, economies and technologies have changed in ways that have made people’s economic prospects more insecure. While non-standard work and digital transformation have created opportunities for many, they have also exposed individuals to fluctuations in their incomes, known as "income instability", as have major recent shocks. Recognising that individuals’ jobs and circumstances can change multiple times in a year, this report uses novel techniques to identify who is most exposed to income instability in European OECD countries and examines the effects it has on their lives, social mobility, and inequality. Income instability can be difficult to manage for individuals who lack the financial resources to smooth their incomes. In this report, people facing the twin problems of exposure and vulnerability to income instability are considered to be economically insecure. Economic insecurity falls predominantly on people with weak attachments to the labour force and on those who are not well-placed to leverage the benefits of digitalisation. People at risk of economic insecurity are more likely to worry about losing their jobs in the future than economically secure individuals and, as shown in other research, experience poor health, food insecurity, and poor childhood development outcomes, which can impede social mobility. Finally, the report reviews a range of policies to improve the timeliness of social protection to better support people with highly unstable incomes and explores options to help those most at risk of economic insecurity build financial buffers.

L'élaboration des politiques a toujours consisté à faire des choix, gérer des compromis et équilibrer plusieurs objectifs et priorités pour la prise de décisions budgétaires complexes. Pourtant, ces dernières années, les décideurs politiques ont été confrontés à un nombre croissant de priorités, d'où une pression plus forte pour améliorer l'efficacité des dépenses publiques. Il existe de solides arguments en faveur d'un investissement public dans une éducation de haute qualité du fait de ses résultats économiques ainsi qu'aux retombées sociales plus générales pour les individus et la société. Mais alors qu'une éducation de haute qualité continuera à permettre aux individus et aux sociétés de prospérer et de se remettre des perturbations, les ministères de l'éducation devront repenser leur façon d'investir dans l'éducation pour garantir l'optimisation de l’utilisation de ces ressources. Après une introduction exposant le contexte, cette publication fait le point sur les rendements économiques et les résultats sociaux plus larges dérivés d'une éducation de qualité, plaidant en faveur de la poursuite des investissements publics. Elle se tourne ensuite vers l'examen des moyens intelligents d'investir dans l'éducation et examine les principaux leviers politiques pour optimiser l’utilisation des ressources: gérer et distribuer le financement des écoles pour tirer le meilleur parti des investissements éducatifs ; parvenir à l’équité parallèlement à une plus grande efficacité ; et la planification, le suivi et l'évaluation de l'utilisation efficace du financement des écoles.

The Government of Australia has made improving gender equality one of its core priorities, recognising the potential social and economic benefits that it can bring. This OECD Review assists Australia in embedding gender considerations in policy and budget decisions. It draws upon best practices across OECD countries and sets out a series of actions to enable the federal government to strengthen gender impact assessments and gender budgeting. This will help target government policy and resources towards better and fairer social and economic outcomes.

This edition of Pension Markets in Focus provides detailed and comparable statistics on asset-backed pension systems around the world, with data from January to December 2022. It examines the drivers of changes in total assets accumulated, including contributions and benefits paid, as well as financial market developments. In addition, the report assesses the financial sustainability of defined benefit plans (guaranteeing specific payments to plan members) and documents the fees paid by members.

The Civic Space Review of Portugal provides an in-depth analysis of the national legal frameworks, policies, institutions, and practices relevant to civic space protection, with an emphasis on harnessing user input to facilitate people-centred public service reforms. The Review assesses three key areas: 1) protecting the civic freedoms and information environment that create the conditions for public service reforms; 2) strengthening stakeholder and citizen participation in the process; and 3) moving towards more inclusive, accessible and people-centred public service design and delivery. The two case studies and concrete recommendations in the review offer a tangible path towards more inclusive, participatory public services that place citizens at their core.

The OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) conducts peer reviews of individual members once every five to six years. Reviews seek to improve the quality and effectiveness of members’ development co-operation, highlighting good practices and recommending improvements. A DAC member since 2013, Poland has aligned its 2021-2030 Multiannual Programme with the 2030 Agenda, under the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). Building on recommendations made in Poland’s first peer review in 2017, this review identifies opportunities for the Polish development co-operation system to work better together, programme bilateral official development assistance (ODA) more efficiently, and enhance multilateral and civil society partnerships. Recommendations include moving from annual calls for proposals to a more sustainable partnerships model, strengthening the MFA’s capabilities to co-ordinate with other actors in partner countries and better aligning Poland’s international engagement with its commitments to sustainable development.

Le Comité d’aide au développement (CAD) de l’OCDE mène tous les cinq à six ans un examen par les pairs qui passe en revue les efforts de coopération pour le développement de chacun de ses membres. Ces examens visent à améliorer la qualité et l’efficacité de leur coopération, en mettant en évidence les bonnes pratiques et en recommandant des améliorations. Membre du CAD depuis 2013, la Pologne a aligné son Programme pluriannuel 2021-2030 sur l'Agenda 2030, sous la direction du ministère des Affaires étrangères (MAE). En s'appuyant sur les recommandations formulées lors du premier examen par les pairs de la Pologne en 2017, celui-ci identifie les moyens pour le système polonais de coopération au développement de travailler de façon plus efficace, de mieux programmer l'APD bilatérale et de renforcer ses partenariats multilatéraux et avec la société civile. Il recommande de passer d’un système d’appels à propositions annuels à un modèle de partenariats plus durable, de renforcer la capacité du MAE à se coordonner avec les acteurs des pays partenaires et de mieux aligner l'engagement international de la Pologne avec ses engagements en faveur du développement durable.

L’arbitrage de dividendes est une forme de fraude commise par le truchement d’un dispositif complexe d’opérations de négociation, de vente et de rachat d’actions exécutées sur une période bien précise et dont le but est d’éluder l’impôt sur les dividendes ou de solliciter des remboursements illégitimes de la retenue à la source sur le dividende. Sous ses diverses variantes, l’arbitrage de dividendes représente une menace sérieuse en termes d’érosion de la base d’imposition pour de nombreuses juridictions. Il peut en outre engendrer des distorsions de marché qui portent atteinte à l’intégrité du système financier. Ce rapport a pour objet de sensibiliser aux pratiques frauduleuses reposant sur l’arbitrage de dividendes et offre aux pays plusieurs recommandations permettant d’identifier les risques posés par ce phénomène, d’améliorer la coordination entre les autorités nationales et de renforcer la coopération internationale. En particulier, la lutte contre ce phénomène exige une étroite coordination entre organismes publics nationaux, une forte coopération internationale et un réseau efficace d’échange de renseignements entre juridictions. À cet égard, les pays peuvent envisager des actions ciblées et des stratégies globales, qui associent les administrations fiscales et les autorités répressives, mais aussi les organismes de régulation et de surveillance financières, ainsi que les autorités compétentes en matière de lutte contre le blanchiment de capitaux. Dans certains cas, des modifications de la législation peuvent également s’avérer nécessaires.

Dividend stripping is a type of fraud that is committed through a complex mechanism of trading, selling and repurchasing shares over a certain period to unlawfully avoid payment of dividend taxes, or to claim unjustified tax reimbursements. Dividend stripping in its many forms poses a great challenge to the tax bases of numerous jurisdictions and may create market distortions that corrode the integrity of the financial system. This report is intended to raise awareness of dividend stripping frauds and provides a number of recommendations for countries around recognising the risk, improving domestic co-ordination and expanding international co-operation. In particular, tackling dividend stripping requires strong domestic inter-agency co-ordination and international co-operation, as well as the sharing of information between jurisdictions. Countries may therefore wish to prepare targeted actions and comprehensive strategies against this phenomenon, including not only tax administrations and law enforcement, but also financial regulators and supervisory authorities, as well as anti-money laundering competent authorities. Legislative changes may also be required in some cases.