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1402. Economic Survey of Norway, 2004
- Publication Date:
- 03-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- The short-term outlook for Norway is good. Helped by global recovery, growth could proceed at above potential rates for a while, especially as inflation is well below target and there is some cyclical slack in the labour market. Interest rates are low, and fiscal stimulus needs to be withdrawn. Indeed, it will be important to rein back spending over the next few years in order to get back onto the self-imposed track of permissible spending of oil revenues that is consistent with notions of intergenerational fairness. In the longer term, the case for continuing fiscal restraint is even stronger. Reflecting both demographic factors and the maturing of the system, public spending on pensions will rise considerably over the next decades, even if the major reforms now under discussion are quickly implemented. In the future, growth of living standards will have to rely primarily on increases of productivity and employment in the non-oil private business sector. To maintain vigour in the non-oil economy, reforms in both labour and product markets, and in social policies and transfer programmes are called for. There are important interdependencies among policies in these areas and it is unlikely that success will be achieved without advancing with comprehensive reforms. More flexibility is desirable in wage setting, particularly in the public sector. Proposed changes in the fields of education and training will raise skill levels, but value for money needs to be an important criterion when prioritising the programmes. Competition should be strengthened through regulatory reform and a more active policy stance: proposed amendments to strengthen the enforcement framework are an opportunity to make competition policy more central, and should include an independent appellate body. State ownership and subsidies to agriculture should be reduced. Norway's comprehensive social programmes ensure that poverty is virtually non-existent, and a strong work ethic and a high level of social trust led to comparatively little abuse in the past. However, the very rapid rises in numbers on disability pensions and on sick leave suggest that stricter controls are needed. Advancing the reform efforts suggested above will be necessary to harness the more efficient use of resources, thereby raising non-oil potential output and ensuring that Norway maintains a high standard of living in the years to come.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Norway
1403. Public Sector Modernisation
- Publication Date:
- 03-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- Most OECD countries have been actively reforming their public sectors for two decades. Initially the problem seemed to be a relatively straightforward one of improving efficiency, reforming management practices, and divesting public involvement in commercial enterprises. These reforms have indeed had a major impact but they have also given rise to some unexpected problems of their own. Even a seemingly straightforward action such as simplifying a welfare benefit form and cutting the time taken to process it may, for example, encourage more people to apply for the benefit, increasing the workload and making it more difficult to cut waiting time. While more efficient government is certainly desirable, efficiency alone is not a guarantee of better government.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
1404. The Quality of the Teaching Workforce
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- The quality of the teaching workforce is a major consideration in any nation's aspirations for an educational system of high quality. Teachers form the core of the school system and a wide range of research studies has confirmed the importance of teacher quality for student learning. Thus, the development of policies seeking to improve the quality of teachers and ensure that all students receive quality teaching is a central concern for governments.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
1405. Raising the Quality of Educational Performance at School
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- To succeed in a rapidly changing world, individuals need to advance their knowledge and skills throughout their lives. Education systems need to lay strong foundations for this, by fostering knowledge and skills and strengthening the capacity and motivation of young adults to continue learning beyond school.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
1406. Education and Equity
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- For a more equitable society, all individuals, independently of their socio-economic background, origin and gender, should ideally have access to equivalent learning opportunities; those with organic disabilities, learning difficulties or social disadvantages should benefit from specific support; and finally, improving outcomes of all learners, and especially those who are less successful, should be a permanent objective of all educational systems.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
1407. Lifelong Learning
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- The concept of lifelong learning as an educational strategy emerged some three decades ago, through the efforts of the OECD, UNESCO and the Council of Europe. It was a response to the anomaly that while individuals learn throughout life, the provision of education opportunities was limited largely to the early phase of life, dominated by formal education. There was a perceived need to provide a “second chance” to those who did not benefit from educational opportunities available during childhood and youth.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
1408. Corporate Governance in Developing, Transition and Emerging–Market Economies
- Author:
- Charles Oman, Steven Fries, and Willem Buiter
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- Corporate governance was long ignored as a matter of potential importance for the development of a nation's economy. It remained virtually invisible as a development policy issue until the East Asian financial crisis of 1997-1998, followed closely by those in Russia and Brazil, drew attention to the problems of “crony capitalism” and their perceived relationship to poor local corporategovernance practices in several emerging-market economies. Yet as the perceived threat to global financial markets raised by those crises recedes and international pressures to strengthen corporate governance in emerging markets weaken, the danger is that local efforts significantly to improve corporate governance in the developing, transition and emerging-market economies will flag.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
1409. OECD Territorial Review of Montreal
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- The metropolitan region of Montreal (Metropolitan Montreal) is Canada's second most populous area after Toronto, and is home to almost 3.5 million people. With its low costs, high quality of life, and wide range of industrial, cultural, educational, and social strengths, Montreal has a vibrant and dynamic economy, but its diversity and complexity can lead to institutional isolation and fragmented decision- making.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Canada
1410. Economic Survey of Slovak Republic, 2004
- Publication Date:
- 02-2004
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Abstract:
- Slovakia is engaged in an ambitious reform process which has a potential to quicken productivity growth, increase the employment rate and accelerate the catching-up to the per capita income levels of more advanced OECD countries. Short-term outcomes may be demanding socially and politically, but stimulus to growth and job-creation should help overcome the hardship. Policymakers should fully enforce the new framework for creating and doing business and support it with the full force of law. Human capital enrichment for new entrants through education reform is critical, while intensified re-training for the long-term unemployed is also indispensable, including for the Roma population. Demand for labour will be stimulated by the planned reductions in employment costs in the low end of the market, as well as by the fundamental tax reforms raising the return to enterprise creation and development. Further cuts in social contributions, which remain among the highest among OECD countries, should be a priority. The reform of the public spending system, which is already well engaged, should facilitate such additional cuts and help promote a smaller and more effective government. Continuing efforts of fiscal consolidation will improve the macroeconomic policy mix and help maintain supportive monetary conditions in the face of currency appreciation pres- sures from EU accession, and will help meet the Maastricht nominal convergence rules on a sustainable basis prior to euro area participation. The nominal flexibility of wages and prices should be conserved in order to preserve the competitiveness of the economy, notably of the domestic manufacturing and service firms. By sticking to this multi-pronged policy agenda, Slovakia would make its growth process more balanced and more job-rich and would accelerate further its already successful catching-up process.
- Topic:
- Agriculture, Economics, Environment, Human Rights, International Organization, and Political Economy
- Political Geography:
- Slovakia