The Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes has released peer review reports assessing the tax systems of 13 jurisdictions for information exchange.

Brazil’s strong economic growth has helped cut the youth unemployment rate over the past decade to levels below those of most OECD countries. Increased investment in education and vocational training is also helping young people get a foot in the jobs market, according to a new OECD report.

Tax revenues in Latin American countries continue to rise but are lower as a proportion of their national incomes than in most OECD countries. Revenue Statistics in Latin America 2012 shows that Argentina and Brazil have the highest tax revenue to GDP ratio, while Guatemala and Dominican Republic stand at the lower end.

This case study provides an overview of the Brazilian political financing system, including the applicable legislation, categories of political parties and funding, regulation mechanisms and transparency initiatives. It also reviews some of the tools provided to political actors to comply with the legal standards, and draft legislation designed to strengthen and reform the political funding system.

Current carbon prices are falling short of the levels needed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions driving climate change, but even moderate price increases could have a significant impact, according to new OECD research.

The conference aims to discuss how intellectual property data, statistics and analysis are used and can be used to inform decision-makers in both the public and private sectors, and to identify key information needs and possible shortcomings.

Brazil is emerging from its long recession and is headed for solid growth in 2018 and 2019 as recent structural reforms start to bear fruit. Sustaining this recovery, unleashing Brazil’s full economic potential and spreading the benefits fairly will require additional efforts to rein in public spending, increase trade and investment, and further focus social spending on those most in need, according to a new OECD report.

The 2017 OECD R&D tax incentive country profiles provide detailed information on the design features and cost of tax provisions used by countries to incentivise R&D performance by businesses, reporting on both long-term and recent trends.

This working paper offers an evaluation of the performance of the ports of the Seine Axis (Le Havre,Rouen, Caen and Paris).

The OECD Recommendation on Principles for Public Governance of Public-Private Partnerships can help governments get PPPs right, by providing best practices based on Member country experiences with what works (and what doesn't).

This paper analyses the monetary and fiscal policy implications of output gap estimates in times of crisis. The widening of output gaps observed in major OECD economies in the wake of the recent crisis has been mainly due to total factor productivity gaps, except in the United States where it essentially resulted from a large increase in the unemployment gap.

In response to increasing pressure to deliver on growth, jobs and better governance, policy makers from MENA and OECD reiterated their support for measures to strengthen the business climate and governance in the region.

Brazil’s supreme audit institution – the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) – has began a process to reform its audit of the Accounts of the President of the Republic to enhance transparency and accountability of federal budget execution.

In collaboration with the Federal Government of Germany, the OECD organised four workshops at the International Regulatory Reform Conference (IRRC) 2013 in Berlin. The workshops focused on the use of cost-benefit analysis in governmental decision making, as well as on the role of key actors of regulatory governance in the regulatory policy cycle: Parliaments, regulatory agencies and audit offices.

Brazil’s economic growth has been supported in recent years by important government investment and social programmes that mobilise resources across the country. These programmes could help Brazil to meet its goals of sustaining economic growth and fostering social development, while reducing regional disparities.

OECD Task Force on Charting Illicit Trade

The tax burden in Switzerland is low in international comparison, largely reflecting the substantial non-tax compulsory contributions towards the health and pension systems which are managed by private institutions. Taxation of personal income and labour earnings is relatively high, whereas the taxation of consumption is low.

Ports are the nervous system of global trade. Over 80% of world cargo (by volume) is transported by sea. Our efforts to raise the efficiency, competitiveness and sustainability of ports can help boost trade, growth and jobs. It can also help us to promote green growth and development in the poorest regions, said OECD Secretary-General.

Mexico regularly faces a wide range of natural hazards, including earthquakes, tropical storms and floods. Over the years, the National Civil Protection System has improved its institutional and operational preparedness to manage these disruptive events. But more can be done to avoid future losses and at the same time support sustainable economic development.

This paper provides an overview of fiscal consolidation efforts at the central and sub-central government level, both during the current and past consolidation episodes.

Fiscal rules that constrain sub-central government (SCG) budgeting are very common across the OECD, but there are substantial cross-country differences in their implementation and impact. This paper presents the 2011 update of the fiscal rules database established in 2005.

This paper provides empirical analysis that measures the cyclical properties of intergovernmental transfers (or grants). Modelling a fiscal policy reaction function this paper tests whether the transfers systems in OECD countries are pro- or counter-cyclical, i.e. whether they offset cyclical fluctuations of sub-central economies or, on the contrary, exacerbate them.

The Spanish government has launched a series of ambitious public administration reforms as part of wider efforts to promote economic competitiveness and strengthen trust in government and public institutions.

The OECD participated in this annual event held in Stockholm (1-5 September 2013) where two major reports "Water Security for Better Lives" and "Water and Climate Change Adaptation: Policies to Navigate Uncharted Waters" were launched by the OECD's Secretary-General, Angel Gurría.

This working paper offers an evaluation of the performance of the inland ports of the Slovak Republic within the framework of the Danube Axis, an analysis of the impact of the ports on their territory and an assessment of policies in this field. It examines port performance over the last decades and identifies the principal factors that have contributed to it.

This working paper offers an evaluation of the performance of ports of Antofagasta, an analysis of the impact of the ports on their territory and an assessment of policies in this field. It examines port performance over the last decades and identifies the principal factors that have contributed to it.

This report provides a framework to understand the changing relationships between urban and rural areas. Specifically, it documents the characteristics of these partnerships and the factors that can hinder as well as enable rural-urban co-operation.

The global economic crisis has had a profound impact on people’s well-being, reaching far beyond the loss of jobs and income, and affecting citizens’ satisfaction with their lives and their trust in governments, according to a new OECD report.

This report assesses progress in the implementation of regulatory policy within the MENA region and highlights good practices from Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority and Tunisia.

The report "Regulatory Reform in the Middle East and North Africa" assesses progress in the implementation of regulatory policy within the MENA region and highlights good practices from Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority and Tunisia.

The global economic crisis has undermined trust in government. Today only four out of ten citizens in OECD countries say they have confidence in their national authorities. Not surprisingly, trust declined in the countries hit hardest by the crisis, such as Ireland, Greece, Slovenia and Portugal.

Spain’s planned public sector reforms should help make the country’s institutions stronger and more effective, and proposals to increase transparency and root out corruption will do much to restore public trust, according to a new OECD report.

Co-organised by the Italian Co-Chair of the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group and the OECD, participants discussed progress in advancing the key elements of the global anti-corruption agenda and innovative solutions to address the latest challenges facing countries, business and civil society.

Workshop held in The Hague on 17-18 June 2014 to evaluate stakeholder engagement in regulatory policy

Uncertainty faced by households and firms affects economic activity. The rise in uncertainty since the beginning of the sovereign debt crisis in Greece could be one factor that has contributed to the steep and long-lasting recession. This paper presents a brief empirical analysis quantifying this phenomenon and compares it with developments in Ireland and Portugal.

This study aims to assess the degree of institutional fragmentation of transport and land use planning in Chicago. It provides an overview of local governments in metropolitan Chicago and mechanisms for coordination. Five main challenges are identified.

OECD Forum on Financing Democracy and Averting Policy Capture

The OECD Port-Cities Programme aims to identify how ports can be assets for urban development. The programme therefore assesses the impact of ports on cities and regions. It also compares policies aimed at increasing positive regional impacts of ports and limiting negative effects.

This working paper takes a comparative snapshot of social media use in and by OECD governments. The focus is on government institutions, as opposed to personalities, and how they manage to capture the opportunities of new social media platforms to deliver better public services and to create more open policy processes.

This report documents procurement regulations and practices in Mexico's main electricity company (Comisión Federal de Electricidad) and makes policy recommendations in key procurement areas.

This chapter studies the governance of the Frankfurt metropolitan area. It focuses on public transport and spatial planning issues. It provides an overview of the economic conditions in the metropolitan area and analyses the role of the regional association of municipalities (Regionalverband FrankfurtRheinMain) and the state of Hesse for metropolitan governance.

Meeting focusing on challenges on gender sensitive policies and gender budgeting in MENA region. Delegates will also discuss the progress to date on legal reforms in advancing gender equality and promoting women’s political participation in the region.

The OECD is supporting Malaysia to implement regulatory reforms supporting the country’s economic, social and environmental goals, as well as regional and global competitiveness.

The main objective of this meeting was to create a Latin American Network to contribute to the better functioning of markets and the improvement of public services in Latin American countries.

The tax on immovable property recently started to regain its former significance, but the tax yield still remains low, with slightly more than 1% of GDP and wide variation across countries.

In January of this year I visited the Mexican state of Tabasco– a state crossed by rivers and facing the Gulf of Mexico. The state’s population has doubled over the past 30 years and its economy relies heavily on oil and natural gas resources. It has its challenges as well: unemployment, poverty and a lack of resources.

This paper contributes to the scarce literature on the macroeconomic effects of property taxes, in particular on the relationships between property taxes, house prices and the wider economy.

The OECD’s Annual Meeting at Ministerial Level reinforced member governments’ support across a broad range of key OECD work.

The objective of this paper is to define long-run prudent debt targets for OECD countries and country-specific fiscal rules. To this end, a semi-structural macroeconomic model for OECD countries and primary balance reaction functions are estimated.

Countries need to do more to identify and reduce conflicts of interest and other breaches of integrity to help win back trust in national governments, which surveys suggest remains below pre-crisis levels, according to a new OECD report.