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.

Mr. Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, attended the OECD Seminar “The Euro area at a crossroads: Policies for growth, jobs and competitiveness” in Brussels on 17 February 2014 at the Council of the European Union, ahead of the regular Eurogroup meeting. At the Seminar, the Secretary-General presented the OECD report “Economic Challenges and Policy Recommendations for the Euro Area”.

Mr Gurría presented the 2015 OECD Economic Survey of Belgium alongside Mr. Charles Michel, Prime Minister of Belgium.

The Belgian economy has returned to growth and continues scoring well on broader measures of well-being, but further reforms will be needed to secure fiscal sustainability while promoting employment and competitiveness, according to the latest OECD Economic Survey of Belgium 2015.

Specific country notes have been prepared using data from the database OECD Health Statistics 2015, July 2015 version. The notes are available in PDF format.

The OECD Working Group on Bribery has serious concerns regarding Belgium’s limited efforts to comply with the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.

Unemployment in Belgium fell back to its pre-crisis level sooner than in most other OECD countries, but then rose significantly again in 2012 and has only recently begun to decline again. At 6.8% in April, it was still above its pre-crisis level and 0.9 percentage points above the OECD average.

Mr. Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, was in Brussels on Monday 16th October 2017 to attend the General Assembly of the World Steel Association, where he delivered a keynote address.

This note presents selected country highlights from the OECD Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard 2017 with a specific focus on digital trends among all themes covered.

These notes present selected country highlights from the OECD Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard 2017 with a specific focus on digital trends among all themes covered.

Mr. Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, was in Brussels on 19 June 2018 to present the 2018 OECD Economic Surveys of the European Union and of the Euro Area.

The digital revolution, globalisation and demographic changes are transforming labour markets at a time when policy makers are also struggling with slow productivity and wage growth and high levels of income inequality. The new OECD Jobs Strategy provides a comprehensive framework and policy recommendations to help countries address these challenges

Mr. Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, will be in Brussels on 8 July 2019 to attend the EU Employment and Social Policy Council meeting, where he will present the OECD report on the Economy of Well-Being.

The Secretary-General of the OECD, Mr. Angel Gurría, will be in Brussels on 3 February 2020 to present the 2020 OECD Economic Survey of Belgium, alongside Ms. Sophie Wilmès, Prime Minister of Belgium.

International migration fell in 2009, reflecting lower demand for workers in OECD countries for the second consecutive year after a decade of growth, according to a new OECD report.

The Brazilian economy has made a rapid recovery from the global economic crisis, but further reforms are necessary to boost long-term growth, spur investment and further reduce poverty, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Survey of Brazil.

The Czech economy’s export-driven recovery is slowing as weak activity Europe curbs exports. Swift implementation of new reforms is needed to ensure sustainable, inclusive long-term growth and better resilience to external shocks, according to the latest Economic Survey of the Czech Republic.

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría has welcomed the measures adopted by the Italian government to address fiscal sustainability while boosting growth and equity.

Switzerland has made a broadly balanced recovery from the economic crisis, but slower activity in Europe and pressures on the Swiss franc weigh on the near-term outlook, according to the latest Economic Survey of Switzerland.

Germany recovered rapidly from the 2008-09 recession, with GDP topping pre-crisis rates during 2011 and unemployment falling significantly. Public finances are sound, but further reforms are needed to transform its growth model to thrive as a knowledge-based economy.

The pace of reform has accelerated in those OECD countries where it is needed most, says the latest Going for Growth report. It identifies the specific action needed to help governments steer their economies out of the crisis, stimulate growth and create jobs.

Swift action is needed to stabilise the Hungarian economy and put growth on a sound footing for a durable recovery, according to the latest Economic Survey of Hungary. Strengthening the credibility and predictability of domestic policies and undertaking much-needed fiscal consolidation will be key.

Euro area finance ministers meeting this week need to boost the firepower of the European stability funds to at least one trillion euros in order to restore market confidence, OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría said today.

The global economy is recovering, but confidence is extremely uneven across different regions, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Outlook. European governments must take greater action to ensure that the crisis in the euro area does not derail the recovery.

Economic policy should be better designed to bring about more inclusive growth, ensuring that the benefits of increased prosperity are shared more evenly across society, according to a new report from the OECD and the World Bank.

Quarterly Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the G20 area grew 0.8% in the first quarter of 2012 compared with 0.7% in the fourth quarter of 2011, according to preliminary estimates. This small pick-up in aggregate G20 GDP growth still masks diverging patterns among the world's largest economies however.

The global economy has slowed, with key European countries entering a recession that is now impacting worldwide, the OECD said in its latest Interim Economic Assessment.Interim Economic Assessment

Italy has made a major effort to speed up long-overdue economic reforms but it is now essential to maintain the momentum, OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría said today in Rome.

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría welcomes the Spanish government's budget and the economic policy measures announced yesterday.

Estonia recovered forcefully from the global economic crisis but growth has since slowed, highlighting the need for further reforms that reduce exposure to external shocks and ensure against future boom/bust cycles, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Survey of Estonia.

Real GDP growth in the OECD area slowed to 0.2% in the second quarter of 2012, compared with 0.4% in the first quarter.

A major step forward towards putting the measurement of well-being at the heart of policy-making was taken at a four-day international conference which ended in New Delhi today.

The President of the French Republic, Mr. François Hollande, met the Heads of international economic organisations at the OECD on Monday 29th October.

Restoring competitiveness is one of the key challenges to bring European economies back on a path of strong, sustainable and balanced growth. Europe could improve its growth prospects by implementing a strategic reform agenda with a broad range of policy reforms to increase productivity, dynamism and employment.

The correlation between a firm’s size and its productivity level varies considerably across OECD countries, suggesting that some countries are more successful at channelling resources to high productivity firms than others.

The balance of economic power is expected to shift dramatically over the next half century, with fast-growing emerging-market economies accounting for an ever-increasing share of global output, according to a new OECD report.

This workshop will convene leading experts from health and finance backgrounds in government, academia, and international organisations to take stock of progress in health expenditure forecasting and to discuss future directions, in light of policy needs and recent advancements in techniques, detailed data and computing power.

Latin American governments must act now to strengthen growth and development and counter these risks, according to the 2013 Latin American Economic Outlook, jointly produced by the OECD Development Centre and ECLAC.

The global economy is expected to make a hesitant and uneven recovery over the coming two years. Decisive policy action is needed to ensure that stalemate over fiscal policy in the United States and continuing euro area instability do not plunge the world back into recession, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Outlook.

Spain is immersed in a prolonged recession that has been compounded by the continuing crisis in the euro area. The path to recovery has been launched, but will require full implementation of reforms and some additional measures to restore confidence in the financial sector, redress public finances and bring down high unemployment, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Survey of Spain.

The Slovak Republic recovered strongly from the global economic crisis and is weathering well the storm that has struck its main European trading partners. The challenges going forward will be restoring public finances while driving down unemployment and fostering long-term inclusive growth, says the latest Economic Survey.

The Australian economy is robust and faces a solid short-term outlook, but it must continue adapting to ensure that its privileged place in the Asia-Pacific region contributes to long-term sustainable growth, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Survey of Australia.

The Colombian economy is strong and the outlook is promising, but the country must do more to ensure that the ongoing commodities boom contributes to sustainable and inclusive growth over the long-term, according to the OECD’s latest Economic Assessment of Colombia.

In this paper we examine whether past labour market reforms aiming at reducing the rate of unemployment have raised its long-run volatility.

The gross borrowing needs of OECD governments are projected to increase slightly to around USD 10.9 trillion in 2013, up from the already high level of USD 10.8 trillion in 2012, according to a new OECD report.

Global economic activity is picking up, but the continuing crisis in the euro area is delaying a meaningful recovery, the OECD said in its latest Interim Economic Assessment.

The Slovak Republic is one of the most dynamic economies in the euro area. The country has continued to converge rapidly towards the living standards of advanced OECD economies. However, the Slovak Republic should continue on its path of reform to achieve balanced, fair and sustainable growth, according to a new OECD report.

Today the OECD is publishing a report on Portugal's challenges as far as structural reform is concerned. The OECD is an outstanding reference for policy-makers all around the world and I wanted my country to benefit from your skills, experience, and insights, especially on the question of structural reform, said the Portuguese Prime Minister.

Recent OECD research has utilised harmonised cross-country firm level data to explore the contribution of public policies to cross-country differences in productivity, innovation and resource allocation.

Technological advances, less costly shipping and trade liberalisation have transformed the way in which companies make products and distribute them worldwide. Governments that become more open to trade and investment, and encourage innovation will help firms better integrate the global value chains that are driving growth in increasingly interconnected economies, according to new OECD research.