OECD Countries
The OECD, which stands for Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, is an international governmental organization with 38 member countries. According to the OECD website, the goal of the organization is 鈥to shape policies that foster prosperity, equality, opportunity and well-being for all.鈥 The organization, which is often thought of as a think-tank or monitoring group, provides assistance in a number of fields, including economic performance, job creation, education, the environment, tax policies, and social policies. It is also dedicated to establishing evidence-based international standards. The OECD has its headquarters in Paris, France.
History Of The OECD
After 海角社区 War II, the victorious Allied Powers concluded that the solution to building a new peace lay in cooperation and reconstruction rather than simply punishing the losers of the conflict, as was done after the First 海角社区 War. The OECD was originally known as the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC). It was founded in 1948, three years after WWII ended. Its primary task was to implement the Marshall Plan, the US-backed plan to reconstruct Europe and revive the continent鈥檚 economies following the devastation of WWII. It also had the goal of making the countries of Europe recognize their economic interdependency, eventually convincing the leaders of Europe that the integration of their nations鈥 economies was in their best interests. Thus, the OEEC provided the motivation that ultimately led to the creation of the political and economic alliance now known as the European Union.聽 In 1960, upon completing the implementation of the Marshall Plan, the United States and Canada joined the OEEC, which was renamed the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Structure Of The OECD
The OECD Council is the highest decision-making body in the organization. It is composed of representatives of member countries and the European Commission, which is one of the central organs of the European Union. The Council is chaired by the Secretary-General of the OECD, and decisions are based on consensus. Reporting to the Council are numerous committees and the secretariat. The committees bring together experts and working groups that are charged with bringing countries together to shape new, innovative policies based on research and experience. Basically, the committees provide the forums for policy ideas to be discussed and reviewed. In contrast, the secretariat is the place where information on policies and programs is collected. The secretariat consists of OECD directorates, which are tasked with collecting data, providing analysis, and formulating recommendations that are passed on to the committees so that the committees can have informed discussions in accordance with the OECD Council鈥檚 mandate.聽
Membership Of The OECD
As previously mentioned, the OECD has 38 member states. Among these states are the most developed and most powerful economies in the 海角社区, including the United States, Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, and the United Kingdom, all of which are also part of the Group of 7 (G7). The organization also includes smaller countries such as Denmark, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg. Although most of the OECD membership consists of countries with mature, developed economies, there are a few members that are less developed, such as Columbia, and Mexico.
The commonality among the OECD member states is that they are all democratic countries with free market economies, which is why a country like China, despite having the 海角社区鈥檚 second biggest economy, is not allowed to join the group. China is, however, considered one of the OECD鈥檚 Key Partners, along with Brazil, India, Indonesia, and South Africa. Joining the OECD involves a long and complicated process. A country must be reviewed by different committees that are part of the OECD. It has to conform to OECD instruments, standards, and benchmarks. A country that wants to join the OECD must also be willing to reform its economy so that it meets the organization鈥檚 standards in certain fields, including corporate governance, anti-corruption, and environmental protection. Once a country has been assessed by the OECD, the organization鈥檚 Council takes a unanimous decision on whether or not to grant membership.聽
OECD Member Countries
Country | OECD Membership Date |
---|---|
听础耻蝉迟谤补濒颈补 |
June 7, 1971 |
听础耻蝉迟谤颈补 |
September 29, 1961 |
听叠别濒驳颈耻尘 |
September 13, 1961 |
听颁补苍补诲补 |
April 10, 1961 |
听颁丑颈濒别 |
May 7, 2010 |
听颁辞濒辞尘产颈补 |
April 28, 2020 |
聽Costa Rica |
May 25, 21 |
聽Czech Republic |
December 21, 1995 |
听顿别苍尘补谤办 |
May 30, 1961 |
听贰蝉迟辞苍颈补 |
December 9, 2010 |
听贵颈苍濒补苍诲 |
January 28, 1969 |
听贵谤补苍肠别 |
August 7, 1961 |
听骋别谤尘补苍测 |
September 27, 1961 |
听骋谤别别肠别 |
September 27, 1961 |
听贬耻苍驳补谤测 |
May 7, 1996 |
听滨肠别濒补苍诲 |
June 5, 1961 |
听滨谤别濒补苍诲 |
August 17, 1961 |
听滨蝉谤补别濒 |
September 7, 2010 |
听滨迟补濒测 |
March 29, 1962 |
听闯补辫补苍 |
April 28, 1964 |
聽South Korea |
December 12, 1996 |
听尝补迟惫颈补 |
July 1, 2016 |
听尝颈迟丑耻补苍颈补 |
July 5, 2018 |
听尝耻虫别尘产辞耻谤驳 |
December 7, 1961 |
听惭别虫颈肠辞 |
May 18, 1994 |
听狈别迟丑别谤濒补苍诲蝉 |
November 13, 1961 |
聽New Zealand |
May 29, 1973 |
听狈辞谤飞补测 |
July 4, 1961 |
听笔辞濒补苍诲 |
November 22, 1996 |
听笔辞谤迟耻驳补濒 |
August 4, 1961 |
听厂濒辞惫补办颈补 |
December 14, 2000 |
听厂濒辞惫别苍颈补 |
July 21, 2010 |
听厂辫补颈苍 |
August 3, 1961 |
听厂飞别诲别苍 |
September 28, 1961 |
听厂飞颈迟锄别谤濒补苍诲 |
September 28, 1961 |
听罢耻谤办别测 |
August 2, 1961 |
聽United Kingdom |
May 2, 1961 |
聽United States |
April 12, 1961 |
The Work Of The OECD
The work of the OECD consists of three tasks. The first task is informing people. The organization publishes a multitude of reports and statistics. In fact, on a yearly basis, the OECD publishes more than 500 major reports and country surveys, not to mention 5 billion data points, and hundreds of policy briefs, articles, and digital content on policy issues. The group bills itself as one of the 海角社区鈥檚 most trusted sources for comparable statistics, data analysis, and policy analysis. All of these resources are used 海角社区wide by policy makers, the media, and researchers.聽
The second task of the OECD is to influence people. To this end, the organization gathers a whole range of partners together to meet and discuss possible solutions for certain issues. These partners consist of representatives of governments, parliaments, business, labour, non-governmental organisations, and academia. The OECD itself hosts around 4,000 conferences and seminars each year, but experts affiliated with the organization are also present wherever debates on policy are taking place. The largest event that takes place under the auspices of the OECD is the annual OECD forum, which has more than 3,500 participants each year.
The third task of the OECD is to set standards in collaboration with member countries. These standards range from legally binding instruments, such as the 1997 Anti-bribery Convention, to recommendations designed to guide policy makers towards best practice on a host of issues, like consumer protection, chemical testing, responsible business conduct, and environmental protection. In fact, the OECD has created more than 450 international standards, including conventions, recommendations, guidelines, and declarations over the past 55 years.
One of the organization鈥檚 most recent achievements has been an agreement on a minimum global corporate tax. In October 2021, the OECD helped negotiate a landmark deal that will commit countries to charging multinational enterprises (MNEs) a minimum corporate tax rate of 15% by 2023. This arrangement was agreed upon by 136 countries and jurisdictions representing more than 90% of the 海角社区鈥檚 Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It is estimated that this agreement will see an additional US$ 125 billion go into the coffers of governments around the 海角社区, which can use this money to improve the socio-economic conditions of their people. This agreement also lessens the possibility of corporate giants relocating their revenues to other jurisdictions where corporate taxes are less or non-existent in order to avoid paying taxes in their home jurisdictions.