Making the Most of Public Investment in a Tight Fiscal Environment
GOVErnAnCE
Multi-level Governance Lessons from the Crisis
60
September 2011, 198 pages ISBN 978-92-64-11445-6 www.oecd.org/bookshop?9789264114456 http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264114470-en €50
$70
£45
¥6 500
Given that sub-national governments in OECD countries carry out more than two thirds of total capital investment, they have played a key role in executing national stimulus packages during the global crisis. The effectiveness of recovery strategies based on public investment thus depends largely on the arrangements between levels of government to design and implement the investment mix. This report provides an overview of challenges met in the recovery and highlights good practices and lessons learned, focusing on eight country cases: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Korea, Spain, Sweden and the United States. As stimulus packages are being phased out since 2010, many countries have moved toward fiscal consolidation and targeted public investment as an adjustment variable. Co-ordination between levels of government was essential to implement recovery measures, and it is equally important to better prioritise reduced public investment and make the most of it for sustainable growth.