The OECD at 50
The OECD is one of the most influential economic forums to which New Zealand belongs. Participation grants us access to a think tank whose analysis can inform our own policy development, as well as provide us with a voice on the global stage with which to help shape the international economic environment. John Key, Prime Minister of New Zealand
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he demise of the Soviet Union and the rise of globalisation rendered characterisations in terms of political blocs less pertinent. OECD countries took a strategic decision to engage the Organisation fully in the transition to democracy and a market economy that was under way in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, the Slovak Republic, the Russian Federation, South East Europe, the Baltic countries and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Through a series of country programmes with ‘Partners in Transition’, the OECD helped to ease their conversion to market economies, paving the way, in some cases, for membership of the OECD and/or the European Union. In a context in which many of these countries were aiming at European integration, the fact that the OECD’s recommendations were based on the comparative analysis of policy experiences, but refrained from the traditional conditionality, helped to encourage implementation and a sense of ownership in the reform process. During this period, the OECD also began drawing the attention of policy makers to the relevance of entrepreneurship and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as drivers of growth, job creation and social cohesion. In 1993, a working party on SMEs was created as the first high-level international forum for SME policy makers. Later renamed the Working Party on SMEs and Entrepreneurship, to reflect increased recognition of the importance of entrepreneurial behaviour in economies around the world, its work to promote entrepreneurship and advance the performance of small businesses through best-practice policies has proved of particular interest in emerging economies, including those of the former Soviet bloc.
Signature of the OECD Partnership Agreements (Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Hungary and Poland), OECD Headquarters, 4 July 1991. Jean-Claude Paye, OECD Secretary-General (left); Mihaly Kupa, Finance Minister, Hungary; Leszek Balceroricz, Deputy Prime Minister, Finance Minister, Poland; Wim Kok, Netherlands Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, OECD Ministerial Council Chair; Béla Kadar, Minister, International Economic Relations, Hungary; Alfred Biec, Under Secretary of State, Poland; Salvatore Zecchini, OECD Assistant Secretary-General
Bridging the knowledge gap In 1994, building on its participation in the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, Mexico concluded negotiations to join the OECD and quickly began playing an active role in the Organisation’s affairs. Korea had also made known its interest in membership, as had some other Asian economies. In central and eastern Europe, the OECD organised seminars and sent experts from its member countries to advise officials in these countries. It invited them to send representatives to meetings of its committees in Paris, giving them direct access to OECD counterparts in areas as diverse as trade, financial markets, agriculture, technology, social policy, labour markets and education. ❱❱
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