Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

With headquarters in Paris, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) began in 1948 as the Organization for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC), to promote the Marshall Plan for the reconstruction of Europe after World War II. Membership of the OEEC was gradually extended to non-European states, and in 1961, 20 countries joined to reform the international organization into the OECD by authority of the Convention on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

In mid-2008, the OECD comprised 30 member states. As members, these nations share the principles [Page 1252]of representative democracy and free market economy Member nations meet in committees to exchange ideas; review their efforts to improve national economic performance; and advance policies on trade, science, employment, education, and financial markets. The scope of the OECD agenda, therefore, is broad, covering economic, environmental, and social policy

Through exchange of information, the organization aims to provide a forum where members can identify best practices, design solutions to common problems, and coordinate domestic and international policies, often by adopting nonbinding agreements that can develop into binding treaties and other legal instruments.

Structure and Mission

Together, the council, secretariat, and committees form the OECD s structure. The council is comprised of member countries, each with an ambassador leading its delegation. The secretary-general heads the secretariat, which in turn is made up of 14 directorates and about 2,500 staff members. Finally, around 200 committees, working groups, and expert groups comprised of experts from member and nonmember countries are dedicated to a specific theme of the OECD's agenda.

The OECD engages nonmembers through its Centre for Cooperation with Non-Members (CCNM). About 25 nonmember countries participate at varying levels in OECD committees, and about 50 nonmembers contribute to OECD working parties, schemes, or programs. The organization also provides policy-dialogue and capacity-building activities—country programs, regional approaches, and global forums—in which participants can share best-policy practices and obtain input into the OECD's policy debate. Dialogue has also been established with several countries on the possibility of accession, enhanced engagement, and cooperation with nonmembers, particularly those of strategic importance to the OECD.

The OECD functions primarily as a forum for the exchange of experiences, ideas, and information between national governments on a range of contemporary policy issues. As part of this role, the secretariat's statistical agency, based in Paris, collects and analyzes data on a broad range of subjects, including patterns in society, trade, the environment, agriculture, taxation, technology, and economic development forecasts. Statistics on these topics are published in a variety of formats and are viewed as being reliable sources of comparable statistics.

Each year, the organization releases several hundred books as well as working papers and reference materials. Flagship titles include OECD Economic Outlook, Main Economic Indicators, OECD Factbook, OECD in Figures, and OECD Observer.

Toward the goal of achieving transparency in international tax affairs, the agency periodically publishes a list of uncooperative tax havens. It also produces and regularly updates the Model Tax Convention and a set of guidelines for the testing of chemicals, both of which have become de facto standards.

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