Reports

The government of Kazakhstan has set the objective of substantially the contribution of SMEs and entrepreneurs to employment and value added in the economy. Although there are large numbers of SMEs and entrepreneurs in the country, this will require a step change in the productivity of enterprises and the emergence of a many more medium-sized and growth-oriented firms.This report recognises the important achievements of the Kazakhstan government in creating a clear vision and policy structures for SMEs and entrepreneurs, including through the Business Road Map 2020 and major regulatory improvements. It also highlights the current challenge of doing more to strengthen management capabilities, skills, and innovation in SMEs and new enterprises, and recommends a range of relevant actions including further building the incubator and Entrepreneurship Support Centre infrastructure, introducing dedicated support for high-growth potential enterprises, and stimulating supply chain linkages around foreign director investors.

This review uses the OECD Policy Framework for Investment to present an assessment of the investment climate in Viet Nam and to discuss the challenges and opportunities faced by the government of Viet Nam in its reform efforts. It includes chapters on foreign investment trends and performance, the entry and operations of foreign investors, the legal framework for investment, corporate governance and competition policy, tax reforms, investment promotion and facilitation, infrastructure connectivity, investment framework for green growth and policies to promote and enable responsible business conduct.

This report looks at the fiscal, environmental and social impacts of energy subsidy reform in Moldova with a particular focus on energy affordability. Reduced value added tax (VAT) rate on natural gas consumption and a VAT exemption on electricity and heat consumption by domestic users represent the largest fossil-fuel consumer subsidies in Moldova. Reforming these will imply an increase of the VAT rate, which will lead to an increase of gas, electricity and heat tariffs for households, and will in turn affect household consumption levels, related expenditures and energy affordability. If reform measures are to work, they will need to be accompanied by a carefully-designed social policy to protect poor households.

SMEs play an important role for economic growth and social inclusion in Indonesia. Based on data from the Ministry of Co-operatives and SMEs, Indonesian SMEs account for nearly 97% of domestic employment and for 56% of total business investment. 
Indonesia has a Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) Law and a specific ministry dedicated to co-operatives and SMEs. The wealth of public programmes for SMEs could be streamlined, and more could be done to support innovative companies able to generate productive jobs and participate in international markets. The development and implementation of an SME strategy would be instrumental to improve the overall coherence of national policy measures, objectives and measurable targets. 
The review of SME and entrepreneurship policy of Indonesia is part of a peer-reviewed series, by the OECD Working Party on SMEs and Entrepreneurship, which aims to improve the design, implementation and effectiveness of national SME and entrepreneurship policies. 

The higher education sector in The Netherlands offers excellent examples of what it means to be innovative and entrepreneurial, and promote entrepreneurial mind sets, entrepreneurship and knowledge exchange. Creating value from academic knowledge through innovative services, products, processes and business models that meet economic, social and environmental needs lies at the core of this strategy. The current challenge is to strenghten the anchoring of value-creation processes in education and research. This can be achieved through increased interdisciplinarity, entrepreneurial mindset development across all subject areas, incentives for effective wider world engagement of researchers and students, and growth-oriented support for startups. This report presents an in-depth analysis of the policy framework and institutional practices and provides useful guidance for policy makers and university leaders across the world. HEInnovate is a joint initiative of the European Commission and the OECD to promote the innovative and entrepreneurial higher education institution.

This report looks at a range of key labour market, economic and social indicators related to Canada’s growing Indigenous population, which comprises First Nations, Inuit and Métis. In 2016, there were over 1.6 million Indigenous People in Canada, accounting for 4.9% of the total population, which is a significant increase from 3.8% in 2006. The report looks at the implementation of the federal government’s Indigenous Skills and Employment Training Strategy through in-depth analysis across four case study areas, including 1) the Centre for Aboriginal Human Resources and Development in Winnipeg, Manitoba; 2) Community Futures Treaty Seven in Calgary, Alberta; 3) MAWIW Council in Fredericton, New Brunswick; and 4) Kiikenomaga Kikenjigewen Employment and Training Services (KKETS) in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The report highlights critical success factors to better link Indigenous People to high quality jobs while also providing recommendations regarding future labour market and skills programming for Indigenous People in Canada.

Ce rapport sur L’articulation entre productivité et inclusivité rassemble les toutes dernières évidences empiriques sur les principaux facteurs du ralentissement des gains de productivité et des fortes inégalités ; il suggère de possibles liens et fondements communs à ces deux tendances ; il dégage de premières conclusions sur les ensembles de mesures à mettre en œuvre et sur les implications qui en découlent pour l’élaboration des politiques ; en outre il propose des domaines précis qui pourraient faire l’objet de recherches plus approfondies.Le principal message de ce rapport est un appel aux responsables de l’action publique afin qu’ils adoptent une approche plus globale et plus inclusive de la croissance de la productivité visant à développer tous les actifs productifs d’une économie en développant les compétences, en mettant en place un environnement où toutes les entreprises peuvent prospérer et en investissant dans les régions à la traîne. L’objectif premier de cette approche est d’élargir la base productive de l’économie de façon à générer à terme des gains de productivité solides et durables auxquels chacun soit en mesure de contribuer tout en s’assurant par ailleurs que chacun, dans la société, puisse en bénéficier et voir s’améliorer son niveau de vie et ses perspectives. Pour ce faire, il faudra établir un cadre d’action complet qui tienne compte de l’ensemble des interactions entre inégalités et productivité, et du jeu de ces interactions au sein des pays, et entre les régions, les entreprises et les individus. Un tel cadre peut aider les responsables de l’action publique à mettre en place des mesures ex ante et ex post visant à promouvoir les synergies, et à gérer les situations dans lesquelles les politiques à l’appui de la productivité ont un impact sur les inégalités.

This report provides an in-depth analysis of major reforms undertaken between 2014 and 2018 to promote micro, small and medium-sized enterprise development in Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority and Tunisia. The report focuses on five strategic areas for SME policy making: SME definitions, statistics and institutions; improving business environments for SMEs and entrepreneurs; fostering access to finance; nurturing start-ups and SME growth; and the development of entrepreneurial human capital.The report aims to showcase good practices and to point to areas where more efforts are needed. It provides valuable guidance for governments, private sector organisations, multilateral bodies and other stakeholders to intensify their efforts to support SMEs as essential vehicles for jobs and competitiveness. This is particularly relevant in a region striving to boost economic diversification, employment creation and the inclusion of youth and women in the economy.The report is the result of a process of close collaboration among governments, the OECD, the European Training Foundation and the European Commission.