Publications & Documents

Shenzhen is a stellar case of growth and economic transformation. Since its establishment as one of China’s first four Special Economic Zones in 1980, it has evolved at breakneck speed. Shenzhen transformed from a fishing village to a major world trade hub and is now home to global innovators in electronics. The Production Transformation Policy Review (PTPR) of Shenzhen, China reviews the city’s changing policy approaches, focusing on the shift from an assembly to a manufacturing centre and more recently to an innovation and start-up hub. Through a comprehensive assessment of Shenzhen’s experience, this review offers insights into the range of policies and strategies employed to stimulate industrial upgrading and learning in China. It provides lessons and actionable policy recommendations for the growth of cities and emerging economies in their catching-up journey. The PTPR of Shenzhen, China has been carried out in the framework of the OECD Initiative for Policy Dialogue on Global Value Chains, Production Transformation and Development and has benefitted from government-business dialogues and international peer learning (University of Seoul, Korea; University of Georgetown, USA and Digital India Foundation, India).

The Sahel and West Africa continue to face significant challenges in advancing towards gender equality and women’s empowerment. While much progress has been made in health and educational outcomes for women and girls in the region, much more has yet to be done. Official development assistance (ODA) can serve a crucial role in this respect, by mobilising support for gender equality. This paper aims to highlight the current financing for the gender equality landscape in the region. It points to a need to increase the share of ODA supporting gender equality objectives; to support local women’s organisations as key actors in reaching the most vulnerable women and girls; to invest in the evaluation of gender-sensitive programmes and learning around them; and to support the generation of gender-disaggregated data to identify where action can be most effective.

Young people have demonstrated resilience to shocks and led positive change in their communities across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Young people (aged under 30) constitute more than half (55%) of the population across MENA, compared with 36% of the population across OECD countries. While challenges vary significantly across the region, youth unemployment rates are among the highest in the world, young people tend to express low trust in public institutions, and nearly four in ten live in fragile and conflicted-affected areas. The COVID-19 crisis has underscored the need to place the needs of young people at the centre of an inclusive and resilient recovery. To support this process, this report analyses current governance arrangements and practices across 10  MENA governments in three areas: 1) uniting all government stakeholders to implement a shared, integrated youth policy and deliver services to young people; 2) building administrative and institutional capacities to mainstream the perspectives of young people in policy making; and 3) encouraging the participation and representation of young people and youth stakeholders in public and political life.

The global COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected Fiji, hitting at backbone economic sectors, such as international tourism and export fisheries. It has also brought to the fore the need to embark on a more sustainable model of development. This report examines Fiji’s economic and sustainability trends, as well as the governance and financing of its ocean economy before and during the COVID-19 crisis. It provides an initial mapping of promising initiatives and funding instruments that can be developed and scaled up to foster a sustainable blue recovery, focusing on four main areas: sustainable fisheries, sustainable tourism, green shipping and marine conservation.

Over the past decade, the United Kingdom has reduced several environmental pressures while growing its economy. Ahead of its presidency of the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties, it has led the way by raising its national ambition. However, air pollution, deteriorating natural assets and missed biodiversity targets are all concerns. Further efforts are needed to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, prepare for climate change, reverse biodiversity loss and ensure a more resource-efficient circular economy. Strengthening co‑ordination between the United Kingdom and devolved governments, as well as enhancing coherence between sectoral and environmental policies will be key. This is the third Environmental Performance Review of the United Kingdom. It evaluates progress towards green growth, with a special chapter focusing on waste, materials management and the circular economy.

Initially launched in 2017, the OECD annual Blended finance Funds and Facilities Survey compiles and analyses information on collective investment vehicles, one of the primary channels for blended finance. In 2020, the third annual edition captured 198 vehicles, representing USD 75 billion assets under management. The survey helps policy makers and private sector actors better grasp the size and shape of a segment of the blended finance market. By bringing together data of different development actors that, collectively, are a significant contributor to sustainable finance, this survey makes an important contribution to enhancing understanding and transparency. Transparency is increased through the data collection and analysis, and understanding is increased through the aggregation of the data that highlight the main investments trends. The quantitative analysis is complemented by OECD statistics on private finance mobilised by official development interventions, as well as by information provided by other specialised institutions. This new evidence confirms trends observed on the broader blended finance market in terms of priority sectors, geographical coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals targeted. This year’s edition also explores additional aspects such as investors, clients and investment instruments, and has a particular focus on gender.

The Global Compendium of Land Value Capture, a joint project by the OECD and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, is an ambitious undertaking to understand the full landscape of land value capture (LVC) instruments, how they are configured and deployed across the globe in OECD and Non-OECD countries, and what it would take to unleash their full potential as a sustainable revenue source. Moreover, little systematic information is available about the LVC instruments that countries use and enabling frameworks at national and regional levels to guide local governments toward greater use. The report features an overview of the political contexts, legal frameworks, and LVC approaches used in 60 countries. Special attention is given to the differences and similarities between countries that have a mature LVC practice, versus countries that have nascent policies and allowances. This will help countries developing the capacity and competences for LVC to understand the opportunities, trade-offs, and pitfalls to avoid when configuring legal, governance, and planning frameworks and institutions to support the implementation of LVC policies.

Women around the world are facing unprecedented levels of targeted political violence. This is also true in West Africa. Women can be targeted in a myriad of ways, by an array of types of perpetrators, during and outside of periods of conflict and contentious crises. The result though is consistent: such targeted violence has worrying implications for women’s political participation as well as their involvement in the public sphere. Political violence targeting women (PVTW) in West Africa has become increasingly common, with this trend increasing even more dramatically in recent years. The threat and risks, however, have not been uniform: different types of violence and different primary perpetrators dominate the gendered violence landscape across countries. Using data from ACLED, this paper tracks how women are targeted, and who is targeting women. Only by understanding how threats and risks that women face differ across countries can strategies be created to protect women.