Balancing globalisation

Donald J. Johnston
Secretary-General of the OECD

©OECD/Nguyen Tien

“Globalisation, propelled by trade and investment liberalisation, and rapid technological change, has delivered prosperity and reduced poverty for millions of people in recent decades. We have learned, however, that reaping the full benefits of globalisation requires many elements, including good public and corporate governance; policies that promote structural adjustment and social cohesion; greater access to education; efficient financial markets; and sound policies for research, innovation and development. Of course, policies are critical, but implementation is too often undermined by domestic political considerations.

Balancing all these elements, while promoting globalisation and delivering prosperity, requires an open and inclusive dialogue involving business, government, civil society and labour groups. This is the purpose of the OECD Forum–to forge a better understanding of the challenges, and to promote consensus on the necessary policies and their implementation.

Because of the presence of those involved in this dialogue, especially political decision makers responsible for policy implementation, there is no better environment anywhere to address these issues and the political economy of implementing reform. This is the seventh annual OECD Forum and my last as secretary-general. Each has proved to be a great success and I hope they will be continued well into the future.”

This article is the welcome message to the OECD Forum 2006 on www.oecdforum.org.

©OECD Observer No 255, May 2006




Economic data

GDP growth: +0.2% Q4 2019
Consumer price inflation: 1.7% March 2020
Trade (G20): -0.1% exp, -1.3% imp, Q4 2019
Unemployment: 5.6% March 2020
Sharp drop in OECD leading indicators point to darker outlook: Last update: 14 May 2020

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