OECD

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques
Abbreviation
  • OECD
  • OCDE
Established16 April 1948 (1948-04-16) (as OEEC)
30 September 1961 (1961-09-30) (as OECD)
TypeIntergovernmental organisation
HeadquartersChâteau de la Muette
Paris, France
Membership
Official languages
  • English
  • French
Mathias Cormann
Deputy Secretaries-General
  • Ulrik Vestergaard Knudsen
  • Yoshiki Takeuchi
  • Fabrizia Lapecorella
Budget
€338.3 million (2023)[3]
Websiteoecd.org

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; French: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, OCDE) is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries,[1][4] founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade. It is a forum whose member countries describe themselves as committed to democracy and the market economy, providing a platform to compare policy experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify good practices, and coordinate domestic and international policies of its members.

The majority of OECD Members are high-income economies ranked as "very high" in the Human Development Index, and are regarded as developed countries. Their collective population is 1.38 billion[5] people with an average life expectancy of 80 years and a current median age of 40, against a global average of 30.[6] As of 2017, OECD Member countries collectively comprised 62.2% of global nominal GDP (USD 49.6 trillion)[7] and 42.8% of global GDP (Int$54.2 trillion) at purchasing power parity.[8] The OECD is an official United Nations observer.[9]

In April 1948, the Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC)[10] was established to help administer the Marshall Plan, which was rejected by both the Soviet Union and its satellite states.[11] This would be achieved by allocating the United States' financial aid and implementing economic programs for the reconstruction of Europe after World War II.[12] Only Western European states were members of the OEEC. Its Secretaries-General[13] were the Frenchmen Robert Marjolin (1948–1955) and René Sergent (1955–1960). On 14 December 1960,[14] the OEEC was reformed into the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which came into force in late September 1961, and the membership was extended to non-European states, the first of which were the United States and Canada.[15][16]

The OECD's headquarters are at the Château de la Muette in Paris, France.[17] The OECD is funded by contributions from Member countries at varying rates and had a total budget of 338.3 million in 2023,[3] and is recognised as a highly influential publisher of mostly economic data through publications as well as annual evaluations and rankings of Member countries.[18]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference membership was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference CRI38 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b "Member Countries' Budget Contributions for 2023". OECD. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  4. ^ Shields, Bevan (13 January 2021). "Mathias Cormann confirmed as a frontrunner for OECD post following candidate cull". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 11 September 2022. OECD's 38 member countries.
  5. ^ "Population, total – OECD members".
  6. ^ "OECD Economic Data | Data". World Economics. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  7. ^ "World Economic Outlook Database". International Monetary Fund. 17 April 2018.
  8. ^ "Report for Selected Country Groups and Subjects (PPP valuation of country GDP)". IMF. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
  9. ^ "Intergovernmental Organizations". United Nations. Archived from the original on 2 December 2018.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference oeec was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ "Soviet Union rejects Marshall Plan assistance This Day in History — 7/2/1947". History.com. Retrieved 30 May 2013.
  12. ^ "The Economic Cooperation Authority". Marshallfoundation.org. Archived from the original on 17 February 2007. Retrieved 30 May 2013.
  13. ^ "Definition of SECRETARY-GENERAL". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  14. ^ OECD. "OECD 60th anniversary". OECD 60th anniversary. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  15. ^ "What is the OECD? Definition and Meaning". marketbusinessnews.com. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  16. ^ "Organisation for European Economic Co-operation". OECD. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  17. ^ "Getting to the OECD". OECD. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  18. ^ "Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 8 September 2020.