The OECD Development Centre provides countries with policy advice that is independent, multi-disciplinary, rigorous and tailored to their needs. It brokers informal dialogue, building trust between governments and engaging with a variety of public, private and philanthropic actors. The Centre’s Governing Board is open to both OECD and non-OECD countries from all regions and income groups.
The OECD Development Centre
The Development Centre brings together policy makers from countries of all regions and income levels. They collaborate on equal footing to build mutual understanding and find paths to strong, shared and green development.
How we work
What we are working on
Inequality is rising in all its dimensions. People everywhere are vulnerable to economic shocks, climate change, rapid digitalisation and demographic change. The OECD Development Centre’s unique datasets help policy makers design and implement better and more inclusive policies. The Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) helps them understand and tackle discrimination against women and girls. The Key Indicators of Informality shed unprecedented light on the living conditions of informal workers and their families around the world. Based on this data, the Centre advises governments on how to improve social protection, provide more and better jobs, and enhance the contribution of migrants to development.
To become more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient, developing economies need to transform their productive structures. The OECD Development Centre’s policy reviews focus on how countries and regions can leapfrog to new technologies, address gaps in the quality and coverage of their infrastructure, improve co-ordination across all levels of governments, and raise financial resources. The Centre’s dialogue activities help policy makers connect with international peers and leading experts on how countries can improve Research & Development, participate in global value chains or promote start-ups.
In pursuit of sustainable development, policy makers face complex trade-offs. For instance, they need to provide populations and businesses with affordable and reliable access to power, but also with financial incentives to shift to greener technologies. Through its work on the green transition, the OECD Development Centre helps governments navigate those trade-offs and define their own strategic priorities. Its analysis and dialogue activities focus on investments in quality infrastructure, the role of intermediary cities; the specific challenges faced by fossil-fuel producing economies; and the rise of critical raw materials.
Areas of work
Recent publications
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2 August 2024
Programmes of work
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Strengthening institutions and building capacity for successful policy reforms in UkraineLearn more
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The OECD Centre on Philanthropy contributes to the global demand for more and better data and analysis on global philanthropy for development. It brings together efforts from existing research centres and projects, expands the OECD database and provides research and analysis on its global trends and impact in the context of the 2030 Agenda.Learn more
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The platform assists fossil-based and mineral-rich developing and emerging economies harness their natural resources for sustainable development, and transition to a low-carbon future in a just and equitable way . Through our work OECD and non-OECD producing countries, in consultation with extractive industries, civil society and think tanks, craft innovative and collaborative solutions for resource-based development.Learn more
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The Initiative is a global platform for policy dialogue and knowledge-sharing between countries from Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas. It aims at improving evidence and at identifying policy guidelines to support production transformation and sustainable and inclusive participation to local, regional and global markets.Learn more
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Africa needs USD 130-170 billion annually to bridge its infrastructure gap and generate sustainable growth. At the same time, about 80% of infrastructure projects fail at the feasibility and planning stage, and significant share of public spending on infrastructure is lost throughout projects development cycle. The Accelerating and Scaling-up Quality Infrastructure Investment in Africa (ASQIIA) initiative has been designed to support Africa’s policymakers generate bankable and impactful infrastructure project pipelines for economic transformation and continental integration.Learn more
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The OECD’s Multi-dimensional Reviews help policy makers design policies and strategies that promote development in a holistic sense, and do not simply promote growth. This takes into account the complementarities and interactions across policies and in doing so helps to identify the sequencing of policies needed to remove binding constraints to sustainable development and well-being improvements.Learn more
Networks
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Building trust. Mobilising action. Changing behaviours. These goals are central for any organisation working to promote sustainable development worldwide. The OECD Development Communication Network (DevCom) helps organisations promote engagement around sustainable development and international co-operation. And it supports their efforts to build trust and legitimacy with citizens and stakeholders in the countries where they operate.Learn more
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Many understand development as poorer countries “catching up” with richer countries. However, development is more complex than getting from a to b. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) signal that development has multiple economic, social and environmental dimensions, beyond income. Development in Transition (DiT) seeks to build the machinery of new international co-operation – driven by updated multilateralism – fit for the purpose of promoting sustainable development for all.Learn more
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The network of foundations working for development (netFWD) brings together philanthropic leaders in the development sphere. The tight-knit network connects foundations with OECD experts, policymakers and key stakeholders in the multilateral system to share evidence and strategic insights, explore promising novel approaches, and engage in coalitions and partnerships.Learn more
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EMnet is the OECD Development Centre’s business-led platform for dialogue and analysis of policy challenges, economic trends and business opportunities in emerging markets. It brings together high-level public officials, senior executives from multinational corporations and OECD experts.Learn more
Governing board
The Governing Board is the Development Centre’s supervisory body. Members interact on an equal footing to exchange on their development experiences, decide on the Centre’s priorities, and enrich its work, with a view to accelerating progress towards global sustainable development.
Chair
Ambassador Amélie de Montchalin
Ambassador of France to the OECD, Chair of the OECD Development Centre’s Governing Board
How the board works
Every two years, members decide on the Programme of Work and Budget of the Development Centre. Together, they mandate the secretariat to:
- Identify and frame issues critical to the global development dialogue, including in the context of the G20 Development Working Group
- Provide rigorous independent analysis and evidence on issues of common interest
- Mobilise and translate OECD and global expertise to support policy makers worldwide
- Mobilise knowledge from around the world to influence OECD thinking on development
The Board holds High Level Meetings (HLM) to discuss how to address major, global development challenges and review the Centre’s work. In between HLMs, the Board holds regular meetings of Paris-based Ambassadors.
Members participate actively in the Centre’s many specialised policy dialogue platforms, which frequently involve representatives from countries that are not members of the Centre and invite the participation of private actors, civil society organisations, UN bodies and other multilateral development organisations. These complement the Centre’s engagement with policy makers from Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Members Countries of the Centre's Governing board
The Governing Board of the Development Centre is an OECD body, chaired by an Ambassador from an OECD country and reporting to the OECD Council. It comprises 54 countries from across continents and levels of development, beyond OECD members. The European Union also takes part in the work. The Board is currently chaired by Ambassador Amélie de Montchalin, Ambassador of France to the OECD.
Member countries
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