Monitoring Progress towards a Resource-Efficient and Circular Economy

Reader’s guide

This report was prepared by the OECD Secretariat with the support of the informal OECD Expert Group on a new generation of information for a resource efficient and circular economy (RECE-XG) established by the Working Parties on Environmental Information (WPEI) and on Resource Productivity and Waste (WPRW) and in close co-operation with the UNECE Task Force on measuring circular economy (UNECE‑TF). It draws on and leverages OECD experience in the development and use of indicators in policy analysis and evaluation and takes into account relevant activities of countries and other international organisations and their expert groups (including EEA, Eurostat, ISO, UNCEEA, UNEP) as available in October 2023.

The OECD Expert Group on a new generation of information for a resource efficient and circular economy (RECE-XG) was set-up as a joint effort of the WPEI and the WPRPW, following on work in 2019-20 on a new generation of information on waste and materials management. It convened on an ad hoc basis between 2021 and 2023, with the purpose to assist the OECD Secretariat in developing better information and practical guidance to support policies for a transition to a resource efficient and circular economy, whilst exploiting synergies with national and international efforts.

The work of the RECE-XG was closely coordinated with the work of the UNECE Task Force on Measuring the Circular Economy (UNECE-TF) that proceeded in parallel. The OECD has been leading the work on the policy background, the conceptual monitoring framework and related indicators with inputs by the UNECE-TF. The UNECE has been leading the work on the statistical framework, definitions and classifications, and the links to the SEEA with inputs from the OECD.

Members of the RECE-XG included delegates from the WPEI and the WPRPW, as well as representatives from international organisations and NGOs. Members of the UNECE-TF include country experts and representatives from international organisations (EEA, Eurostat, FAO, IMF, UNECE, UNEP, UNITAR, UNSD, OECD) and NGOs (PACE, WRI).

The content of this report, including a definition for a circular economy, the conceptual monitoring framework, the criteria for selecting indicators and validating their choice, and the proposed list of indicators have been elaborated by consensus during individual and joint meetings of these groups.

Purpose and audience

This report presents a harmonised conceptual framework and indicators for monitoring progress and supporting the implementation of policies that foster a transition towards a more resource efficient and circular economy. Its main purpose is to provide a source of inspiration for countries seeking to build a coherent framework to assess progress towards a circular economy and to support OECD and, where appropriate, other international work on a circular economy.

The main audiences are ministries, government agencies and statistical offices involved in the preparation and evaluation of policies that encourage a resource-efficient and circular economy, in the measurement of progress towards a CE and in the development and communication of related indicators.

This report is not a statistical compilation guide and does not create any requirements for implementation in countries. It rather provides general guidance for a harmonised monitoring through indicators and advocates the development of a coordinated measurement and indicator research agenda and a phased measurement approach to allow for countries with different capacities to engage in the production of CE data and indicators.

The monitoring framework and indicators presented in this report are a first step towards better information on the transition to a resource efficient and circular economy. The list of indicators will be regularly reviewed and refined as better data become available and the implementation and monitoring of circular economy policies in countries progress. The framework and its indicator set are supported with a statistical framework, consistent with the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) where possible, to help structure and combine underlying statistics, to link CE terms and definitions to the terms and definitions used in official statistics, and to ensure coherence among data sets (UNECE, 2024[1]).

Content and structure

The report is structured as follows1:

• Chapter 1 introduces the need for a comprehensive and coherent circular economy monitoring framework, in the context of the evolving policy landscape.

• Chapter 2 describes the scope and mechanisms of a circular economy and provides a definition for use in international work.

• Chapter 3 describes the scope and structure of the conceptual monitoring framework.

• Chapter 4 lists the indicator set for use in OECD work, along a 3-tier structure of core, complementary and contextual indicators.

• Chapter 5 dwells upon major measurement gaps for the different dimensions of the framework and initiates a reflection on novel data sources and innovative measurement approaches that could be drawn upon to fill these gaps.

• Chapter 6 concludes with priority areas suggested for further work and practical guidance that could become part of a coordinated measurement and indicator research agenda.

• Annex A presents a detailed list of the proposed indicator set.

• Annex B presents examples of national and international frameworks for monitoring progress towards a resource efficiency and a circular economy.

• Annex C gives an overview of the key principles of OECD work on indicators.

Note

← 1.  Chapters 1 to 4 served as a basis for the joint UNECE/OECD guidelines on measuring circular economy whose first part (Part A). It was endorsed by the Conference of European Statisticians (CES) in June 2023 subject to comments received and published on 23 February 2024. More detailed practical guidance on the statistical measurement of a circular economy is being prepared with the support of the UNECE-TF.