Since its creation in 2008, the OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme (ECP) has worked with countries in the Eastern Partner region and Central Asia to support the implementation of policies to enhance competitiveness, improve the business climate and strengthen the region’s integration into the world economy. Its activities include policy analysis and advice, capacity building and experience sharing among Eurasia and OECD countries. ECP work addresses such diverse policy domains as SME policy, investment policy, competition, public governance and digitalisation. This work is at the heart of the Programme’s activities, because without fundamental improvements in the overall business environment, Eurasia countries will struggle to improve trade and transport connectivity or to manage successful twin green and digital transformations.
OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme
Enhancing regional dialogue, competitiveness and improving the business climate.
About the Eurasia Competitiveness Programme
Our mission
The countries in the Eurasia Region share a number of common strengths, including highly educated workforces, strategic location and growing trade links to major global markets. To maximise on these strengths, countries are progressively opening up their economies to investment and trade opportunities and are making efforts to adapt good policy practices and align better with global standards. The OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme helps countries strengthen competitiveness, diversify output, employment and exports and increase resilience to shocks by creating a level-playing field for investors and entrepreneurs.
OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Roundtable
At the heart of this work is the OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Roundtable, a platform that offers participants an opportunity to exchange good practices, share knowledge and monitor progress on reform implementation. Participants include all Partner countries of the Eurasia region, OECD members, business associations, and international organisations active in the region. Since its launch in June 2013, the Roundtable:
- carries out peer reviews of competitiveness reform implementation at the Eurasia country-level;
- shares exchange good practices among Eurasia countries, OECD members and partner organisations;
- develops policy guidelines and recommendations; and
- monitor the progress of competitiveness reforms at the Eurasia country-level.
The peer review reports respond to specific competitiveness challenges facing the countries under review. The reports are discussed at the Roundtable and launched in the country to give visibility to the policy findings and recommendations.
OECD Eurasia Week
OECD Eurasia Week is the ECP’s regular ministerial-level meeting, bringing together top-level policymakers (prime ministers, deputy prime ministers, ministers), senior officials, experts and representatives of business, civil society and academia from OECD members, the countries actively participating in the ECP, and international development partners (EBRD, World Bank, and others). OECD Eurasia Week provides an opportunity to discuss the challenges facing Eurasia and OECD countries and to identify potential solutions and pathways for co-operation on such issues as digitalisation, entrepreneurship, skills, the green transition and connectivity.
Areas of work
Since 2017, the OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme has worked with the countries of the region and with institutional partners like the International Transport Forum and the International Trade Centre to help strengthen trade and transport connectivity. Increased regional economic and trade integration could pave the way for larger inward investment flows, better Global Value Chain integration and the diversification of exports, in terms of both products and markets. The urgency of these issues has risen along with growing interest worldwide in better trade routes connecting Asia to Europe.
Since 2019, the OECD Eurasia Competitiveness Programme (ECP) has been working with Eastern Partner countries and Central Asia to help them realise the potential benefits of the digital transformation while addressing the very real risks associated with it. The digitalisation of private firms, particularly small and medium enterprises, is a particular focus: in many countries, the digitalisation of the state and of large (often foreign-owned) firms has proceeded far faster than the digitalisation of local private businesses. While many Eurasia countries have given birth to thriving IT industries, firms in traditional sectors often lack awareness of the potential for digital solutions to help their businesses, as well as the skills and resources to deploy such solutions. Successful policies to promote private-sector digitalisation can help firms increase production, employment and exports, enhancing their economic resilience.
Developing and emerging countries are witnessing an unprecedented uptick in infrastructure investment due to economic growth and the Eurasia region’s strategic location along major trade routes. While infrastructure is essential for economic development, it also has a major role to play in addressing climate change. Given the long lifespans of infrastructure assets, investment decisions made today will have an impact on climate outcomes for decades to come.
For more than a quarter century, the OECD has worked with the Eurasia region, providing countries different forms of engagement as well as country-specific support.
Kazakhstan
Since 2008, Kazakhstan has emerged as one of the OECD’s most active partners in the Eurasia region. OECD analysis has played an increasingly important role in shaping policies in Kazakhstan, and the country also supports OECD work in the wider region, helping its neighbours draw closer to the Organisation and sharing its experience with OECD members and partners. Co-operation with Kazakhstan is framed by a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) first signed in 2018 and renewed in 2022, underpinned by an Action Plan for its implementation. Kazakhstan works with the OECD on such diverse issues as state-owned enterprise reform, competition, investment policy, sustainable infrastructure, tax, connectivity, statistics, anti-corruption, education, public governance and overseas development assistance (ODA). Kazakhstan is co-chair of the OECD Central Asia Initiative.
Republic of Moldova
On 13 December 2023, the OECD and the Republic of Moldova concluded a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at further strengthening the partnership between the OECD and Moldova. An Action Plan for its implementation was launched on 8 March 2024 by the OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann and Maia Sandu, President of the Republic of Moldova. The MoU is expected to reinforce Moldova’s participation in selected OECD bodies and to facilitate adherence to selected legal instruments. It will also help to better co-ordinate all activities carried out by the OECD to support Moldova’s reform efforts and give better visibility to the overall co-operation. The Action Plan focuses on priorities defined by the government, particularly in connection with its EU accession ambitions, and encompasses such issues as justice-sector reform, SME policy, education, competition and investment policy.
Ukraine
The OECD has worked with Ukraine since independence, and the relationship has grown steadily stronger since the 2014 “Revolution of Dignity”, when the OECD and Ukraine agreed a Memorandum of Understanding and an Action Plan to frame their co-operation. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the OECD has continued to deepen and strengthen its work with Ukraine, and in October 2022, the OECD Council recognised Ukraine as a prospective Member of the Organisation. The following year, the Organisation launched a multi-year, multi-disciplinary OECD Ukraine Country Programme to structure OECD support to the country and help advance its reform, recovery and reconstruction agenda, while also advancing its EU and OECD accession ambitions. The Programme involves a range of analytical work, capacity building, enhanced participation in OECD bodies and adherence to selected OECD instruments.
Related publications
Get in touch
For more information, please contact William Tompson, Head of the Eurasia Division, Direction des relations mondiales et de la coopération
William.Tompson@oecd.org