Global upswing should be used to implement structural reforms to boost incomes and well-being – for the longer term and for all
Governments must implement comprehensive structural reform programmes to sustain stronger, greener and more inclusive growth that will extend beyond the current cyclical upswing, according to the OECD’s annual Going for Growth report.
Going for Growth 2018 assesses what the country-specific reform priorities are and how policy measures can be packaged together to boost long-term growth, improve competitiveness and productivity, create jobs and ensure a more inclusive and sustainable economy.
This year’s edition reveals that governments continue prioritising employment and social protection reforms, which are important for achieving greater inclusiveness and a more balanced distribution of income, and that these actions have delivered results. Employment rates of youth and low-skilled workers have continued to improve. However, the share of youth neither in employment nor at school or training remains high in some countries, and more needs to be done to improve the gender balance in employment and wages.
The report points to a further slowdown in 2017 from the already modest pace of reform observed in the previous two years, and finds little sign of any imminent pick-up.
“With the major economies of the world all enjoying a widespread upswing, a window of opportunity has opened for ending the long period of stagnating living standards faced by a large share of the population in too many of our countries,” OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría said. “But coherent structural reform strategies -- and the political will to deploy them -- will be needed for the global upswing to be sustained and deliver a durable improvement in productivity and living standards. These reforms are difficult, but the return of strong growth means that there is a much better chance that they bear fruit more rapidly.”
Going for Growth 2018 suggests governments should concentrate reform efforts around policy packages designed to unlock skills development and innovation capacity, promote business dynamism and the diffusion of knowledge, and preserve social cohesion while helping workers make the most of a dynamic labour market.
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