Publications & Documents

Rising uncertainties and geo-political tensions, together with increasingly complex trade relations have increased the demand for monitoring global trade in a timely manner. Although it was primarily designed to ensure vessel safety, information from the Automatic Information System, which allows for the tracking of vessels across the globe, is particularly well suited for providing insights on port activity and maritime trade developments, which accounts for a large share of global trade. Data are available in quasi real time but need to be pre-processed and validated. This paper contributes to existing research in this field in two major ways. First, it proposes a new methodology to identify ports, at a higher level of granularity than in past research. Second, it builds indicators to monitor port congestion and trends in maritime trade flows and provides more granular information to better understand those flows. Those indicators will still need to be refined, by complementing the AIS database with additional data sources, but already provide a useful source of information to monitor trade, at the country and global levels.

This roadmap aims to assist the Albanian government in establishing robust policy foundations for a successful circular economy transition. As an EU candidate country, Albania has committed to align with European climate objectives by endorsing the Sofia Declaration on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, with the circular economy transition being its key component. Recognising the prominent role of this transition in both national and regional development and proactively addressing the challenges posed by increasing climate change vulnerabilities, reliance on imported raw materials and increased waste, Albania is now poised for a strategic framework followed by concrete actions to embark on this transformative journey. Informed by a comprehensive diagnostic of Albania’s circular economy landscape, the roadmap strategically integrates existing policy initiatives, fostering synergies across sectors, measures and actors involved in this transformation. Highlighting three key areas where circular economy policies can have a significant impact in Albania – economic instruments, circular business models for SMEs and targeted solutions for plastics, with a focus on marine litter – the roadmap unveils 35 policy recommendations. These recommendations, supported by a monitoring framework, should serve as a cornerstone for propelling Albania towards a more sustainable and circular future.

This roadmap is designed to aid North Macedonia’s government in establishing a solid policy foundation for a successful transition to a circular economy. As an EU candidate country, North Macedonia has pledged to align with European climate objectives, endorsing the Sofia Declaration on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, with a particular focus on the circular economy transition. Acknowledging the pivotal role of this transition in national and regional development and actively addressing challenges posed by climate change, reliance on imported raw materials and increased waste, North Macedonia is ready for a strategic framework and concrete actions to initiate this transformative process. Derived from a comprehensive diagnostic of North Macedonia’s circular economy landscape, the roadmap strategically integrates existing policy initiatives, fostering synergies across sectors, measures and involved actors. It emphasises five key areas – circular business models for SMEs, construction, biomass and food, textile industry and mining and metallurgy – revealing over 40 policy recommendations. These recommendations, supported by a monitoring framework, are poised to be a cornerstone for propelling North Macedonia towards a more sustainable and circular future.

Since 2020, a series of shocks to the global economy has had significant impacts on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurs and their access to finance. Most recently, significant inflationary pressures have led to tighter lending conditions, limiting the flow of finance to SMEs and acting as a barrier to investment. Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2024: An OECD Scoreboard monitors SME and entrepreneurship financing trends, conditions and policy developments in close to 50 countries. It documents a strong increase in the cost of SME financing in 2022, alongside a significant decline in SME lending. Equity finance also fell sharply in 2022, after a year of historically high growth in 2021. Women-led and minority-owned businesses, which typically find it more difficult to access venture capital financing, were affected disproportionately. Against this backdrop, the Scoreboard highlights the recent measures governments have taken to support SME access to finance, including finance for the green transition. A continued focus on diversifying financial sources and instruments will be important to meet the different needs of all types of SMEs and entrepreneurs, and enable them to act as an engine of resilient, sustainable and inclusive growth.

Romania’s economy withstood significant adverse shocks in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing energy crisis. Tackling high inflation is the immediate task for macroeconomic policy. Fiscal consolidation would complement restrictive monetary policy in keeping demand at sustainable levels. Greater tax revenues are needed to stabilise the public debt burden while funding priority spending – including on critical infrastructure, pensions, health care and the education system. Productivity growth is a powerful engine for lifting living standards but sustaining it will require a sound investment climate backed by strong competition, predictable policymaking, financial inclusion and effective controls against corruption. Romania’s Recovery and Resilience Plan is helping drive reform. More policy focus is needed on addressing disparate socio-economic outcomes within Romania and to lift employment among groups underrepresented in formal work, including women. Faster progress is also required to decarbonise the economy by 2050. Romania needs more renewable power and big energy savings to reduce fossil fuel use. Energy-efficient buildings, better transport systems and consistent price signals for abatement are also needed. Efficient and fair policies can limit costs from the net-zero transition, shield affected communities from hardship, and prepare people for changing climates. SPECIAL FEATURE : DECARBONISING ROMANIA'S ECONOMY

Chile has made important strides on its environmental agenda in recent years with the passage of the Framework Law on Climate Change, the establishment of the Biodiversity and Protected Areas Service and the ratification of the Escazú Agreement. However, the country has made limited progress in decoupling environmental pressures from economic growth. Greenhouse gas emissions have continued to rise and the country is not on track to reach its legally binding target of net zero by 2050. Chile is well-positioned to achieve its targets for biodiversity, while air pollution remains a serious public health challenge and waste management relies heavily on landfilling. Chile is facing a severe and deepening water crisis that requires concerted action to improve water allocation and water quality, and to strengthen water governance. The review provides 36 recommendations to help Chile improve its environmental performance, with a special focus on water management and policies. This is the third Environmental Performance Review of Chile. It provides an independent, evidence-based evaluation of the country’s environmental performance since the previous review in 2016.