Nepedia
Back to Discover
Fluent Reader
📖

OECD

society Maturity 9-11 Next article →

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development is a group of 38 countries.

Château de la Muette, Paris 20 March 2019 004
Château de la Muette, Paris 20 March 2019 004

It is an intergovernmental organisation. This means governments work together through it. The group helps countries grow their money and trade.

Entrance to the OECD Conference Centre April 2014
Entrance to the OECD Conference Centre April 2014

Members use the group to share ideas. They compare how they run their countries. They look for answers to common problems. This helps them find good ways to work. The group also helps coordinate rules for many nations.

Reports for sale at the OECD bookshop April 2019
Reports for sale at the OECD bookshop April 2019

Many members are developed and high-income nations.

OECD members applicants map
OECD members applicants map

They have a very high Human Development Index. This index measures how well people live. The 38 members have 1.38 billion people. Their average life expectancy is 80 years. The median age in these countries is 40. This is higher than the global average of 30. These countries also make up a large part of global wealth. They represent 62.2% of the global nominal GDP.

Payroll and income tax by country
Payroll and income tax by country

Their social welfare spending is about 21% of GDP.

The group has a long history in Europe.

Robert Marjolin (1964)
Robert Marjolin (1964)

It started as the OEEC in April 1948. This older group helped rebuild Europe after World War II. It used American aid called the Marshall Plan. The OEEC was based at the Château de la Muette. Leaders like Robert Marjolin and René Sergent helped lead it. By 1960, leaders wanted a more global mission. They held meetings at the Hotel Majestic in Paris.

They wanted to help less developed countries too.

The OECD officially began in September 1961.

Mathias Cormann APEC 2018
Mathias Cormann APEC 2018

It grew from the OEEC. The founding members included many European nations. These were Austria, Belgium, Canada, and Denmark. France, West Germany, Greece, and Iceland also joined. Other founders were Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland were there too. Turkey and the United Kingdom were also founders. The United States was a founding member.

Angel Gurria - World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2012 (cropped)
Angel Gurria - World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2012 (cropped)

Japan joined later in 1964.

Today, the OECD helps set important global rules.

One big job is managing international taxes. In July 2021, many nations agreed to a new plan. This is called a global minimum corporate tax. It sets a tax rate of at least 15%. This stops companies from moving to places with tiny taxes. This plan helps governments collect more money. They hope to get $100 billion to $240 billion each year. The OECD also acts as an observer for the United Nations. This keeps the group connected to the whole world.

398 words

Where will your curiosity go next?

Keep exploring at your chosen reading level.

🖼️ Images & Media (22)
File:OECD members applicants map.svg
OECD members applicants map.svg
File:Payroll and income tax by country.png
Payroll and income tax by country.png
File:Reports for sale at the OECD bookshop April 2019.jpg
Reports for sale at the OECD bookshop...
File:Entrance to the OECD Conference Centre April 2014.jpg
Entrance to the OECD Conference Centre...
File:Château de la Muette, Paris 20 March 2019 004.jpg
Château de la Muette, Paris 20 March 2019 004.jpg
File:Robert Marjolin (1964).jpg
Robert Marjolin (1964).jpg
File:no image.png
no image.png
File:Thorkil Kristensen (Kristensen cropped).jpg
Thorkil Kristensen (Kristensen cropped).jpg
File:Emiel van Lennep (1979).jpg
Emiel van Lennep (1979).jpg
File:Jean-Claude Paye.jpg
Jean-Claude Paye.jpg
File:DonaldJohnston.jpg
DonaldJohnston.jpg
File:Angel Gurria - World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2012 (cropped).jpg
Angel Gurria - World Economic Forum...

+ 10 more

More to explore

What is Nepedia?

A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.