OECD Development Centre

• 1. Introduction

  ›

  The OECD Development Centre was established in 1961 with an unusual premise: that wealthy industrialised nations and developing economies could sit at the same table, on equal footing, and actually talk to each other. That idea, simple as it sounds, was not how international institutions typically worked. Most operated through hierarchies of donors and recipients, creditors and debtors. This Centre proposed something different. It asked whether knowledge itself could be a form of diplomacy. What countries signed on? How did the membership grow over the decades? And what exactly do 54 nations do when they gather to share policy lessons? Those are the questions this documentary sets out to answer.

• 2. A Growing Membership

  ›

  Brazil joined in March 1994, making it one of the earliest non-OECD countries to become a full member of the Development Centre. India followed in February 2001, and Romania in October 2004. The pace quickened through the late 2000s: Thailand joined in March 2005, South Africa in May 2006, and Egypt and Viet Nam together in March 2008. Indonesia arrived in February 2009, and the same year brought Mauritius, Morocco, and Peru in March, followed by the Dominican Republic in November. By the 2010s the membership spread across West Africa, Central Asia, and South America. Albania, one of the most recent additions, joined in June 2023. Today the Centre comprises 54 countries in total. Of those, 25 are OECD members, spanning Europe, East Asia, and the Americas. The remaining 29 are non-OECD countries. Notably, nine OECD members do not participate, including Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The European Union also takes part in the work of the Governing Board.

• 3. The Forum for Dialogue

  ›

  The Global Forum on Development brought together high-level policy makers and civil society representatives to exchange views on poverty reduction and social cohesion. Between 2013 and 2015, its organising theme was preparing for the post-2015 world, a reference to what would come after the Millennium Development Goals era. Alongside the global forum, the Centre runs regional international economic forums covering Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, with an additional forum for Asia planned. These events draw governments, international organisations, civil society groups, foundations, think tanks, the media, corporations, and academics into the same room. The Centre also anchors two specific policy networks as part of the OECD Strategy for Development: one focused on natural-resource driven development and one on global value chains. Both are structured as multi-year processes, pairing OECD countries with partner countries facing comparable development challenges.

• 4. Stakeholder Networks

  ›

  EmNet, the Emerging Markets Network, connects multinationals engaged in developing economies and feeds their experience into the Centre's policy work. A separate network, netFWD, links foundations working on development across member and partner countries. A third network, DevCom, gathers heads of communication and information from development agencies in DAC countries. Its purpose is practical: sharing good practices on how to raise public awareness and communicate about development cooperation. Each of these networks produces analysis and shares experience on policy reform. Some also open their sessions to members of the Governing Board, allowing the Centre's senior decision-makers to hear directly from practitioners.

• 5. Country Reviews and Analysis

  ›

  Multi-dimensional Country Reviews, known as MDCRs, are among the Centre's core analytical tools. Each review gives national policy makers and their partners the inputs needed to build a development strategy that is nationally owned and implemented. The process maps concrete steps to address key constraints across all dimensions of a country's development, covering social, economic, and institutional factors. The goal is growth that is inclusive, sustainable, and equitable, aimed at improving the well-being of all citizens. Beyond the country-level work, the Centre publishes an annual thematic flagship report called OECD Perspectives on Global Development. It also co-produces regional economic outlooks with international partners in each region: African Development Dynamics, the Latin American Economic Outlook, and the Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India. Thematic studies cover social cohesion, gender, migration, youth inclusion, competitiveness, taxation, middle classes, innovation, and capital markets.

• 6. Data and Measurement

  ›

  Revenue Statistics publications extend the Centre's reach into Africa, Latin America, and Asia, tracking how governments collect taxes across different income levels and regional contexts. The OECD Social Institutions and Gender Index, known as SIGI, measures the social norms, laws, and practices that discriminate against women, giving researchers and policy makers a comparative tool across countries. A third statistical initiative, developed in partnership with ASEAN, is the Narrowing Development Gap Indicators, known as NDGIs. These indicators track progress among ASEAN member states in closing the gaps in economic and social development within the region. Taken together, these three data products reflect the Centre's intent to move beyond qualitative dialogue and ground its policy work in measurable evidence.