Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Strategy for the Co-operation of the Republic of Slovenia with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)

10. 1. 2020

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

On 9 January 2020, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Strategy for the Co-operation of the Republic of Slovenia with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) until the end of 2022. The proposal of the Strategy is based on the experience gained during the first nine years of the Slovenia's membership in the OECD, current priorities of the Organization, and interests and the needs of the Republic of Slovenia arising from the national development priorities of the country. The purpose is to make better use of the benefits of Slovenia's membership of the OECD.

The document is covering the following themes:

a) Presentation of OECD priority areas and engagement of Republic of Slovenia with the OECD(redefining understanding of growth by putting people and their well-being at the center; OECD as a house for policy reform; responding to the challenges of digital transformation; inclusive growth and sustainable development; setting and pursuing OECD standards; deepening understanding of trade and investment);

b) Activities of Slovenia in the OECD: priority areas (economic topics, including the regular Economic Review of Slovenia, taxation, adaptation to demographic changes and digitalization of society and economy), current projects and possible future projects of the Republic of Slovenia with the OECD (in March 2020 the Economic Review of Slovenia will be published);

c) Conditions for successful functioning and promotion of interests of Republic of Slovenia in the OECD (inter-ministerial coordination; operation of the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Slovenia to the OECD; possibility of financing or co-financing OECD projects with EU funds);

d) The views of the Republic of Slovenia on the fundamental institutional issues of the Organization (OECD enlargement, OECD budget, OECD governance, and representation of Slovenian citizens in the OECD Secretariat).

The experience of almost ten years of membership confirms that active involvement in OECD discussions is extremely useful for preparing and promoting Slovenian positions in thematically related EU discussions (it is especially appropriate to link the priority areas of OECD activity with the preparations for the EU Council Presidency in the second half of 2021).

In certain areas of its extremely broad field of activity, the OECD is a leading player among international organizations on issues such as: taxing the digital economy, new approaches to economic challenges, inclusive growth, measuring ODA. In addition to other international organizations, the OECD also plays an important role in setting standards for credible and human-centered artificial intelligence. It is also a key platform for substantive support for the work of the G20 and G7, as well as for some of the key global initiatives such as the Paris Climate Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Slovenia, in cooperation with the OECD, is planning

- the organisation of the Skills Summit 2020 (Fall 2020);

- Public Sector Innovation Observatory Conference (Fall 2021);

- Review of the digital administration in the Republic of Slovenia (the project is already underway; the review is expected to be completed in November 2020);

- Artificial Intelligence (cooperation based on the signed Memorandum of Cooperation between the OECD and the Jozef Stefan Institute in the operation of the OECD Artificial Intelligence Observatory).