This is the first Environmental Performance Review of Latvia. It evaluates progress towards sustainable development and green growth, with special features on waste and circular economy, and biodiversity conservation and sustainable use.

Latvia has come a long way in improving its environmental performance and the well-being of the population. Large amounts of investment have helped increase the use of renewables, improve energy efficiency of homes, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and extend access to water and waste services. However, convergence with more advanced OECD economies is far from being accomplished. Forestry and agriculture play a key economic role, but exert increasing pressures on biodiversity. Mainstreaming biodiversity considerations into economic development policies should be a priority. Accelerating the transition towards a low-carbon and circular economy will require major investment in sustainable infrastructure, more waste prevention and recycling and stronger economic instruments. This is the first Environmental Performance Review of Latvia. It evaluates progress towards sustainable development and green growth, with special features on waste and circular economy, and biodiversity conservation and sustainable use.

Lithuania’s rapid economic growth has increased many environmental pressures. This is the first OECD Environmental Performance Review of Lithuania. It evaluates progress towards green growth and sustainable development, with a special chapter focusing on sustainable mobility.

Going Digital in Latvia analyses recent developments in Latvia’s digital economy, reviews policies related to digitalisation and make recommendations to increase policy coherence in this area, based on the OECD Going Digital Integrated Policy Framework.

Belgium has made progress in decoupling several environmental pressures from economic growth, in improving wastewater treatment and in expanding protected areas. Regions have achieved high levels of recovery and recycling, and have pioneered circular economy policies. However, further efforts are needed to progress towards carbon neutrality, reduce air and water pollution, reverse biodiversity loss and consolidate results of circular economy initiatives.

This report provides a cross-country review of waste, materials management and circular economy policies in selected OECD countries, drawing on OECD’s Environmental Performance Reviews during the period 2010-17. It presents the main achievements in the countries reviewed, along with common ...

Turkey is the fastest growing OECD economy with rapidly increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Since 2008, its economic growth has been relatively decoupled from air emissions, energy use, waste generation and water consumption. However, the high resource intensity of Turkey’s economy and its ...

Latvia enjoys strong economic growth and the catch up with living standards in higher income OECD countries continues. Much remains to be done, though, to close the remaining gap and improve equal access to social protection and economic opportunities. Latvia faces one of the fastest declines in its working age population among OECD countries due to ageing and migration. Strong productivity growth is needed to counter this demographic challenge and improve living standards faster.

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has led to higher energy prices and disruptions in trade and supply chains, weighing on economic growth. Economic convergence had already slowed down before the pandemic, calling for accelerating structural reforms. Rising spending pressures related to defence, internal security, health and old age poverty need to be addressed by raising spending efficiency and tax revenue, while the tax burden should be shifted from labour towards other income, property, and environmental taxes. Continuing to improve the capacity of the public sector, fostering investment and innovation and addressing skilled labour shortages are key for raising potential growth. Low credit supply is a main factor for weak investment and should be tackled by fostering competition and deepening capital markets. High informality, which hinders access to finance and distorts the level playing field, should be addressed by reducing labour taxes for low-wage earners, improving tax enforcement and continuing to fight corruption. Strengthening the power of the Competition Council to enforce competitive neutrality of state-owned enterprises and challenge regulation that restricts competition would help to foster business dynamism and innovation. Addressing skilled labour shortages will require facilitating skilled migration and investing more in human capital. SPECIAL FEATURE: RAISING INVESTMENT TO SUPPORT GROWTH

This is the third Environmental Performance Review of Denmark. It evaluates progress towards sustainable development and green growth, with special features on waste, materials management and the circular economy and chemicals management.