Minister Väyrynen to OECD Ministerial Council Meeting
Press release 155/2011
24 May 2011
Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen will chair the Finnish delegation in the annual Ministerial Council Meeting of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris on 25-26 May 2011. At the same time, the meeting marks the 50th anniversary of OECD co-operation, for which reason almost 20 heads of state and government will participate in the programme commemorating the anniversary on 25 May.
The general theme of the anniversary meeting is “Better policies for better lives". The economic topic of the OECD Forum is the presentation of the OECD’s Economic Outlook in commemoration of the anniversary year. As regards trade policy, the delegates will discuss the effects of the liberation of world markets on creating jobs.
The Green Growth strategy will be adopted as one of the main themes of this year’s meeting. As the second main theme, the meeting will address the new paradigms for development and make assessments of OECD contribution to global development policy. It will also adopt guidelines for the development strategy to the drafted for the organisation.
The third topic of discussion is the future of the organisation. In the anniversary session, the organisation vision statement, prepared under the leadership of the chair country of the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting, will be presented. The Secretary-General will outline his view for organisation's strategic orientations for the next few years. In addition, the organisation’s internal administration session will address the issue of deepening the enhanced engagement with emerging economies, and consider the fulfilment of the terms and conditions for Russia’s accession to the OECD.
Finland is an active participant in the OECD work in all policy sectors, and utilises the comparative data provided by the expanding organisation in a variety of ways. It also takes advantage of the recommendations given when preparing national administrative, regulatory and political reforms.
In addition to the 34 OECD member states, the meeting will be attended by the accession candidate Russia, and the five countries involved in enhanced engagement, China, India, Indonesia, South Africa, and Brazil.
Additional information: Counsellor Vesa Hölttä, Unit for the EU's Trade Policy and Economic Relations, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 40 527 4903, and Press Attaché to the Minister Katri Kulmuni, tel. +358 400 739 824.