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Minister Kohout attended a meeting of the OECD Council at ministerial level in Paris

 

"From Recovery to Sustained Growth“ was a main issue of a regular Ministerial Council Meeting of OECD countries. The meeting was held in the main seat of OECD in Paris on May 27-28, 2010.

OECD commemorates its 50th anniversary this and next year. The delegation of the Czech Republic at the meeting was led by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic Jan Kohout. Minister Kohout maintained importance of the OECD in solving of economic and financial crisis and ensuring of future sustained growth in his speech.

The meeting was attended by new member states Chile, Estonia, Israel and Slovenia and Russia as a candidate state. Representatives of Brasilia, China, India, Indonesia and the Republic of South Africa as Enhanced Engagement countries and representatives of the most important international economic organizations (International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organization, International Labour Organization) took part at the talks too. The meeting was presided by Prime Minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi.

Participants of the meeting agreed on a joint statement regarding OECD main recommendations concerning solving of a current economic crisis and ensuring of long-term sustained growth. The statement follows the regular spring Economic Outlook predicting economic progress of the OECD member and candidate states and other selected countries (China, India, Indonesia, Brasilia and South Africa) till 2011, with an outlook on possible scenarios till 2025. The Economic Outlook was introduced by OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría at the OECD Forum 2010 on May 26.

The agreed statement emphasizes a need of fiscal consolidation, restructuralization of public expenditures and adoption of tax reforms. The statement recommends not only to recover from current economic crisis but to promote structural reforms aiming on solving of problems of population ageing, rising of healthcare expenditures and bulding of potential to resist future economic and political shocks. Innovation Strategy specifies Green Growth Strategy and limitation of protectionism in world trade and investment.

„Declaration on Propriety, Integrity and Transparency in the Conduct of International Business and Finance“ produced by presiding Italy was agreed at the meeting. The declaration recognizes long-term work in areas mentioned in the title of the declaration and minds OECD instruments for their promoting. Body of the declaration specifies measures for implementation of above mentioned principles. The measures include effective competition, consistency of companies´ remuneration and incentives with long-term goals and risk policy, transparency of corporate disclosure policies of enterprises, prevention of bribery, effective punishment of money laundering, transparency of interaction between governments and business, clearly identified policy of business and market regulatory frameworks, consumer protection as a part of financial regulation. The declaration ends with recommendations to governments, to support the principles of the declaration. An importance of the principles for stability of market and world economy was revealed by a current economic crisis. Their general observance is important for economic recovery.

Minister Jan Kohout met Foreign Minister of Chile Alfred Moreno Charme at the meeting. Both ministers discussed bilateral cooperation in development, business, investment, fiscal and military issues.

In OECD Forum 2010 speeches were held by Deputy Minister of Business and Trade of the Czech Republic Martin Tlapa (panel „Financing future growth“) and Deputy Minister of Environment of the Czech Republic Miroslav Hájek (panel „Green jobs: myth or reality?“).

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