Participants will have the opportunity to discuss their own country’s economy with an OECD economist working on their country, in informal breakout sessions.

The global economy has remained resilient this year, despite differences in the strength of activity across countries and sectors. Inflation has continued to moderate and headline inflation is now back to central bank targets in most economies. Labour market tightness has also eased, although unemployment rates generally remain at or near historical lows. However, risks are casting a shadow over what is otherwise a relatively benign central projection. Key risks pertain to the intensification of geopolitical tensions, inflation turning out more persistent than anticipated and a sharp repricing of risk in financial markets.

Progress towards net-zero emissions must go hand in hand with efforts to build the resilience of people, economies and ecosystems to the mounting impacts of climate change. The OECD supports governments as they face the challenging task of taking action today to reduce vulnerability and exposure to future climate impacts whose exact occurrence and intensity are uncertain.

While the window for keeping the global temperature increase below 1.5°C is rapidly closing, achieving this goal remains possible and is essential. The OECD is working to identify and evaluate economically efficient and socially responsible pathways to achieve net-zero emissions at the global, national and regional level covering a broad range of economic sectors and working across all government departments.

In today’s fast-paced, information-rich societies, having the right skills is more important than ever. How can governments ensure that adults have relevant skills for the labour market and social life? This is where the OECD’s Survey of Adult Skills comes in. It assesses how well adults can read and understand text, work with numbers and solve complex problems – foundational skills necessary for the development of more advanced skills. Overall, the results highlight a sobering reality: despite substantial investments in education, upskilling and reskilling, and a rise in educational attainment, adult skill levels have largely stagnated—or in the case of literacy, often declined. In OECD countries, one in five adults who participated in the survey struggle with basic tasks like reading simple texts or solving basic arithmetic problems. But some countries were able to improve adult skills and other countries are good at put at skills to effective use and these show how we can prepare ourselves better for tomorrow’s world.

OECD countries are increasingly investing in better understanding the potential value of using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve public governance. The use of AI by the public sector can increase productivity, responsiveness of public services, and strengthen the accountability of governments. However, governments must also mitigate potential risks, building an enabling environment for trustworthy AI.

Findings of the OECD Programme on AI in Work, Innovation, Productivity and Skills show that AI is having a transformational impact on our labour markets. As shown in the OECD’s 2023 Employment Outlook, there is little evidence so far that AI is leading to job losses. In many cases, AI is having a positive impact on some dimensions of job quality. But the potential for automation remains high, with occupations at highest risk of automation accounting for 27% of employment across OECD. AI is also reshaping the task composition of many jobs and the skills required to perform them. This session will present the latest evidence on the impact of AI in labour markets across the OECD and discuss policy measures that policy makers can consider for seizing the opportunities and addressing the risks of AI use in the labour market.

People in OECD countries are living longer and aging in better health than in the past. However, fertility rates in OECD countries have plummeted, and today they are nearly half of what they were in 1960. In the absence of countervailing policies, these demographic trends will lead to declining workforces, strain public finances and slow down economic growth. This session will examine the implications of population ageing for the labour market and the policies that countries need to be considered to help sustain living standards in OECD countries, including promoting the employment of older people in good health and women and making the most of migrant skills. The session will also discuss the drivers of fertility trends and the role of policies.

The IEA's flagship World Energy Outlook, published every year, is the most authoritative global source of energy analysis and projections. It identifies and explores the biggest trends in energy demand and supply, as well as what they mean for energy security, emissions and economic development. This year’s Outlook comes against a backdrop of escalating risks in the Middle East and heightened geopolitical tensions globally, and explores a range of energy security issues that decision makers face as they proceed with clean energy transitions. With rising investment of clean technologies and rapid growth in electricity demand, the WEO 2024 examines how far the world has come on its journey towards a safer and more sustainable energy system, and what more needs to be done to reach its climate goals. Reflecting today’s uncertainties, our three main scenarios are complemented with sensitivity cases for renewables, electric mobility, liquefied natural gas and how heatwaves, efficiency policies and the rise of artificial intelligence might affect the outlook for electricity.

Well-designed competition law, effective enforcement and competition-based economic policy promote consumer welfare and economic growth while making markets more flexible and innovative. The OECD actively encourages governments to promote competitive practices and foster market-oriented reform throughout the world.

This session is open only to MPs from OECD Accession countries. This session will brief the MPs on OECD accession processes and the role for parliaments. It will also provide an opportunity for peer-learning amongst legislators from both Accession countries and recent members of the OECD, where they will be able to exchange on experiences, lessons, and approaches.

Discussion on the main findings of the 2025 Global Outlook on Financing for Sustainable Development ahead of the United Nations 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, in the presence of the OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann.