OECD Factbook 2006 [antikvár]

wmm 11 I ¦ f MK ¦I FOREWORD Countries that belong to the OECD have several features in common: they are among the richest countries in the world; their economies are market-oriented; and their citizens enjoy relatively good living conditions. At the same time, individual governments of OECD countries pursue different economic, social and environmental policies. Because of these similarities and differences, it is highly instructive to compare the long-term trends of economic, social and environmental phenomena in OECD countries. Indeed, given the growing dissatisfaction with the use of Gross domestic product (GDP) as a comprehensive indicator for measuring progress in our societies, there is demand for much greater information to help the reader compare the performance of all our countries in a range of key areas. That is exactly what the OECD Factboofe aims to provide. The OECD Factboofe is the most comprehensive horizontal statistical publication published by the Organisation. It draws on the full range of data available within the Organisation, including data from two agencies affiliated to the OECD - the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the European Conference of Ministries of Transport (ECMT). The main aims of the OECD Factboofe are to: • provide a wide range of users with a one-stop resource containing comparative, country-based, economic, social and environmental data; • help users to assess the position and the performance of a single country, looking at a wide range of domains; • enhance the visibility of the OECD including among non-experts, both in OECD countries and non-OECD economies; • highlight measurement issues and underline areas where the comparability of statistics across countries is still weak. The OECD Factboofe 2006 has been enhanced since the inaugural edition last year: we have added more tables, expanded and re-organised some of the chapters (for example, Quality of life). And tables concerning cultural and leisure activities have been added, thanks to the support of the Louise T. Blouin Foundation. Another key enhancement in this year's Factbook is the inclusion of some indicators for key non-OECD countries (Brazil, China, India, Russian Federation and South Africa). Given the growing importance of these countries in the global economy, we aim to build on this in future editions of the Factbook, and increasingly include indicators for these major players.