Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), international organization that came into being in 1961. It superseded the Organization for European Economic Cooperation, which had been founded in 1948 to coordinate the Marshall Plan for European economic recovery following World War II. The organization has 29 full members: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United States. Member countries are pledged to work together to promote their economies, to extend aid to underdeveloped nations, and to contribute to the expansion of world trade. Agencies operating under the OECD include the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation, the Development Centre, and the European Nuclear Energy Agency. The headquarters are in Paris.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) International consultative body set up in 1961 by the major Western trading nations. Its aims are to stimulate economic growth and world trade by raising the standard of living in member countries and by coordinating aid to less developed countries. Its headquarters are in Paris, and it has 26 member nations including all the world's major powers.

http://www.oecd.org

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) An organization of industrialized countries, established in 1961, and based in Paris, which seeks to promote coordination of economic and social policies among members, to make resources of capital and training available to developing countries, to contribute to the expansion of world trade, and to foster cooperation in fields such as education, energy, and transport. It was created as a replacement for the Organization for European Economic Cooperation, which had been formed in 1948 by those countries receiving aid under the MARSHALL PLAN. In 1998 its members were Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Republic of Ireland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the UK, and the USA. Applications for membership from Slovakia and Russia are under consideration. The OECD prepares an influential annual report on the economy of each member country.