Corporate Member Spotlight: OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities

The OECD’s Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities (CFE) helps national, regional and local governments unleash the potential of entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), promote inclusive and sustainable growth in regions and cities, boost local job creation and implement sound tourism policies. Our work helps shape public policies to support growth, resilience and structural progress towards the green and digital transitions.

The CFE uses a multi-disciplinary approach that combines economics and data science methods to generate new insights for policy makers. Our publications, working papers and internationally comparable statistics provide timely, relevant and actionable analysis for the national and subnational governments of OECD Member and Partner countries.

With the rise of big data, we increasingly draw on detailed geospatial and micro-data to inform policy. For example, we use satellite data to develop environmental indicators of land use and tree cover in different places, labour survey micro-data to measure geographic mobility and personal income, and transaction-level data to quantify firms’ patterns of inter-regional trade. We also host the Geospatial Lab, a forum for researchers and policy makers to discuss best practices in obtaining and using granular geographic data.

The CFE relies on a diverse team of talented staff, including economists, statisticians and policy analysts, to provide data-driven analysis. Our work is governed by its committees, working parties, and expert groups composed of senior civil servants from OECD countries. We benefit from a network of stakeholders including academics, international organisations, businesses, social enterprises and practitioners. We focus on policy recommendations that cater to people and firms in many different places, drawing on our global databases and information about best practices around the world.

CFE is a corporate member of the Regional Study Association and an enthusiastic participant in its annual conference. We are always open to new partnerships and ideas. More information about the OECD’s CFE and the Geospatial Lab can be found on its homepage, blog (COGITO), LinkedIn and Twitter.