More than 75% of the events with non-member countries planned for 2001 specifically deal with these core Committee issues.


Assisting countries in their transition to a market economy
The Global Forum is only one pillar of the Committee's activities with non-member countries. The other pillar is represented by the regional and country programmes. Direct transformation of the tax system in transition economies requires continued bilateral and multilateral support. This support enables the countries to design and operate tax systems that will yield sufficient revenues and correspond to international standards, while being fair and equitable. Major tax reform still needs to be implemented in almost all transition economies throughout the world. Co-operation with these economies is a significant element of the OECD non-member country programme. It takes the form of a policy dialogue, both in multilateral tax centres and in-country assistance, through regional programmes to initiate and improve the efficiency of tax systems, and through multilateral workshops on specific issues of the tax reform.


Preparing countries for Observership and possible Accession
Compliance with OECD standards and best practices in the fiscal area is an important criterion when assessing a country's request for accession. The non-member country programme played a significant role in facilitating the accession of Hungary, Mexico, Poland, the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic and Korea. Meetings with tax policy experts from these countries assisted with the drafting of appropriate legislation, and OECD seminars helped to ensure the correct application of international taxation rules, especially in the area of tax treaties and transfer pricing. Currently the Russian Federation and Argentina have observership status in the Committee.


Focussing assistance efforts of Member countries
The non-member country programme complements the design and implementation of bilateral tax assistance programmes of OECD member countries. It helps member countries to identify assistance priorities and analyse specific needs through discussions with Ministries of Finance and tax administrations in participating countries. The OECD programme provides a cost-efficient framework for bilateral assistance and feedback from OECD seminars and workshops helps avoid any overlap in bilateral assistance programmes.