Lithuania’s population is ageing rapidly. The share of the population aged 65 years and over is expected to grow from 20% in 2019 to 32% in 2050 – faster than the EU average. A growing share of people who need help with their daily activities – so called long-term care. The governance of long-term care is fragmented between the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Social Security and Labour and the municipalities.

Lithuania is experiencing rapid demographic change, with the population ageing and significantly shrinking in recent decades. This trend has put pressure on the provision of public services, especially at the municipal level, and is expected to continue in the coming years. Ongoing efforts are made by Lithuania to improve the delivery of municipal services with the aim to mitigate territorial disparities and foster social inclusion. In this perspective, shared public service provision is viewed as a way to enhance the accessibility, affordability and quality of essential public services. This report provides recommendations and an action plan to address challenges inherent to the legal, fiscal and institutional frameworks for shared municipal service provision in Lithuania, while taking stock of these different challenges. The report also provides two roadmaps for piloting primary healthcare and long-term care services in Tauragė+ functional zone (Jurbarkas, Pagėgiai, Šilalė, Tauragė municipalities) through shared municipal service provision. The report draws lessons from peer country experiences, and in particular Finland, where inter-municipal cooperation has been used successfully for decades.

Lithuania is one of the fastest-ageing countries in Europe. Its working-age population is not only ageing, but also expected to decline significantly, giving rise to considerable economic, labour market, social and public governance challenges. The inclusion of older persons has improved in many areas in the past two decades. Yet, many Lithuanians aged 55 and over continue to lag in fully engaging in society relative to younger people and their peers in neighbouring countries.

Many OECD governments regularly identify violence against women as the top gender equality issue their country faces. Yet in all countries, addressing this multifaceted issue presents serious governance and implementation challenges as victims/survivors have complex needs both during and after experiences of violence.

This report promotes a comprehensive approach to breaking the cycle of gender-based violence by combining insights from recent OECD work with robust evidence from surveys and questionnaires conducted in OECD Member countries.

Estonian living standards have doubled since 2000 and income convergence was steady prior to the pandemic, although per capita GDP and productivity remain below the OECD averages. The economy experienced a severe downturn due to disruptions in trade, weaker export demand, high inflation and tight monetary conditions. With improvements in external demand, growth should start to recover this year.

The COVID-19 pandemic had massive consequences for societies and health systems across the OECD and beyond. Health systems were not resilient enough. Resilient health systems plan and are ready for shocks, such as pandemics, economic crises or the effects of climate change.