BOGOTA, May 25 (Xinhua) -- Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos celebrated on Friday that Colombia had been admitted as a new member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), stating this was due to the country promoting good business practices and stimulating investment.

"This is great news for our country. It (the OECD) is the most important organization to promote the best public policies in the world ... this is a very important step on the way to modernizing the country. We want to compare with the best to be able to be the best," he explained.

In a statement on Friday, OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria said that "we are very pleased to welcome Colombia as a member of the OECD. Accession to our Organisation was set as a priority by President Santos when he assumed office and we are glad that the process could be completed during his mandate."

The statement said that Colombia had been subject to in-depth reviews by 23 OECD committees and had made major reforms in the areas of labour, the justice system, corporate governance of state-owned enterprises, anti-bribery, trade as well as new national policies on industrial chemicals and waste management.

Colombia becomes its 37th member, joining shortly after Lithuania which was granted membership in early May.

The OECD specializes in helping governments better understand how to drive economic, social and environmental change, while improving productivity, trade and investment.

"It opens up great possibilities to progress in healthcare, education, the fight against corruption and environmental protection. It has been 7 and a half year of intense work and I thank all those who worked so hard for this achievement to become a reality," added Santos.