The potential value-added of an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development

Event Type
Online Event

Location / Date
Online, 19.01.2021

German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE), International Trade Centre (ITC)

The event focused on the potential value-added of a WTO Investment Facilitation Framework for Development. It is well established that countries seek to attract foreign direct investment (FDI), to advance their economic growth and development. However, since the bulk of any investment facilitation effort is undertaken at the national level, one must ask why seeking to create a multilateral framework (which is a difficult and time-consuming effort) is important and should be endeavored, especially in the current political climate.

The principal purpose of a multilateral investment facilitation framework is to further increase FDI flows for development and enhance international cooperation in the investment area. During the event, the following issues related to the potential value-added of an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development will be addressed:

• Potential costs and benefits of such a Framework.
• Helping domestic reforms and facilitating more sustainable FDI flows.
• Requiring transparency of home country measures and encouraging the observance of investors’ CSR commitments.
• Maintaining an inventory and benchmarks of good investment facilitation practices and increasing technical assistance.

Agenda and Speakers

Introduction

• Rajesh Aggarwal, Chief Trade Facilitation and Policy for Business, ITC

Moderator

• Karl P. Sauvant, Resident Senior Fellow, Columbia University, CCSI

Potential welfare gains from different investment facilitation frameworks: interim results

• Zoryana Olekseyuk, Senior Researcher, DIE

Panel

• Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder, Executive Director, IISD Europe
• Jansen Calamita, Head of Investment Law & Policy, Centre for International Law, and Research Associate Professor (CIL), Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore
• Anabel González, Non-Resident Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics
• Yewande Sadiku, Executive Secretary/CEO, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission
• Matthew Stephenson, Policy and Community Lead, International Trade and Investment, World Economic Forum

Concluding remarks

• Axel Berger, Senior Researcher, DIE

The event was conducted in an interactive manner and allowed for questions by participants.

Hinweis

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