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View this email in your browser <https://mailchi.mp/law/perspective-275?e=763bcf158c> 哥伦比亚大学国际直接投资展望中文版都可以在我们的网站查看： http://ccsi.columbia.edu/publications/columbia-fdi-perspectives. *Columbia FDI Perspectives* Perspectives on topical foreign direct investment issues No. 275 April 6, 2020 Editor-in-Chief: Karl P. Sauvant ([log in to unmask]) Managing Editor: Alexa Busser ([log in to unmask]) *Enabling the full participation of developing countries in negotiating an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development* <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ab15cc1d53&id=d47e8eb602&e=763bcf158c> * <#m_-4582653736516883966__edn1> by Karl P. Sauvant** <#m_-4582653736516883966__edn2> Negotiations on an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development were scheduled to begin in March 2020 at the WTO. Given the COVID-19 pandemic, all in-person meetings at the WTO have been suspended, but progress is being made through written submissions. A new consolidated text reflecting these submissions will provide an updated basis for the negotiations. WTO members may also wish to initiate a voluntary arrangement allowing the full participation of developing countries—and especially the least developed among them—in these negotiations. In particular, participation from the competent authorities in capitals is required, including from their investment promotion agencies (IPAs). Such participation is important because: - Bringing representatives from capitals into the negotiations—especially policy makers from ministries in charge of investment policy—helps to ensure that any agreement is closely linked to the development goals of governments in facilitating FDI. It would strengthen the interaction between Geneva delegates and capital-based experts. It could furthermore foster dialogue and cooperation among domestic stakeholders, as experts prepare themselves for Geneva, and it is also critical for implementation. - Bringing representatives of IPAs into the negotiations helps to ensure that ground-level practical experience is taken into account, resulting in text that is more realistic and can be implemented. It would also create a stronger sense of ownership, which is important for the implementation of an eventual agreement. - Most developing countries (especially in Africa) simply do not have the resources to bring technical expertise from their capitals to the negotiating table in Geneva. They need support. Hence, a trust fund should be established to facilitate the full participation of developing countries in the negotiations of an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development. Such a trust fund could be used to pay for the travel expenses of developing country experts from capitals to participate in the negotiations in Geneva once negotiations resume. The trust fund could be administered by the WTO Secretariat[1] <#m_-4582653736516883966__edn3> or the International Trade Centre (ITC—a joint center of the WTO and UNCTAD); ITC is already implementing a project on “Investment Facilitation for Development” in support of developing countries,[2] <#m_-4582653736516883966__edn4> and could conceivably expand its work in the direction suggested. There is a precedent for such support of WTO negotiations. When the Organization negotiated the Trade Facilitation Agreement, a number of members provided funding to the WTO Secretariat to help capital-based developing country experts, especially from least developed countries, to participate in those negotiations. Donors included a number of European countries, as well as Canada and Japan. The sums involved were relatively small—amounting only to a few million Swiss francs—but they were crucial in ensuring adequate participation and input by developing countries. The support was particularly important when text-based negotiations began during the second half of 2009, and it continued until the very end of the negotiations, at the Bali WTO ministerial meeting in December 2013. This approach could be pursued also in relation to the investment-facilitation negotiations. These negotiations are important because: - FDI can contribute significantly to development. In fact, FDI flows may well decrease by half in 2020 compared to 2019 on account of the current crisis, and this makes a successful outcome of the negotiations even more urgent, especially for developing countries. - Reaching the Sustainable Development Goals requires substantial additional resources. Investment facilitation can help achieve the Goals, especially when it is geared specifically to increasing the developmental impact of FDI. This consideration is all the more relevant in the immediate future, as countries will likely place more emphasis on the quantity rather than the quality of FDI they seek to attract. Hence, it is important that an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development be negotiated on the basis of substantive input by as many countries as possible, to sustain investment globally and to ensure that it benefits development as much as possible. In a broader context, a successful outcome of the negotiations would send an important message in the face of growing FDI protectionism. It would also signal that, in spite of the turbulence in which the WTO and the global economy find themselves at the moment, the WTO can agree and deliver on matters of importance to members, including investment facilitation for development. A trust fund to assist developing countries fully to participate in the negotiations of a well-conceived Investment Facilitation Framework for Development should therefore be established now. ------------------------------ * <#m_-4582653736516883966__ednref1> *The Columbia FDI Perspectives are a forum for public debate. The views expressed by the author(s) do not reflect the opinions of CCSI or Columbia University or our partners and supporters. Columbia FDI Perspectives (ISSN 2158-3579) is a peer-reviewed series.* ** <#m_-4582653736516883966__ednref2> Karl P. Sauvant ([log in to unmask]) is Resident Senior Fellow, Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, a joint center of Columbia Law School and the Earth Institute, Columbia University. The author is grateful to Nora Neufeld for her helpful comments on an earlier draft of this text, and to Axel Berger, Khalil Hamdani and Matthew Stephenson for their helpful peer reviews. [1] <#m_-4582653736516883966__ednref3> It may be difficult for the WTO Secretariat to administer such a trust fund as not all members have signed up to the negotiations, though the number of supporters is increasing and is now higher than 100. [2] <#m_-4582653736516883966__ednref4> As part of this project, the views of international investors, as well as those of other stakeholders, are also elicited through various events (some of which are co-organized with the World Economic Forum) and brought to the attention of negotiators. *The material in this Perspective may be reprinted if accompanied by the following acknowledgment: “Karl P. Sauvant, ‘Enabling the full participation of developing countries in negotiating an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development,’ Columbia FDI Perspectives, April 6, 2020. Reprinted with permission from the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (**www.ccsi.columbia.edu <http://www.ccsi.columbia.edu>**).” A copy should kindly be sent to the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment at **[log in to unmask]* <[log in to unmask]>*.* For further information, including information regarding submission to the *Perspectives*, please contact: Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, Alexa Busser, [log in to unmask] *Most recent Columbia FDI Perspectives* <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ab15cc1d53&id=57a55c36bd&e=763bcf158c> - No. 274, Marta Soprana, ‘Outward FDI and a global compact on home-country investment incentives,’ March 23, 2020 - No. 273, Ricardo Figueiredo de Oliveira, ‘The useful institution of an investment ombudsperson,’ March 9, 2020 - No. 272, Wolfgang Alschner, ‘Squaring bilateralism with multilateralism: What investment law reformers can learn from the international tax regime,’ February 24, 2020 *All previous FDI Perspectives are available at **http://ccsi.columbia.edu/publications/columbia-fdi-perspectives/ <http://ccsi.columbia.edu/publications/columbia-fdi-perspectives/>**. * *Other relevant CCSI news and announcements* - *CCSI prepared a Scoping Study on Securing Adequate Legal Defense in Proceedings under International Investment Agreements (Scoping Study) <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ab15cc1d53&id=ee75343734&e=763bcf158c>* for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. A summary version (33 pages) is available here <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ab15cc1d53&id=602489e7a2&e=763bcf158c>. A webinar (March 24, 2020) discussing the study and its findings is here <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ab15cc1d53&id=63e4ca4d8c&e=763bcf158c> (and accompanying slides with speaking notes here <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ab15cc1d53&id=f7207c26d9&e=763bcf158c> ). - *CCSI announces a call for papers for the Global Research Alliance for Sustainable Finance and Investment (GRASFI) 3rd Annual Conference*, hosted by CCSI on September 10-11, 2020. The deadline for paper submission has been *extended to April 15, 2020*. Themes for papers include climate-related risks and finance, the role of the state (e.g., central banks, development banks, and regulators) in advancing sustainable finance, and social and human rights dimensions of sustainable finance, among others. A full list of themes, further information about the conference and submission details can be found on our website <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ab15cc1d53&id=d6251d7f4d&e=763bcf158c> . Karl P. Sauvant, Ph.D. Resident Senior Fellow Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Columbia Law School - Earth Institute Ph: (212) 854-0689 Fax: (212) 854-7946 *Copyright © 2020 Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI), All rights reserved.* [log in to unmask] *Our mailing address is:* Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI) Columbia Law School - Earth Institute, Columbia University 435 West 116th Street New York, NY 10027 Add us to your address book <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/vcard?u=ab15cc1d53&id=a61bf1d34a> unsubscribe from this list <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=ab15cc1d53&id=a61bf1d34a&e=763bcf158c&c=aa78dc788d> update subscription preferences <https://columbia.us6.list-manage.com/profile?u=ab15cc1d53&id=a61bf1d34a&e=763bcf158c> [image: Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp] <http://www.mailchimp.com/monkey-rewards/?utm_source=freemium_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=monkey_rewards&aid=ab15cc1d53&afl=1> ------------------------------ Spam <https://antispam.law.columbia.edu/canit/b.php?c=s&i=012ntt20H&m=538df26e2854&t=20200406> Not spam <https://antispam.law.columbia.edu/canit/b.php?c=n&i=012ntt20H&m=538df26e2854&t=20200406> Forget previous vote <https://antispam.law.columbia.edu/canit/b.php?c=f&i=012ntt20H&m=538df26e2854&t=20200406> -- *Karl P. Sauvant, PhD* *Resident Senior Fellow* *Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment* Columbia Law School - The Earth Institute, Columbia University 435 West 116th St., Rm. JGH 825, New York, NY 10027 | p: (212) 854 0689 | cell: (646) 724 5600 e: [log in to unmask] | w: www.ccsi.columbia.edu | t: @CCSI_Columbia <https://twitter.com/CCSI_Columbia> "Concrete Measures for a Framework on Investment Facilitation for Development", "Making FDI more Sustainable", "Facilitating Sustainable FDI by...", "An International Framework to Discipline Outward FDI Incentives?", "The Case for an Advisory Centre on International Investment Law", "An Advisory Centre on International Investment Law: Key Features", "Incentivizing Sustainable FDI: The Authorized Sustainable Investor", "The Potential Value-added of a Multilateral Framework on Investment Facilitation for Development", "International Investment Facilitation: By Whom and for What?", "Towards an Investment Facilitation Framework: Why? What? 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