UNCTAD launches new investment policy framework to sustain world’s development

The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has launched a new investment policy framework which it says will help sustainable development in the world.

According to UNCTAD, the world needs a new generation of policies that places inclusive growth and sustainable development at the heart of efforts to attract and benefit from foreign direct investment (FDI).

The policy, titled “Investment Policy Framework for Sustainable Development (IPFSD),” provides guidance for policymakers in their efforts to promote investment for sustainable development.

The investment framework consists of:

• A set of eleven core principles for investment policymaking with the starting point that the overarching objective of investment policymaking is to promote investment for inclusive growth and sustainable development;

• Detailed guidelines for national investment policies at the strategic, normative and administrative levels;

• Specific guidance for policymakers in the form of options for the design and use of international investment agreements with a particular focus on strengthening the sustainable development dimension of these agreements.

These key components, according to the UN trade agency, reflect the recognition that investment promotion, if it is to generate sustainable development outcomes and more quality investment, has to be accompanied – if not preceded –by the establishment of proper and effective regulatory and institutional frameworks, the report contends.

UNCTAD anticipates that the new framework may also serve as a reference for policymakers in areas as diverse as trade, competition, industry, environment, or any other field where investment plays an important role and where coherence in policy-making is crucial.

By Ekow Quandzie

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