The author reviews the state of the investment regime, which is probably the strongest international regime in existence today. He identifies three main areas for improvement, relating to the regime's objectives, substantive provisions and dispute-settlement mechanism. Changes will have to be...

The author identifies ways to promote sustainable FDI through investment treaties, including by using contribution to development as a criterion when applying treaties, defining investment explicitly in reference to contribution to development, allowing governments to grant preferential...

To help countries attract sustainable FDI, the authors suggest to create the category "Authorized Sustainable Investor". They outline the qualifying criteria, as well as the additional benefits that would make it worthwhile for investors to seek this status.

This Perspective suggests that, to assess the competitiveness of a country's firms, one needs not only to look at exports, but also the sales of their foreign affiliates ("establishment trade"). It exemplifies this for the China-US trade relationship. Taking such a holistic approach leads to a...

As more countries report outward FDI, home country support for outward FDI is becoming more common. This Perspective argues that any home country assistance should focus on projects with domestic benefits, and proposes discussions on an international outward FDI-incentives agreement to avoid...

The author calls for the establishment of a trust fund to enable the full participation of developing countries in the WTO negotiations of an Investment Facilitation Framework for Development, outlining the reasons for this proposal.

The G20 should establish an FDI Facility as part of a spare-no-effort response to the economic impact of the pandemic and to help accelerate sustainable FDI flows for sustainable development.

The authors identify several ways in which an investment facilitation framework for development can be insulated from investor-state dispute settlement provisions in international investment agreements, and suggest specific formulations in this respect.

Gone are the days when governments could easily renegotiate natural resource contracts if investors reaped bonanzas from rising resource prices, surprisingly rich discoveries, or terms that were too favorable. Today, international investment agreements protect investors from renegotiation. Now,...

The transparency of investment-facilitation measures is uneven across country groups. Developing countries--and especially the least developed among them--will require substantial technical assistance to increase transparency.