Global Investment Promotion Conference

Monday, 7 December
14:00 Summit Session on Strategic Reorientation in Investment Promotion During and Beyond the Pandemic
The COVID-19 crisis has drastically changed the global investment landscape. Although it is still unfolding, there is a lot to learn from how governments and institutions, like investment promotion agencies (IPAs) and special economic zones (SEZs), so far have adapted, re-strategized and reformed their investment promotion strategies. This high-level session with State leaders, ministers and CEOs of global companies will bring together the experience and perspectives from the public and private sector to debate investment prospects and new ways to attract investment beyond the pandemic.

Questions for discussion:
> What are the new key drivers of FDI? What does the international business community expect from governments during and beyond the pandemic?
> How shall governments and investment promotion and facilitation institutions, like IPAs and SEZs, reset their investment promotion strategies and what are key elements of such strategies?

United Nations Investment Promotion Awards 2020
Held since 2002, the United Nations Investment Promotion Awards celebrate the exchange of best practice in investment promotion. Over the years, the Awards have paid tribute to more than 60 institutions and their governments, recognizing their achievements in a range of areas of investment promotion. More details are available here.

This year, the Awards will be presented to IPAs for excellence in their response to the COVID-19 crisis. The finalists considered for the award were identified from technical assistance work carried out by UNCTAD during the pandemic, including the monitoring of the response of 180 national IPAs to the COVID-19 crisis.

Its analysis has been published in two recent publications aimed at investment promotion practitioners, available here:

• IPA Observer (July 2020). Post-COVID-19: Investment Promotion Agencies and the “New Normal”
• IPA Observer (April 2020). Investment Promotion Agencies: Striving to overcome the COVID-19 Challenge

A special recognition will also be awarded to one investment promotion agency for mainstreaming gender in investment promotion. The recipient will be chosen from among 52 investment promotion agencies that participated in a survey on gender and investment promotion conducted by UNCTAD between June and September 2020.

UNCTAD analysis from the survey is available here:

• IPA Observer (November 2020). Mainstreaming Gender Equality in Investment Promotion

Tuesday, 8 December
14:00 Executive Dialogue on Investment Facilitation and Advocacy
IPAs and SEZs are working under unprecedented challenges in a highly uncertain global investment climate. Since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, two important trends have emerged in their operations: (i) an increased focus on investment facilitation – particularly aftercare – and policy advocacy, and (ii) an acceleration in their digitalization.
Together with CEO’s from multinational enterprises, high-level executives from IPAs and SEZs will debate their predictions and expectations and what IPAs and SEZs need to do to remain relevant.

Questions for discussion:
> What are the new expectations of the business community of IPAs and SEZs?
> How can IPAs and SEZs expand their service offering and advocacy role, while their budgets are under scrutiny by governments that are looking for savings?