From 26 to 28 November 2019, UNCTAD, in partnership with the Caribbean Association of Investment Promotion Agencies and the Caribbean Export Development Agency, organized a regional seminar on facilitating investment in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) projects.
The seminar, which was hosted by the St. Kitts Investment Promotion Agency (SKIPA), put the spotlight on Small Island Developing Sates. It gave participants an overview of global and regional foreign direct investment trends, sectors that island economies are targeting, investment in the SDGs, and tools to facilitate investment in SDG projects. Presentation and discussions covered online business registration platforms, special economic zones (SEZs), Citizenship by Investment Programmes, as well as regional initiatives and partner arrangements with the Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator, the Caribbean Agribusiness Association and the UN Women/EU Win-Win Programme in Jamaica entitled Gender Equality Means Good Business. The seminar also included a session on the global reform of the international investment agreement (IIAs) regime and IIAs in CARICOM.
Some takeaways from the discussion include:
- SIDS face unique challenges and opportunities in attracting FDI, particularly in SDG related sectors such as climate change mitigation and adaptation, food and agriculture as well as infrastructure
- Regional cooperation and the exchange of best practices is the way forward to benefit from more investment in the Caribbean, including through joint investment promotion initiatives, like the online UNCTAD investment guides
- Investment promotion agencies have a key role to play in identifying innovative partnerships to facilitate investment towards the SDGs
- Investment facilitation tools, such as Special Economic Zones, can be catalysts for enhancing the impact of FDI including investment in SDG projects
- Efficient investment facilitation, including efforts to reform international investment agreements, is key to attract quality FDI towards SDG sectors
