Roundtable Participants
DIE together with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) organised a roundtable discussion on the role of policies to facilitate foreign direct investment (FDI) and create linkages between domestic and multinational companies with the aim of promoting inclusive global value chains. The roundtable took place in Tokyo on 28 May 2019 and was hosted by the United Nations University. In her keynote address, the Ethiopian Minister for Trade and Industry, H.E. Ms. Fetlework Gebregziabher Abrha, emphasised that FDI offers a number of benefits for host economies. However, in order to promote more value addition strong domestic capacities are needed in host countries. The roundtable discussed the experiences of ASEAN countries in building linkages between domestic and multinational companies that could be useful for other regions as well. Furthermore, developing countries face the challenge to attract FDI. Axel Berger, Senior Researcher at DIE, discussed the opportunities and challenges of an international investment facilitation framework, currently being discussed at the World Trade Organization, to promote FDI that supports sustainable development in developing countries.