High-Level Event on Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) Agreement Hosted by ITC and OECS at WTO Headquarters

September 16, 2024 – The International Trade Centre (ITC) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Permanent Mission in Geneva successfully hosted a high-level meeting event on September 11, 2024, to discuss the recently concluded Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) Agreement. This Agreement was finalised by over 120 members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in November 2023. The event, which was held at the WTO Headquarters, brought together diplomats, trade experts, and investment professionals to discuss how to strategically leverage the IFD Agreement to attract high-quality foreign direct investment (FDI) aligned with sustainable development priorities and national development objectives in the OECS and Caribbean countries.

The IFD Agreement is seen as a pivotal step in fostering a more transparent, stable, and efficient global investment climate. The Agreement is especially significant for developing nations, offering a framework to attract FDI and promote sustainable development.

During the event, the OECS took the opportunity to update the participants on the key findings from a recent needs assessment exercise conducted in OECS member states to determine their level of readiness to implement the IFD Agreement, including any specific technical and financial assistance which they may require to improve their investment climate.

Brief remarks were delivered by the WTO Deputy Director-General, Ms. Johanna Hill; Executive-Director of the ITC, Ms. Pamela Coke-Hamilton; Co-Coordinator of the IFD Negotiations Ambassador Jung Sung Park of the Republic of Korea; and Counsellor in the OECS Mission in Geneva, Mr. Joel Richards.

Speaking on behalf of the ITC, Ms. Coke-Hamilton indicated that the "ITC will leave no stone unturned to ensure that the Caribbean reaches its full investment potential.”

Ms. Coke-Hamilton further reaffirmed the ITC’s commitment to working closely with partners in the OECS to ensure the successful implementation of the IFD Agreement.

Speaking on behalf of the OECS, Mr. Richards noted, "The IFD Agreement was critical to boosting domestic reform efforts to attract more and better investments, especially those which go a long way towards the realisation of the sustainable development goals."

While noting that the Agreement will not on its own generate investment flows, Mr. Richards pointed out that it could nonetheless be an important signalling tool to investors about the basic minimum standards to expect when investing in IFD participating countries. ​

Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica and Grenada are the OECS member states that are signatories to the IFD Agreement.

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