Unlocking FDI Development Gains through Facilitation

摘要

The World Trade Organization's (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) holds enormous promise to gear up trade flows. WTO estimates suggest successful implementation of the TFA could reduce trade costs by 14%, which in turn could raise global goods exports by US$ 1 trillion a year - potentially boosting the world economy at a time of flagging growth. What is more, the body's World Trade Report found that developing countries stand to capture more than half those gains, a ramification with significant implications for international development efforts.Still, trade facilitation cannot be the only lens through which we seek to unlock development gains. Fundamental structural changes in the global economy over the past 20 years have led to investment and trade becoming enmeshed. The rise of multinationalfirms created intricate international production net-works, which now account for more than a quarter of the world's economic output and 80% of global trade. This shows trade and investment are inextricably linked. Efforts invested to reap greater gains through the one need to be matched by similar efforts to grease the other. Trade facilitation without a concomitant push to smooth the way for increased investment will not unlock economic growth in a sustained manner.