The new tool maps over 400 treaties since 2010, offering a clear and comparative overview of global and country-specific investment policy trends.
© Shutterstock/Agnieszka Gaul |Nairobi, Kenya. Investment facilitation remains key to boosting vital areas like infrastructure for sustainable development.
UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is seeking to help countries better track and implement their international commitments on investment facilitation by launching a new database on 12 August.
The database maps more than 400 international investment agreements (IIAs) since 2010, including the Investment Facilitation for Development Agreement finalized by participating members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in November 2023.
As investment treaties grow more complex, this new tool aims to promote transparency and support tailored technical assistance by UN Trade and Development.
It also serves to inform policymaking ahead of major international conferences including the World Investment Forum 2026 and the WTO’s 14th Ministerial Conference where investment facilitation will be high on the agenda.
Why the database is important
Currently, many developing countries – including least developed countries – face overlapping investment facilitation commitments internationally.
This is where the new database comes in handy, by offering a clear and consolidated overview of obligations to which countries have committed.
It helps to show where provisions typically align (such as the need for transparency) and where they often differ (on procedural simplification, for instance).
This is key to ensuring countries implement their commitments while effectively harnessing development-oriented provisions, such as commitments to technical assistance and special and differential treatment, to support their developmental priorities.
“For developing countries, investment facilitation offers significant opportunities but realizing them requires coordination and clarity,” says Nan Li Collins, director of investment and enterprise at UN Trade and Development.
“This new database – building on UN Trade and Development’s long-standing experience as a global hub for investment knowledge – is a timely and practical tool that helps countries navigate diverse commitments, align efforts and translate investment promises into real development outcomes,” the director adds.
Reinforcing UNCTAD research, analysis and technical assistance
For the project’s initial data analysis, UN Trade and Development collaborated with five leading universities in the field of investment law.
The IIA Facilitation Mapping Database integrates UN Trade and Development’s existing IIA Navigator, the world’s most comprehensive free database of investment treaties.
It complements the navigator’s broader IIA Content Mapping component to reflect the move towards investment facilitation in investment treaty-making.
The work actively supports UNCTAD’s core research and analysis, including the World Investment Report series.
It will also help the organization tailor its technical assistance to developing countries, particularly in relation to their international investment facilitation commitments, most notably:
- The IIA programme technical assistance on negotiating investment facilitation provisions aligned with sustainable development;
- And the Business Facilitation programme, concerning needs assessments for the implementation of investment facilitation commitments in a country’s treaty network.
“The IIA Facilitation Mapping Database renews our commitment to transparency, empowering informed policymaking and leveraging investment as a catalyst for sustainable development,” says Hamed El Kady, chief coordinator of the International Investment Agreements programme at UN Trade and Development.
The database was made possible thanks to funding contributions from the Kingdom of the Netherlands.