New Delhi [India], December 16 : A workshop on "The Investment Facilitation Landscape: Emerging Trends and Approaches" was organised to examine emerging global trends in investment facilitation and ease of doing business.
It brought together policymakers, experts and industry stakeholders for focused discussions comprising three technical sessions covering India's Approach to Investment Facilitation, International Investment Facilitation Framework Landscape, Investment Facilitation and Ease of Doing Business, and Options for Investment Facilitation Cooperation.
The sessions explored practical ways to align India's domestic reforms with global best practices, and explored practical ways to align India's domestic reforms with global best practices.
The discussions also took place at the workshop to examine investment facilitation from a WTO perspective, highlighting the "trinity" of investment protection agreements, cooperation and facilitation investment agreements (CFIA), and trade agreements with investment provisions.
Comparative insights were drawn from countries such as Nigeria, Vietnam and Australia, demonstrating how investment climate reforms and effective grievance redressal mechanisms contribute to attracting and retaining investment.
At the workshop, senior government officials and national and international experts shared perspectives on various aspects of investment facilitation and its relevance to ease of doing business, Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.
Panel discussions highlighted India's investment policy and ongoing reforms, including licence rationalisation, decriminalisation of minor offences, digital compliance measures, and balanced regulation of Intellectual Property and Artificial Intelligence, as initial steps to support both domestic and foreign investment.
Speakers also noted rising foreign direct investment, particularly in services, and referred to initiatives such as the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) as positioning India strategically within global value chains, it added.
The workshop was organised by the Centre for Trade and Investment Law (CTIL), Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), International Trade Centre (ITC), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the World Bank and the World Economic Forum (WEF) at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.
It featured addresses by Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce, Amitabh Kumar; Additional Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Himani Pande; Secretary, Department of Land Resources, Manoj Joshi; Chief Executive Officer, NITI Aayog, B.V.R. Subrahmanyam; and Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, V. Anantha Nageswaran.