The UN’s annual conference on international investment agreements (IIAs) emphasized that the mainstreaming of sustainable development in the IIA regime is essential.

UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) virtually convened its 2024 High-level International Investment Agreements Conference on 12 December 2024, drawing in 350 participants over the course of its two panels. Themed “The Path to Mainstreaming Sustainable Development in IIAs”, the conference featured insightful discussions from the two panels of experts and calls for UNCTAD to develop guiding principles for sustainable development-oriented IIA reform.

In her opening remarks, Nan Li Collins, Director of the Division of Investment and Enterprise at UNCTAD, highlighted the urgent need for IIA reform to align the regime with the sustainable development goals. Old-generation IIAs continue to dominate the investment treaty universe by vastly outnumbering their modernized counterparts. In noting this, Nan Li Collins underscored: “The challenge today is to push sustainability in all its dimensions from the periphery of the system to its core.”

Moderated by Professor Makane M. Mbengue, Director of the Department of International Law and International Organization, University of Geneva, Panel 1 featured the perspectives of government representatives on mainstreaming sustainable development in the IIA regime. The Panel provided examples of country’s actions to modernize IIAs, incorporating sustainability-driven provisions and fostering responsible investment in model agreements and new treaties. Panellists also drew attention to challenges in reforming old-generation investment treaties. Collaboration, stakeholder engagement and the sharing of best practices were identified as levers to unlock reforms.

Panel 2, moderated by Lisa Sachs, Director of the Columbia Centre on Sustainable Investment, focused on regional and international perspectives, with a wide range of regional and multilateral organizations being represented in the panel. Speakers highlighted the interconnectedness of IIAs with broader international frameworks on sustainable development. The discussions emphasized the need for IIAs to complement international commitments in areas such as labour, health and the environment, advocating for practical approaches to address sustainability challenges. Overall, the Panel pointed to the need for stronger institutional collaboration and dialogue across organizations.

Throughout the conference, several panellists noted the need for guidance that can inform national, bilateral, regional and multilateral IIA reform efforts. It was suggested that a set of guiding principles in non-binding form could foster consensus-building on sustainability-oriented reform of the IIA regime and backstop national reform approaches.

In his closing remarks, Hamed El Kady, Senior Coordinator of UNCTAD’s IIA Section, reiterated the organization’s commitment to steering the IIA reform agenda in line with sustainable development imperatives. Hamed El Kady stated that “UNCTAD will continue to serve as an inclusive forum for deliberation to advance the global IIA reform agenda”. Moreover, he expressed UNCTAD’s readiness for advancing the development of practical guidance to support IIA reform at all levels of policymaking.

For the conference’s agenda and a short summary, see here.

More background information is available at unctad.org.