Workshop Explores Global Trends and Reforms in India’s Investment Facilitation

Each session ended with interactive Q&A rounds, allowing participants to engage directly with policymakers and experts.

A high-level workshop titled “The Investment Facilitation Landscape: Emerging Trends and Approaches” was held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, bringing together a coalition of leading global and national institutions. The event was organised by the Centre for Trade and Investment Law (CTIL), Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the International Trade Centre (ITC), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the World Bank and the World Economic Forum (WEF).

With participation from senior government officials, international experts and industry representatives, the workshop served as a strategic platform to analyse emerging global trends in investment facilitation and ease of doing business, and to understand how India can further integrate with global best practices.

Focus on Global Trends and India’s Policy Reforms

The workshop featured three technical sessions covering:

• India’s Approach to Investment Facilitation

• International Investment Facilitation Frameworks

• Investment Facilitation, Ease of Doing Business, and Global Cooperation Models

Speakers highlighted India's ongoing domestic reforms—including licence rationalisation, reducing compliance burdens, digitalisation of regulatory procedures, decriminalisation of minor offences, and improved frameworks for Intellectual Property and Artificial Intelligence regulation. These steps, they noted, are pivotal to enhancing India’s competitiveness and attractiveness for investors.

Experts also drew attention to rising foreign direct investment flows into India, especially in the services sector, pointing out that initiatives such as the India–EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) will deepen India’s integration into global value chains and strengthen long-term investor confidence.

International Perspectives and WTO Context

A significant portion of the discussions examined investment facilitation from a World Trade Organization standpoint. Experts described the WTO’s “trinity” of frameworks:

• Investment Protection Agreements

• Cooperation and Facilitation Investment Agreements (CFIA)

• Trade Agreements with Investment Provisions

Comparative analyses from countries like Nigeria, Vietnam and Australia demonstrated how transparent policy frameworks, investor-friendly reforms and efficient grievance redressal systems play a crucial role in both attracting and sustaining investment.

Engaging Dialogue and Knowledge Exchange

Each session ended with interactive Q&A rounds, allowing participants to engage directly with policymakers and experts. These exchanges brought nuanced insights into regulatory challenges, investor expectations and emerging geopolitical considerations shaping global investment flows.

The workshop’s comprehensive discussions reinforced its value as a collaborative platform for shaping future policy directions in India’s investment ecosystem.

Key Dignitaries in Attendance

The event featured addresses by:

• Shri Amitabh Kumar, Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce

• Smt. Himani Pande, Additional Secretary, DPIIT

• Shri Manoj Joshi, Secretary, Department of Land Resources

• Shri B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, CEO, NITI Aayog

• Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India

Their insights underscored the government’s unified approach to strengthening India’s investment landscape and enhancing ease of doing business.