JOB/GC/121  
 
6 April 2017  
(17-1879) Page: 1/2 
  Original: English  
 
MIKTA INVESTMENT WORKSHOP REFLECTIONS  
 
The following communication, dated 4 April 2017 , is being circulated at the  request of  the 
delegation s of Mexico, Indonesia, Korea, Turkey and Australia (MIKTA) . 
 
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1.1.   Reflecting on the MIKTA Workshop on  Trade and Investment held at the WTO on 
20 March  2017, MIKTA  countries took note of the following key messages:  
 Recogniz ing the dynamic links between trade, investment and development, there is a need 
for greater coherence in trade and investment policy.  
 The WTO has an important role to play in discussions on investment  given its broad 
membership and as  the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade : 
 any discussions in the WTO should add value to work in other fora including the  G20, 
APEC, UNCTAD and OECD ; 
 an open and informed dialogue is useful if Members wish to consider putting more fo cus 
on these issues in the WTO.  
 Investment is covered in a piecemeal way across the WTO Agreements : 
 the GATS covers foreign direct investment (F DI) in services, which accounts for 
two-thirds of global inward FDI stock and 55 -60 per cent of all services trade ; 
 the TRIMs Agreement and the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures 
seek to ensure investment measures are not inconsistent with GATT trade rules ; 
 TRIPS provisions are relevant to the legal environment affecting foreign investment ; 
 the plurilateral GPA prohibits discrimination against foreign products or suppliers on the 
basis of their degree of foreign affiliation or ownership ; 
 investment -related measures are also considered  in WTO accession negotiations.  
 Recent trends in trade and investment are changing the way we think about 
investment : 
 developing countries account for an increasing share of inward and outward FDI ; 
 FDI is a vital  source of funding to close the $2.5 trillion development investment gap to 
achieve sustainable development goals ; 
 with the  right policy settings, recogniz ing the trade -investment nexus, investment can 
advance inclusive, broad -based growth, promote and ena ble sustainable development 
and responsible business conduct.  
 Discussions in the WTO could contribute to : 
 strengthening trade and investment policy coherence ; 
 facilitating trade and investment flows ; 
 mobilising trade and investment for development ; 
 explori ng where multilateral rules could be usefully strengthened or expand ed to support 
these objectives.  JOB/GC/121  
 
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   There is a high -level of interest and willingness among some WTO Members to 
engage in open and incl usive discussions on investment:  
 if we can avoid known se nsitivities, particularly around investor dispute settlement and 
investment protections ; 
 investment facilitation could be a good starting point for discussions to  complement the 
recently concluded Trade Facilitation Agreement and current discussions on 
trade facilitation for services.  
 Investment facilitation elements highlighted during the Workshop, which reflect 
core WTO principles and could form the basis for further discussions, include:  
 transparency, predictability and non -discrimination in investment p olicies ; 
 efficiency and streamlining of administrative procedures to minimise investment 
barriers ; 
 international cooperation, capacity -building and technical assistance.  
 
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