A Virtual Meeting was held between the delegations of the UNCTAD and the ECO Secretariat, on April 28, 2022. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Zahid Hussain Abbasi, Director (Trade & Investment), ECO Secretariat. The UNCTAD delegation was headed by Ms. Chantal Dupasquier, Chief, Investment Policy Review Section.
The meeting discussed the existing level of collaboration between the organizations and focused on the need to bolster their mutual cooperation in future to pursue shared goals of expansion in trade & investment and socio-economic development of the people of the region. While dilating in detail on the decisions of the relevant ECO Fora, Mr. Abbasi tabled the proposal to UNCTAD to initiate cooperation to conduct a policy review of Investment policies and Investment Climate in the region to indentify the gaps and plug them through effective policy matrix and cogent projects in the ECO region.
Ms. Chantal Dupasquier, Chief of the Policy Review of the UNCTAD, underscored the significance of mutual cooperation between UNCTAD and ECO and informed that the UNCTAD has been endeavouring to maximize the positive impact of trade liberalization and trade facilitation on sustainable development by assisting in the valuable integration of developing countries and the economies in transition, into the International Trading System. The UNCTAD, with its various specialized directorates, reviews policy issues and provides recommendations on investment policies to the countries and regions on their requests; carries out objective evaluation of their regulatory framework for the regulation of FDI as well as Local Investment, with a view to suggest suitable policy matrix to attract increased Foreign Direct Investment to the countries and regions for the benefits for the economies of the region.
Both sides agreed to mull over revitalization of the MoU between the two sides as well as a joint action plan to enhance cooperation on all areas of trade and investment including Joint Investment Projects.
The meeting ended with a vote of thanks from both sides.
