Promoting Sustainable Investments along the Belt and Road
by Strengthening Partner Countries Capacities and Establishing a Network of
Sustainable Investment Promotion (SIP) Facilities with Ethiopia as the Early Pilot
Synopsis
The project aimed to promote sustainable Investments along the Belt and Road by strengthening partner countries’ capacities and establishing a network of sustainable investment promotion (SIP) facilities with Ethiopia as the early pilot, to help enhance social and environmental sustainability. Through platform building, policy development and piloting locally tailored solutions, the project focused on strengthening institutional frameworks and capacity building to improve the overall investment climate and to tie investment promotion approach with well-structured local institutions that are mindful of local needs and development priorities of partner countries.
Overall, the project enhanced knowledge and information exchange on BRI related investments among various stakeholders in Ethiopia, strengthened capacities of policymakers to identify regulatory and institutional gaps in attracting foreign investment, and enhanced sustainability of future investment.
The project’s main deliverables include:
- Organization of the SIP Investment Forum and match-making event on 2-3 July 2019 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Forum gathered over 120 participants from public and private sectors. In promoting a better understanding of the business environment constraints, it helped the government to shape comprehensive action plans on sustainable investment in Ethiopia.
- Organization of a high-level dialogue event on sustainable investment on 29 November 2019 in Beijing, China, with over 200 participants from government, enterprises, Chambers of commerce, United Nations, local embassies, other development agencies and think tanks.
- Organization of a training programme in Beijing and Shenzhen, China. The training was attended by 28 participants divided in two focused group discussion: one dedicated to policy makers (26-28 November 2019) and the other to technical experts (5-9 December 2019). The programme raised awareness on environmental, social and governance (ESG) approach and promoted first-hand learning from China’s best practices on sustainable investment promotion.
- Development and maintenance of the SIP information platform providing online information and incentives for sustainable investments with provision of updated country-, project- and investment-level data, matchmaking, online application formats and tailor-made analyses on sustainable investments in Ethiopia.
- Delivery of two diagnostics studies on environmental, social and governance (ESG) sustainable investments, one for textile and garment, horticulture, leather and leather products, and agro-processing including sugar-related industries; and one for energy and ceramics. The studies put forth 5 policy recommendations for governments to promote ESG, including establishing a national ESG coordination body chaired by Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC) to oversee the implementation of a policy roadmap.
- Tailor-made micro-level de-risking analysis or policy advice support in specific investment sectors were provided to 10 selected pilot firms for pilot implementation.
Resources
- Video: