15/08/06

 

We are pleased to announce that the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority has become a new member of WAIPA. The Association covers 151 countries worldwide with 201 members.

WAIPA’s popular study tour programme aims at enabling young professional staff of WAIPA member agencies to visit and learn from experienced IPAs worldwide. The study tours are scheduled for a period of up to two weeks and cover the whole range of IPA activities through hands-on experience and on-the-job training.

Study tours are geared towards young professionals from WAIPA member agencies; the programme is designed to provide participants with the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in investment promotion and investor targeting from successful IPAs. The training is free of charge for WAIPA members. However, the participants will be expected to cover their own travel and subsistence costs related to the programme, except f or those coming from the least developed countries (LDCs) whose travel and accommodation costs are borne by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Applicants must hold a university degree in Business, Economics, Law or a related field, and have a minimum of two years of work experience in investment promotion. Candidates must be fluent in English. After completing the study tour, the trainees are requested to submit a written evaluation report to the WAIPA Secretariat. Upon successful conclusion of their training, the participants receive a certificate of completion.

In 2006, investment promotion professionals from IPAs will be trained in South Africa under the leadership of Trade and Investment Kwa Zulu Natal (TIKZN) with involvement of Trade and Investment South-Africa (TISA) and the Durban Investment Promotion Agency (DIPA) in the period from 20 November to 1 December 2006 .

For more information, please contact Mrs. Beatrice Abel, at: isa-beatrice.abel@waipa.org or at the following telephone number: +41 22 797 26 63, or see: www.waipa.org

WAIPA Workshop on Branding or Re-Branding your place: A Key Factor in FDI and Economy Success, from 30 August to 1 September 2006, Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia

This workshop on Branding or Re-Branding your place: A Key Factor in FDI and Economy Success for investment promotion professionals of the Pacific region which will be held from 30 August to 1 September 2006 in Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia, will kindly be hosted by Tahiti Invest. Mr. Manélik Sfez will conduct this two-day workshop (30-31 August) which will be followed by a gala dinner for the ceremony of the 1st Tahiti Entrepreneur Awards at the Radisson Hotel on Friday 1st .

The objective of the course is to help investment promotion practitioners to understand the importance of branding a location and on that basis design a brand development strategy. The workshop will create awareness of the different marketing tools. The curriculum will include best practices by IPAs. The specific sector-based case studies will be selected on the basis of the composition of workshop participants.

The workshop structure has been designed to allow participants to work on a marketing strategy for their own IPA during the course. This will allow them to benefit from the input of other participants and the trainers. The workshop curriculum addresses mainly IPA professionals from the marketing, sales and strategy departments.

The programme of the workshop is available on: www.waipa.org

MOFCOM-WAIPA Roundtable Conference on Capacity Building of IPAs and Cooperation between IPAs, 9 September 2006, during the 10 th China International Fair on Investment & Trade (CIFIT), Xiamen, China

WAIPA and the Ministry of Commerce of People's Republic of China (MOFCOM) will jointly sponsor a Roundtable Conference for International Investment Promotion Agencies, on 9 September 2006, during the 10 th China International Fair on Investment & Trade (CIFIT), which is to be held from 8 to 11 September 2006, in Xiamen, southeast China. The theme of the Roundtable Conference will be Capacity Building of IPAs and Cooperation between IPAs. An exhibition area especially for WAIPA members will be set up in the CIFIT exhibition hall.

The annual CIFIT is sponsored by MOFCOM and co-sponsored by UNCTAD, UNIDO, IFC and WAIPA. With its themes of Promoting Inward and Outward Investment, CIFIT is the biggest, most important and most influential event featuring in internationalized investment promotion held in China. Over 12, 000 visitors and delegations from 125 countries and regions attended the 9th CIFIT in 2005. Governments and enterprises from 66 countries and regions introduced over 1,000 investment projects and set up booths, and 7 countries and regions sponsored Pavilion Day activities. The 10th CIFIT will continue providing global trade and investment services through exhibition, matchmaking symposia, policy consultation, and commercial activities coupled with timely FDI policy and information releases. China’s Ministry of Commerce will also hold International Investment Forum and dozens of seminars on hot investment issues, with distinguished speakers from the Chinese government, foreign governments, and international economic organizations, as well as Nobel Prize winners and well-known economists.

In order to support WAIPA members to participate in CIFIT and to strengthen WAIPA’s influence in the international investment promotion activities, MOFCOM will provide 25 free booths especially for the IPAs from developing countries; 75 half-price booths (900 USD/3mX3m) will be offered for other WAIPA members and their respective domestic enterprises. By participating CIFIT, WAIPA members will have the opportunity to establish communication channels with domestic and foreign government officials, principals of the IPAs and representatives from business associations and enterprises, so as to further expand their investment promotion business.

We warmly invite our members to participate in the 10 th CIFIT in China and please register for the Roundtable conference and apply for reserving the Exhibition booths by the end of July. Please note that the registration for the free booths will be on a first come first served basis.

For further information, please see: www.waipa.org or contact: isa-beatrice.abel@waipa.org

The Workshop for Asian Investment Promotion Agencies will be held from September 9 to September 23, 2006 in Beijing, China, with a view to further promoting the development of international investment cause, strengthening the cooperation between Chinese and Asian investment promotion agencies and facilitating Sino-Asian joint development on investment collaboration. This Workshop, jointly held by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (MOFCOM) and World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA), consists of 29 member countries. The early period of the workshop will take place parallel to CIFIT to be held in Xiamen. The UNCTAD-WAIPA workshop on attracting FDI in tourism sector, described below, will be included into the Asian workshop.The workshop contains training topics such as China Investment Promotion Agencies and System, China-Asian Economy and Trade Cooperating Status and Prospect. In this program, participants will be arranged to travel to cities, such as Xiamen and Kunming, for tour and inspection and to learn the up-to-dated knowledge on investment promotion. All the trainees will have the opportunity to publicize their respective investment climate and major investment projects.

Costs and expenditure, such as training fee, international air tickets, accommodation fee, and transportation fee between cities of this workshop, will be covered by MOFCOM.

Please see: www.waipa.org

The Regional Workshop on Attracting FDI into the Tourism Sector will be held in Xiamen, People's Republic of China, on 10-12 September 2006. The Ministry of Commerce of China, MOFCOM, will host the workshop and will sponsor participants from developing countries (DC). UNCTAD and WAIPA will sponsor participants from least developed countries (LDCs). The activities will take place in the framework of the China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT).

The overall objective of the workshop is to enhance the understanding by Asian investment promotion and tourism agencies and/or authorities of the nature, design and development of investment promotion strategies for attracting FDI into the tourism sector, including: Understanding investors' decision making;

FDI and sustainable tourism; Market studies and SWOT analysis; National tourism strategy, tourism inventory and the investor targeting strategy. Participants will be provided with a conceptual framework to attract FDI into the tourism sector as well as with illustrations of investment promotion strategies and some country case studies. To enhance the exchange of best practices, participants are requested to be ready to make brief presentations on their respective countries’ experiences in this area.

The training is tailored towards investment promotion executives of investment promotion and tourism agencies or authorities. To register, please contact Mrs. Isa-Beatrice Abel, at: isa-beatrice.abel@waipa.org or at the following telephone number: +41 22 797 26 63. Please note that the deadline for registration is 31 August 2006.

Please note that participants from Asian least developed countries (LDCs) should contact the UNCTAD Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, for sponsoring opportunities. The contact person is Ms. Claudia Layas, Investment Promotion Section, e-mail: claudia.layas@unctad.org , Tel. +41 22 907 58 85, Fax: +41 22 907 01 97.

Un UNCTAD-WAIPA Workshop on FDI in Tourism, 13-15 September 2006, Geneva, Switzerland

This UNCTAD-WAIPA training workshop is organized on the occasion of the International Business Meeting for the Development of Africa's Tourism Industry to be held on 10-15 September 2006, in Geneva, Switzerland. The workshop will take place from 13 to 15 September 2006.

The TourismAfrica2006 event is reserved for professionals, dedicated to Africa and conceived to contribute to the development of its tourist industry. Tourism Africa aims at promoting African destinations and tourist activities as well as fostering financing and investment of tourist projects in Africa. Meanwhile, an exhibition area especially for WAIPA members will be set up in the exhibition hall.

TourismAfrica2006 will provide free booths especially for the members of WAIPA. By participating in TourismAfrica2006, WAIPA members will have the opportunity to establish communication channels with tourist project holders in Africa, foreign financing bodies and investors as well as tourism industry suppliers, so as to further expand their investment promotion business.

We hereby warmly invite all WAIPA members to participate in the TourismAfrica2006 in Geneva, Switzerland, by contacting Mrs. Isa-Beatrice Abel, at: isa-beatrice.abel@waipa.org or at the following telephone number: +41 22 797 26 63.

Please find more information on: www.tourismafrica.com and www.waipa.org

Annual IEDC Meeting, 17-20 September 2006, New-York City , US – FREE PARTICIPATION FOR WAIPA MEMBERS !

To be successful in today’s rapidly changing global economy, communities must have lightning fast reflexes and the ability to communicate and collaborate across town, across the country and around the world. Like never before, the currency of economic growth is ideas. To tap into the new growth sectors and remain competitive, cities and towns require a new level of creativity and innovation.

The international Economic Development Council (IEDC) and the New York Host Committee recognize the implications of this new, flat world and are creating a world class economic development event. The Annual Conference agenda will present three days of in-depth analysis in five major tracks: “The Cutting Edge of Economic Development: Building Community Through Taking Risks”, “Attracting, Training and Retaining a Skilled Workforce to Compete in the Creative Economy”, “The Nuts and Bolts of Economic Development: Tools for Attracting New Investment and Building Strong Communities”, “High-Impact Real Estate Financing” and “Leveraging Urban, Suburban and Rural Assets for Sustained Economic Growth”.

The IEDC Annual Conference brings together more than 1,500 leaders in business, government, and academics to examine current economic development policy issues and debate solutions. Together they will share best practices, explore new strategies and listen to innovative leaders and the approaches they have taken to strengthen communities, build businesses and foster economic opportunity. It is an intensive learning and networking experience for participants, offering a wide range of dynamic choices, including over 50 plenary, concurrent, and seminar sessions, educational tours and outstanding keynote speakers.

WAIPA members are invited to participate in this event, free of charge. The expenditures for the meals and the accommodation will be borne by the participants. Should you be interested in participating in this event, please contact: karine.campanelli@waipa.org or isa-beatrice.abel@waipa.org .

For more information, please see: www.iedconline.org

This Cameroon workshop will examine the feasibility for developing sub-regional marketing strategies. The workshop will identify the advantages for promoting sub-regional groupings and examine the feasibility for cooperation between ACP countries. Participating IPAs at the workshop will explore the issues around developing sub-regional marketing strategies. Participants will be trained in how to apply the technique of location benchmarking to understand the competitive position of each sub-region identified, and how the region can be marketed more powerfully to inward investors. Lessons from the experience of other sub-regional groupings will be used to understand how in practice IPAs from different locations can pool resources and collaborate with a win-win outcome. The workshop will be led by Dr. Henry Loewendahl, Director of Strategic Development in OCO Consulting.

To register, please contact Mrs. Beatrice Abel, at: isa-beatrice.abel@waipa.org or at the following telephone number: +41 22 797 26 63. The deadline for registration is 15 September 2006. Please note that a few sponsoring opportunites are available for participants from ACP countries which will be allocated on a first come, first served basis .

This workshop on Investor Servicing and Aftercare which will be held on 17-18 October 2006 in Mexico City, Mexico, will kindly be hosted by BANCOMEXT. It will provide investment promotion agencies with a view to strengthen their proposal to respond to needs and requirements of investors. The workshop contains training topics such as “Your location's value proposition: a mean to attract investors” and “ Retaining FDI within your location and challenging competition”, among others. This event will be attended by promoters of all Mexican States and of industrial parks. A recognition diploma will be provided to all participants.

Bancomext will be able to get special rate for participants' accomodation, and especially for WAIPA members. Bancomext will also provide lunches during the two day workshop.

Last but not least, a tour of Mexico City and a visit of the Pyramids will be proposed for all panelists and participants, on Thursday, October 19.

More information is provided on: www.waipa.org

The OECD Glob al Forum on International Investment (GFII) is an annual event organised each year since 2001 under the auspices of OECD’s Investment Committee. It brings together investment policy makers, international organisations, as well as representatives from business, labour, academia and civil society to discuss current investment policy issues and challenges.

This year’s conference is co-hosted by the OECD and the Turkish government in Istanbul on 6-7 November 2006. It is organised with the financial support and in cooperation with the World Bank. Previous Global Forums have been held in Mexico, China, South Africa, India, and Brazil.

On the morning of 6 November a Country Roundtable will take place immediately prior to the Global Forum. It will cover Turkey’s recent experience with strategies for enhancing the enabling environment for investment. The main focus will be on various aspects of regulatory reform and their impact on Turkey’s investment climate. Immediately following this Country Roundtable, the 2006 Global Forum on International Investment will begin. The first session of the GFII will focus on the early experiences of countries in putting the recently completed Policy Framework for Investment (PFI) into action. Given the overall theme of the conference, the second half of this session will focus on the infrastructure chapter of the PFI in particular. The second day of the GFII will be dedicated to a focused discussion of the issue of international investor participation in infrastructure. This will serve as one of the final steps in testing the draft OECD Principles for International Investor Participation in Infrastructure on real-life cases. Countries participating in the ongoing OECD investment activities focusing on South-Eastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa will be sharing their national experiences.

Investment promotion agencies (IPAs) from all parts of the world recognize the emerging role of developing and transition economies as sources of foreign direct investment (FDI). A new UNCTAD survey shows that 74% of IPAs already target FDI from these economies. The interest is particularly pronounced among IPAs in the developing world, in which “South-South” FDI accounts for a large share of total inflows.

The full Investment Brief is available on www.waipa.org and www.unctad.org