The 8th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) in Xiamen, China (8-12 September 2004) attracted 11,841 participants from 118 countries and regions, including delegations sent by 300 overseas institutions from 64 countries and regions, 8 groups from international organizations, 79 groups from governmental institutes, 106 groups from multinational corporations and world well-known enterprises, 82 groups from commercial association and 25 other groups from international friendship cities or other circles. During the fair, the investment and trade negotiations were very enthusiastic, and a large number of contracts and agreements of investment and trade were signed. In the Matchmaking Symposium for FDI in China, 288 overseas investors from 40 countries and regions set up negotiation tables, and more than 1,800 matchmaking meetings were held. As a result, 13 investment agreements were signed on site with the investment amount reaching 1.977 billion US dollars. China Investment Promotion Agency (CIPA) - Ministry of Commerce, WAIPA and UNCTAD and other international organizations co-sponsored this year’s CIFIT. Mr. Kai Hammerich, the President of WAIPA, and UNCTAD attended the official opening of CIFIT on 8 September.

WAIPA and UNCTAD conducted a workshop on investor aftercare and corporate development services as part of the programme at CIFIT 8. The workshop was organized from 10-12 September 2004 as a joint endeavour between UNCTAD, WAIPA and CIPA, under the sponsorship of Ernst & Young. The workshop was aimed at introducing the concept of investor aftercare and CDS to 20 participants from Chinese IPAs at the sub-national level, mainly among provincial level IPAs and IPAs from the country’s Special Economic Zones. The workshop was opened by Ms. Zhou Ming, the Deputy Director-General of CIPA, and followed by a keynote address by Mr. Hammerich. Mr. Hammerich also presided over an investors’ panel discussion on the topic of investor aftercare, which including the CEOs of the foreign subsidiaries of Matsushita, Philips, HSBC and Coca Cola located in Xiamen.

During CIFIT, a number of meetings were held between the WAIPA President, Vice-President (CIPA-MOFCOM) and UNCTAD regarding a number of issues of interest to the membership of WAIPA, and which will be included in the agenda of the forthcoming Steering Committee meeting in November 2004.

Mr. Rubens Ricupero Bids Farewell to UNCTAD
14 September 2004 - On his last day as Secretary-General of UNCTAD from September 1995 to September 2004, Mr. Rubens Ricupero delivered the 12th Raúl Prebisch Lecture to a packed audience at the United Nations Office at Geneva, Switzerland. He reflected on the 40 years of UNCTAD – the changes in the economic and political environment and how they have influenced UNCTAD´s mandate. As a philosopher and humanist he also gave his personal views on what should be the development priorities of poor countries.
The lecture also served as a platform for the launching of a book, entitled BEYOND CONVENTIONAL WISDOM IN DEVELOPMENT POLICY - AN INTELLECTUAL HISTORY OF UNCTAD (1964-2004). This book commemorating the fortieth anniversary of the establishment of UNCTAD shows how UNCTAD´s work has evolved and identifies some of the major intellectual contributions that the organization has made in terms of both analytical views and policy proposals. This book is not intended as an official history of the organization but as a collection of articles, each describing how a particular topic in UNCTAD´s analytical work has evolved. While the substantive elements of each paper are basically personal reflections, they are supported by the official documents listed in the "references" section at the end of each paper. These documents represent some of important research or policy contributions accomplished by the organization. Many of these documents (together with some additional ones) are also reproduced on a CD-ROM attached to the inside back-cover of the book.
In a thought-provoking preface to the book, Mr. Ricupero gives his personal reflections on his nine years at UNCTAD. He reviews the major historical events of the last four decades and shows how they have contributed to UNCTAD´s changing role and mandate. The full publication can be downloaded at http://www.unctad.org/Templates/webflyer.asp.
The UN Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, has appointed the Deputy Secretary-General of UNCTAD, Mr. Carlos Fortin, as Acting Secretary-General of UNCTAD.

New publication on investment related issues
UNCTAD, World Investment Report 2004. WIR04 was launched by UNCTAD on 22 September 2004 and presents the latest trends in foreign direct investment and explores the shift towards services, with a special analysis of offshoring service activities.

Part One discusses recent global and regional trends in FDI and international production by TNCs. Global FDI flows bottomed out in 2003, but there were some regional differences. The sectoral pattern of FDI is shifting towards services. Outward FDI from developing countries is becoming significant. There is also optimism that inflows to these countries will increase in 2004 and beyond.

Part Two deals with FDI in services - an important but often neglected area of FDI in the context of development. It examines the shift of FDI towards services with a focus on the entry of TNCs into new service areas. Services FDI, especially in intermediate and infrastructure services, affects the economic performance of a host-country in all sectors. The offshoring of corporate services is taking off rapidly, thanks to advances in information and communications technologies. However, the potential of such offshoring can only be harnessed if countries adopt appropriate policies. This section should be of particular interest to IPAs, as services were identified by a recent UNCTAD survey as one of the most promising areas of growth by investment promotion professionals.

Part Three analyses key issues relating to national and international policies on FDI in services. As many services are deeply embedded in the social, cultural and political fabric of host societies, the impact of FDI on those services could be far-reaching. Therefore, national policies matter - not only to attract FDI in services, but also to maximize its benefits and minimize its potential negative impacts. The proliferation of international investment agreements (IIAs) covering FDI in services has resulted in a multifaceted and multilayered network of international rules that affect national policy-making.

The WIR04 includes a substantial statistical annex, which is also available on CD-ROM. WAIPA Members should have received a copy of the WIR04. Additional copies can be ordered through the UNCTAD website (www.unctad.org).

MIGA Symposium - International Political Risk Management: Looking to the Future
The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) of the World Bank Group is organizing the Fourth Biennial Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency- Georgetown University Symposium for Practitioners from the Investment, Lender, and Insurance Communities on November 12, 2004. The topic for the Symposium is International Political Risk Management: Looking to the Future - Identifying and Managing the Critical Challenges Facing the Market. The event will be held at the InterCultural Center of Georgetown University, between 37th and O Streets, NW, Washington, D.C. Further information can be received by telephone (202-687-5895), fax (202-687-6033) or
e-mail : polriskconf2004@georgetown.edu

Other forthcoming events
• The 2004 annual conference of the OECD Global Forum on International Investment (GFII) along with a series of associated events will take place in New Delhi, India, on 19-21 October 2004. GFII will be hosted by the Government of India and supported by the Confederation of Indian Industry.
• The WAIPA Steering Committee Meeting will be held on 4 November 2004 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. All Steering Committee Members have been sent their invitation letters. The SC Meeting follows the UNCTAD Expert Group Meeting on Good Governance in Investment Promotion (1-3 November 2004), which the SC Members are also invited to attend.
For further information, please contact the WAIPA Secretariat.