2012 Reports

Law at two speeds: Legal frameworks regulating foreign investment in the global South

Cotula, Lorenzo

The global legal system regulating foreign investment in lower-income countries is more geared towards enabling secure transnational investment flows than it is towards ensuring that these flows benefit people in recipient countries. There is a need to improve national and international law safeguards for rights that may be affected by investment flows, and to strengthen local capacity to exercise those rights and get a better deal from incoming investment.