Unctad’s World Investment Forum in Abu Dhabi

The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) will hold the World Investment Forum 2023 to rally investments for climate action, clean energy, health care, food security and other development needs.
Heads of state, more than 50 government ministers, over 150 CEOs of leading companies and stock exchanges, and thousands of investment stakeholders – from sovereign wealth fund managers and investment treaty negotiators to heads of international organizations – will participate in more than 130 events co-organized with over 80 partners..
According to UNCTAD’s World Investment Report 2023, overlapping crises such as the war in Ukraine, high food and energy prices and debt pressures led to a 12% decline in global foreign direct investment in 2022.
On climate action, this eighth edition of the World Investment Forum will highlight investment solutions that will feed into negotiations at the 28th UN climate change conference (COP28) scheduled for late November and December in Dubai.
Forum participants will agree on actions to boost clean energy investments in developing countries, which face an investment gap of $2.2 trillion annually for the transition to low-carbon energy, according to the World Investment Report 2023.
The forum will also address how the sustainable finance market can help build a low-carbon future and increase investment in sustainable energy.
The value of the global sustainable finance market (bonds, funds and voluntary carbon markets) reached $5.8 trillion in 2022, despite the turbulent economic environment, including high inflation, rising interest rates, poor market returns and the looming risk of a recession that all affected the financial markets.
The forum will also explore opportunities to boost investment in health care. Developing countries alone need at least $100 billion in additional investment in health-care facilities and infrastructure each year.
They will also examine how to increase public and private sector investment in agrifood systems to reduce food insecurity, foster rural employment, particularly for women and youth, and increase incomes.
Countries need up to $350 billion annually for the next decade to transform agrifood systems, which can also help tackle climate change and biodiversity loss.
The forum will also offer countries a platform to translate their commitments on investment facilitation into tangible actions and reforms.
Countries will explore how to make their investment facilitation services inclusive and address the specific needs of sectors and investor groups with a high development impact, such as social entrepreneurs and women, youth and rural investors.