World Investment Report 2024

About World Investment Report

• It focuses on trends in foreign direct investment (FDI) worldwide, at the regional and country levels and emerging measures to improve its contribution to development.

Key highlights of the report

• Global foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2023 decreased marginally, by 2 per cent.
• FDI flows to developing countries fell by 7 per cent to $867 billion, mainly due to an 8 per cent decrease in developing Asia.
• China, the second largest FDI recipient in the world, saw a rare decline in inflows.
• Industry trends showed lower investment in the infrastructure and digital economy sectors, but strong growth in the global value chain-intensive sectors of manufacturing and critical minerals.
• International investment in sectors relevant for the Sustainable Development Goals in developing countries declined in 2023.

Key facts about the UN Conference on Trade and Development

• It is the UN’s leading institution dealing with trade and development.
• It is a permanent intergovernmental body established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1964. 
• Its objective is to assist developing countries, especially the least developed countries, and countries with economies in transition, to integrate beneficially into the global economy.
• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
• UNCTAD membership consists of 195 states.

Q1: What is a foreign direct investment (FDI)?

It is a substantial, lasting investment made by a company or government into a foreign concern. FDI investors typically take controlling positions in domestic firms or joint ventures and are actively involved in their management.

Source: Green signal: Significant foreign investment in Africa’s clean energy sector in 2023 encouraging, says UNCTAD