Foreign Direct Investment, Income Inequality and Poverty: Experiences and Policy Implications
Speakers:
Carolyn Jenkins - Centre for the Studies of African Economies, University of Oxford
Eddy Lee, Director International Policy Group, ILO, Geneva
Simon Maxwell, Director, Overseas Development Institute, London
Watipaso Mkandawire, Regional Investment Agency Unit, COMESA, Lusaka
Michael Mortimore, Chief , Unit on Investment and Corporate Strategies, United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Chile
Sheila Page - Research Fellow, Overseas Development Institute, London
Dirk Willem te Velde - Research Fellow, Overseas Development Institute, London
Description
Many developing country governments regard the attraction of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as a policy priority. Much has been said about the effects of FDI, but little is known about the distributional impact and what policies might help to improve the developmental impact of FDI. Is FDI good for development, income distribution and the poor? Does FDI help to provide decent work? What are the channels through which FDI affects development? What type of policies have helped improve the developmental ompact of FDI where? What is the role of corporate strategies, host country policies and international policies? Presentations aim to shed light on one or more of these questions, building on evidence from around the world, including Sub Saharan Africa and Latin America.