European Round Table of Industrialists

MISSION :

This Working Group was active from 1990 until 1999. It was chaired by Helmut Maucher.

In 1990, the ERT Plenary agreed a proposal to set up a new Working Group to examine prospects for direct investment by European companies in the developing world, to assess the mutual benefits and to analyse the obstacles.

In 1993, the Working Group produced a policy report: "European Industry: a partner of the developing world - Foreign Direct Investment as a tool for Economic Development and Cooperation - Suggestions for Future Improvements". The report argued that corporate investment in the developing world ought to bring simultaneous benefits to the investing company and the host country, providing it is well-managed and providing public policy obstacles are not too damaging. The report was supported by a survey of developing countries, identifying those most active in removing obstacles to investment. The report and survey were presented at a conference in Geneva in September 1993 and the conference proceedings summarised in a new report "European Industry and the Developing World - a dialogue between partners" (January 1994).

Two subsequent reports, "Investment in the Developing World - New Openings and Challenges for European Industry" (December 1996) and "European Industry and the Developing World: For a Global Framework of mutual interest and trust" (June 1997) responded to fears in the developing world that Europe's investment priority would be the countries of central and eastern Europe, now that communism was collapsing.

A final report in June 2000 "Improved Investment Conditions - Third Survey on improvements in conditions for investment in the developing world" was published jointly with the United Nations and the International Chamber of Commerce. It revealed significant progress in many developing countries in terms of deregulation, adapting to global requirements and modernising rules and institutions, while identifying barriers that still remained.

KEY MESSAGES :

Improved Investment Conditions - Third survey on improvements in conditions for investment in the developing world

May 2000

The report is based on the results of a survey of some 33 developing countries, conducted in cooperation with the United Nations and the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce).

The study covers the years from 1997 to 1999 and was the third in a series (the first survey covered 1987 to 1992, the second 1993 to 1996).

The report demonstrated that over the last three years, the 33 developing countries surveyed had continued to open up their economies to private investment, and to deregulate and modernise the rules and institutions relevant to business and adapt them to global requirements. This very positive development had even gained in speed and focus since ERT's first survey.

The report mapped out areas where progress had been particularly significant and also identified some of the impediments that still remained.

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European Industry and the Developing World For a Global Framework of Mutual Interest and Trust

June 1997

ERT called on governments, international organisations and private investors to intensify their discussions on setting up a new framework agreement that reflected the reality of global trading by developing countries. This contribution was based on practical experience and original research. The common objective was to establish a new and coherent set of global rules for international and local private investment.

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Investment in the Developing World - New Openings and Challenges for European Industry

December 1996

ERT updated its original 1993 survey on the conditions for foreign direct investment (FDI) in 28 developing countries around the world, in Africa, Asia, India, Latin America and also Turkey. Progress nearly everywhere towards modernisation and market liberalisation had been amazingly rapid, with countries benchmarking their performances against each other. Potential investors were called on to study the potential in each country and work with the host country on FDI.

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European Industry and the Developing World - A Dialogue between Partners

January 1994

This report summarised the reactions of diplomats and industrialists to the ERT report published in 1993, entitled "European Industry: a Partner of the Developing World - Foreign Direct Investment as a tool for economic development and cooperation" (August 1993), and the original survey on which the report's conclusions were based. The globalisation of world trade was causing rapid change on a massive scale, which Europeans could no longer afford to ignore.

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European Industry: A Partner of the Developing World - Foreign Direct Investment as a tool for economic development and cooperation

August 1993

This report propagated the role of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as a tool for economic development. It shows that FDI is a positive-sum game, with FDI from Europe to developing countries usually supporting the growth of local purchasing power, which in turn leads to increased exports of investment and consumer goods from Europe. The report underlines that companies can make an important contribution to the developing world by investing there and solving practical problems pragmatically.

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