23/10/2002 - The 2002 annual conference of the OECD Global Forum on International Investment (GFII) will be held in Shanghai, China, on 5-6 December 2002, hosted by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation.

The main theme this year's GFII is: "Attracting Foreign Direct Investment for Development". The objective of the conference is to achieve progress in three distinct fields, which OECD committees are currently exploring:

• The development of good practices in creating an enabling environment for investment including in the area of investment incentives;
• Maximising development benefits, including through linkages with local enterprises and supply chain management; and
• Improved insight on official development assistance and FDI linkages, and the extent to which the liberalisation of FDI and that of other financial flows are mutually supportive.

The GFII is an open and inclusive platform to discuss emerging investment issues among key international stakeholders. It aims to share the wide range of experiences of OECD Member countries with non-discriminatory investment policies, corporate responsibility and standard setting, building on the OECD's long-standing relationship with the investors' community, labour, NGOs and non-Members. It also aims to learn from the varied experiences and perspectives of non-OECD countries.

The chosen theme of the GFII Shanghai conference responds to the international community's calls at the WTO Ministerial Declaration in Doha last November, the Monterrey Consensus in March 2002, and the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in August/September 2002, to mobilise international investment in support of development. It will draw on OECD committee analytical and policy development work, as well as co-operation with key investment actors.

Participants in the conference will include high-level officials from OECD and non-OECD economies in charge of investment policy, promotion and development issues. Multilateral and regional institutions invited include, inter alia, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the World Trade Organisation, the World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies, the Asian Development Bank, the Association of South-East Asian Nations, the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation, the European Commission, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Inter-American Development Bank, the African Development Bank, and the Black Sea Economic Co-operation. There will also be strong presence from business, labour, academia and civil society organisations.

This event will also provide the opportunity for an exploratory meeting in the afternoon of 6 December 2002 in Shanghai, limited to representatives of OECD member countries, Emerging Asian countries, multilateral organisations, and businesses, to discuss recent investment trends, challenges and prospects in Asia, and share ideas on a possible OECD investment initiative for the region.

Conference agenda, papers and further details will be posted on http://www.oecd.org/daf/investment as they become available.

Attendance is by invitation only and registration is required. Journalists are welcome, with advance registration.

For further information on the conference please contact Mehmet Ögütçü, Head, Non-Members Liaison Group and Global Forum on International Investment, DAF CMIS, (tel. [33] 1 45 24 93 35 or mailto:mehmet.ogutcu@oecd.org) orDavid Woodruff (tel. [33] 1 45 24 24 81 18 or mailto:david.woodruff@oecd.org ) for media inquiries.