São Paulo – Alongside other 121 countries, Brazil finalized on Sunday (25) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, an investment facilitation agreement intended to simplify operations between the signatories, provide more predictability to investors, and promote a responsible business behavior in international operations. The signing came one day prior to the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference that is taking place on Monday (26) through Thursday (29) in the Arab country.
“It is of great significance to establish global minimum standards for investment transparence, simplification and facilitation, not to mention dispute prevention,” Brazil’s Foreign Trade Secretary Tatiana Prazeres (pictured), who’s representing Brazil’s ministry of development and industry in the conference in Dubai, was quoted as saying in a press release. “And this agreement features clauses that require investors to make social and environmental commitments,” she said.
According to ministry, the Agreement on Investment Facilitation for Development (AFID) had been drafted since 2017, with a strong role from Brazil, which has a well-established expertise in the field. According to numbers from industry group CNI, the AFID has the potential to boost the Brazilian GDP by 2.1% within five years, with investments rising by 5.9%. Countries that signed the agreement include Arab Bahrain, Djibouti, Kuwait, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Yemen.
Translation by Guilherme Miranda
