A Progressive Investment Agenda for Canada: Going beyond nice words

This report by the International Institute for Sustainable Development analyzes the Government of Canada's 'progressive and inclusive' trade and investment agenda. It argues that Canada's current model, based on investment protection and liberalization, fails to align with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and creates risks through investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanisms. The author urges the government to use upcoming consultations on the model foreign investment promotion and protection agreement (FIPA) to fundamentally rethink investment governance rather than making marginal procedural fixes.

• Since 2004, Canada has utilized an investment protection and liberalization model, primarily for treaties with developing countries, which prohibits host governments from requiring local content, technology transfer, or research and development to promote their own economic development. This model has been applied to 20 bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and nine free trade agreements (FTAs) involving 25 developing country partners.
• The investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism has led to significant legal challenges and financial costs. Canadian companies have sued governments 45 times under BITs and FTAs, with the largest award against a developing country reaching USD 1.2 billion. Conversely, the Government of Canada has faced 27 cases, 26 of which were brought by U.S. investors under NAFTA, resulting in USD 37 million in ordered payments and USD 136 million in disclosed settlements.
• Recent agreements like CETA and CPTPP are characterized as 'damage control' rather than progressive shifts. While CETA introduced a more permanent judicial ISDS system and prevents claims from investments established through corruption, the CPTPP lacks these elements. Both agreements are criticized for maintaining a narrow focus on protection and liberalization without integrating corporate social responsibility (CSR) or sustainable development goals into enforceable obligations.
• The report argues that for Canada to achieve a truly progressive investment agenda, it must integrate its negotiation objectives with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This includes revisiting prohibitions on performance requirements that hinder developing countries' ability to maximize gains from foreign direct investment and moving away from a one-sided focus on investor protection toward promoting investment that supports sustainable development.

APA

Bernasconi-Osterwalder,, N. (2018). A Progressive Investment Agenda for Canada: Going beyond nice words. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/articles/policy-analysis/progressive-investment-agenda-canada-going-beyond-nice-words

Chicago

Bernasconi-Osterwalder,, Nathalie. A Progressive Investment Agenda for Canada: Going beyond nice words. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2018. https://www.iisd.org/articles/policy-analysis/progressive-investment-agenda-canada-going-beyond-nice-words.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bernasconi-Osterwalder, |first1=Nathalie |title=A Progressive Investment Agenda for Canada: Going beyond nice words |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=9 August 2018 |url=https://www.iisd.org/articles/policy-analysis/progressive-investment-agenda-canada-going-beyond-nice-words |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bernasconiosterwalder2018progressive, author = {Bernasconi-Osterwalder,, Nathalie}, title = {{A Progressive Investment Agenda for Canada: Going beyond nice words}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2018}, month = aug, url = {https://www.iisd.org/articles/policy-analysis/progressive-investment-agenda-canada-going-beyond-nice-words}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }