L’investissement étranger au service du développement durable

The report analyzes the surge in foreign acquisitions and long-term leases of agricultural land and water, driven by food and energy security concerns and the 2008 food crisis. It highlights a critical lack of transparency and public contracts, which obscures the impact on local communities. The authors argue that a complex interplay between national laws, investment contracts, and International Investment Agreements (IIAs) often prioritizes foreign investor protections over the rights of local users and the regulatory autonomy of host states, potentially hindering sustainable development and public health measures.

• Foreign investment in arable land has been driven by short-term factors such as the 2008 food price spikes and export restrictions by at least 25 countries, including India, Russia, Argentina, and Vietnam, as well as high oil prices in 2007 and early 2008.
• Water access is a primary driver for these investments, as investors seek to secure water reserves in countries with high untapped irrigation potential, such as Sub-Saharan Africa, where only 2% of freshwater resources are used for irrigation.
• There is a severe lack of transparency regarding land deals, with few actual contracts available to the public or NGOs, which increases risks of corruption and undermines government accountability.
• Current land investment trends shift agricultural use from local needs to 'long-distance agriculture' intended to satisfy the food and energy requirements of the investor's home country, effectively commodifying land and water.
• Investment contracts often include 'stabilization clauses' that exclude or require compensation for new or modified regulatory measures, a practice particularly frequent in contracts with African countries.
• International Investment Agreements (IIAs), such as Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs), often prevail over national law, allowing investors to challenge government actions through investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanisms.
• The 'fair and equitable treatment' standard in IIAs can protect an investor's 'legitimate expectations' regarding water access, potentially overriding the needs of local smallholders or drinking water requirements.
• IIAs may prohibit 'performance requirements,' which can limit a host state's ability to mandate that investors contribute to local development through local hiring, technology transfer, or profit sharing.
• Host governments face legal uncertainty when implementing public health or environmental regulations, as such measures may be interpreted by arbitration panels as 'indirect expropriation' requiring compensation.
• Trade measures, such as export restrictions used during food crises, may be challenged by foreign investors as violations of investment treaties that guarantee the right to export production.

APA

Smaller, C., & Mann, H. (2011). L’investissement étranger au service du développement durable. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/thirst_for_distant_lands_fr.pdf

Chicago

Smaller, Carin, and Howard Mann. L’investissement étranger au service du développement durable. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2011. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/thirst_for_distant_lands_fr.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Smaller |first1=Carin |last2=Mann |first2=Howard |title=L’investissement étranger au service du développement durable |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=2011 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/thirst_for_distant_lands_fr.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{smaller2011linvestissement, author = {Smaller, Carin and Mann, Howard}, title = {{L’investissement étranger au service du développement durable}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2011}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/thirst_for_distant_lands_fr.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }