Governments adopted a record 229 investment policy measures in 2025: UNCTAD

GENEVA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 12th Jul, 2026) Foreign investment is not falling out of favour with governments. But the rules governing it are changing.

According to the World Investment Report 2026 by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), governments adopted a record 229 investment policy measures in 2025.

While most remained favourable to investors, policymakers are increasingly steering investment towards industries they see as critical for growth, resilience, technological leadership and economic security.

The shift reflects a broader change in how countries view investment. The question is no longer simply how to attract more capital. Increasingly, it is how to attract investment that supports national priorities.

The record number of measures adopted in 2025 was not driven by a return to protectionism.

Of the 229 measures introduced worldwide, 167 were favourable to investors, accounting for 73% of the total. But unlike previous decades, when governments often focused on broad liberalization, today's measures are increasingly designed to channel investment towards specific sectors, technologies and activities.

Developing Asia remained the most active region, with policies focused on industrial upgrading, digital transformation and green investment. Europe concentrated on industrial policy initiatives and investment screening, while Latin America and the Caribbean continued to emphasize investment facilitation and investor retention.

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In Africa, favourable measures also outnumbered restrictive ones.

At the same time, governments are paying closer attention to where investment comes from and what sectors it targets.

Restrictive measures accounted for 27% of all policy changes in 2025, up from 19% in 2016. Much of that increase was linked to investment screening and national security concerns. The number of economies operating investment screening regimes rose from 21 in 2016 to 52 in 2025.

Screening has expanded particularly in sectors involving critical technologies, sensitive data, infrastructure and strategic assets.

Yet the report also finds that outright rejection remains uncommon. Fewer than 1% of screened projects were blocked, suggesting that most governments continue to balance security concerns with the need to attract investment.

The policy challenge is to keep screening transparent, targeted and risk-based, so governments can protect legitimate security interests without creating unnecessary uncertainty or closing off development opportunities.

The shift towards strategic and security-sensitive investment is also putting pressure on the international investment agreement system. Countries signed 44 investment agreements in 2025, with newer treaties increasingly emphasizing facilitation and cooperation. But disputes continue to rely heavily on old-generation treaties.