The Relationship between Foreign Investment Policies in Colombia and the International Investment Agreements

The paper reflects on the implications of the foreign investment protection and promotion agreements (fipa) and the investment chapters of the free trade agreements (fta) for countries with a level of development similar to that of Colombia and, consequently, on the importance of establishing clear policies on foreign investment and a robust model to measure the benefits for the country’s development but also the risks in terms of regulatory capacity and international liability for non-compliance with the obligations acquired through these agreements. For this purpose, the paper refers to some particularly sensitive protection standards and, from there, analyses the evolution of Colombia’s internal investment policy during different government periods based on the relevant provisions of the national development plans, the documents of the National Council for Economic and Social Policy (ncesp) and the model treaties drafted by different governments. This analysis seeks to identify whether Colombia has, so far in this century, established thorough policies for the negotiation and conclusion of investment treaties, and whether the concluded treaties correspond to the proposed models and protect the interests of the State. The study is justified by the increase of significant investment disputes against Colombia in the last two years, several of which are already materialized in procedures before the icsid.