Investment Guarantees and International Obligations to Reduce Poverty: A Human Rights Perspective

Abstract

The paper addresses national and international investment guarantee schemes proving political risk insurances as one element of international investment law. The paper proposes to frame the analysis of investment guarantees and poverty reduction in a human rights context. The normative basis for such a framework can be found in the international and potential extraterritorial dimension of economic and social human rights, in particular the right to an adequate standard of living. It is argued that states and international organisations offering investment guarantees are bound by these human rights and have positive obligations to support foreign investment which helps to reduce poverty and to refuse guarantees to projects which would contribute to or increase the risk of poverty. The contribution assesses the practice of different national investment guarantee agencies and of MIGA on a preliminary basis to establish if and how the respective states and international organisations fulfil these obligations.