Box V.4. UNCTAD survey on openness to TNCs in infrastructure: some preliminary findings
In research for WIR08, UNCTAD conducted a special survey of its member States to examine their level of
openness to TNC involvement in infrastructure industries. Questions were related to the extent to which the legal
framework allowed private and foreign companies to participate; what forms of involvement were allowed; possible
requirements on foreign companies; and possible incentives offered to attract TNCs. The survey focused on legal
aspects rather than actual private or foreign involvement. The questionnaire was distributed in March 2008 and by mid
July, 26 governments had responded.
In general, the survey results confirm the patterns found in other studies (box table V.4.1). The overall picture
is one of relatively high levels of openness. For example, all responding countries stated that TNC involvement was
allowed in electricity generation, and at least 80% of the countries allowed it in roads, seaports, airports, electricity
distribution, mobile telephony, water supply and sewage infrastructure. In most industries, developed countries are
more open to both private and foreign company involvement. However, in airports, seaports and mobile telephony, the
share of developing and transition economies that were open was higher than that of developed countries.
In network industries, such as railways and electricity transmission, only 60-70% of the respondents
stated that TNCs were allowed to participate. The water industry was more open than expected; all
developed countries and almost three quarters of the other economies allowed TNC participation. Somewhat
surprisingly, more countries permitted TNCs to engage in water supply than in sewage infrastructure.
Openness to foreign TNCs appears to be highly,
though not entirely, correlated with openness to private
companies. In telecommunications, however, while all
respondents allowed private participation, only 79% and
88% of them allowed TNCs to participate in fixed and
mobile services respectively. Due to the relatively low response rate, the above
analysis is a preliminary assessment. A more complete
analysis of relevant issues will be prepared by UNCTAD
once a sufficiently large number of responses have been
obtained from member States. That analysis will include
detailed information on the forms of involvement that are
permitted by different countries, possible requirements
imposed as well as incentives offered.
Source: UNCTAD.
Eighteen developing and transition economies: Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, the Dominican Republic, Egypt,
Gabon, Guinea, Indonesia, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Qatar, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago and Turkey; and
eight developed countries: the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Japan, Romania and Switzerland.
A growing number of countries have moved
beyond the removal of barriers to TNC involvement
in selected infrastructure industries to promoting it
actively. This section presents the findings of a joint
UNCTAD and the World Association of Investment
Promotion Agencies (WAIPA) survey of the role of
investment promotion agencies (IPAs) in attracting
FDI in infrastructure and related services (box V.5).