Global level Sample Clauses

Global level. The first IPPAs date back to the post-war era in Europe and were signed amid a political context of widespread concern among developed countries over the possible spread of communism and the impact on new trade interests arising from decolonisation. Accordingly, the initial agreements were based on a single aspect of the investment process: the protection of foreign investments and capital. Furthermore, given that the agreements were signed bilaterally between home and host countries, they did not give rise to the creation of institutions or processes to analyse or assess the success or failure of the agreements. The whole post-war era was in fact, dominated by a “State diplomacy" system of protecting foreign direct investment, whereby the backing given to investors depended on the will of the State of origin. But it was not until recently that IPPAs gained real impetus: there were less than 400 IPPAs at the end of the 80s compared with almost 2500 in 2005 (UNCTAD, 2006) (see table 2). Both developed and developing countries have taken part in this process, and although the former account for the majority of the agreements signed (40% of the total), a sizeable percentage of the agreements have been signed between developing countries (26% of the total). The greatest dynamic in this respect has come from Asia-Pacific countries (40% of the total). Additionally, the number of cases presented to international arbitration mechanisms (mainly ICSID) has risen sharply: from 5 at the end of the eighties to over 200 at the end of 2005, two thirds of which are concentrated in the present decade.