ABSTRACT
Natural resources are important for both developing and developed countries given their significant contribution to economic activity. States need to use and manage natural resources carefully to achieve sustainable development. Sustainable use and management of natural resources are also necessary to reduce the potential for resource depletion and environmental degradation. Increased foreign investment in the natural resources sector of developing countries plays an important role in promoting sustainable development, especially in countries that are heavily reliant on natural resources for economic growth and wellbeing. Sustainability has become a vital component in contemporary management of natural resources by governments. Foreign investment is increasingly viewed as having the potential to promote sustainable development. National treatment and most favoured nation (MFN) principles afford protection from the imposition of natural resource management measures by a state where these may have a discriminatory effect.
