This report finds that growth strategies which fail to tackle poverty or climate change will prove to be unsustainable, and vice versa. A common denominator to the success of both agendas is infrastructure development. 

What happens to clean infrastructure finance when countries are big and fast-growing but have immature financial systems and a scarcity of long-term domestic investors? The Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) compares two different financing models from middle income countries: the highly centralized model of Brazil and the decentralized model from India. 

About US$90 trillion in infrastructure investment is needed globally by 2030 to achieve global growth expectations, particularly in developing countries. To achieve this, infrastructure investment needs to be both scaled up and climate objectives need to be integrated due to climate risks. The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate recommends that G20 and other countries adopt key principles ensuring the integration of climate risk and climate objectives in national infrastructure policies and plans. 

This report documents a wide range of projects, programmes and plans currently being pursued by African cities as part of a new mode of low-carbon urbanism that is simultaneously helping to realise virtuous cycles of local economic development and social inclusion, as well as climate risk reduction. 

A staggering one-third of all agricultural landscapes are now degraded, mostly in developing countries, and a net 12 million hectares (ha) continue to be degraded yearly. But commitment to change is growing. The report highlights significant regional achievements being implemented, such as Initiative 20×20, through which seven Latin American countries and partners have pledged to bring 20 million ha of land into restoration by 2020, and the Africa Climate-Smart Agriculture Alliance, which aims to engage 6 million smallholders by 2021. 

This report defines sprawl and its alternative, “smart growth,” describes various costs and benefits of sprawl, and estimates their magnitude. It identifies policy distortions that encourage sprawl and discusses factors to consider when determining the optimal amount and type of urban expansion for various types of cities. 

The costs of fossil fuel subsidies far outweigh the benefits when considering the full economic, social, and environmental impact of these subsidies in sub-Saharan Africa. If done right, phasing out fossil fuel subsidies in sub-Saharan Africa will lower greenhouse gas emissions, reduce air pollution, and create the fiscal space to provide access to energy and meet social development objectives. 

This note describes the Commission’s assessment of future infrastructure investment needs. It presents projections for a baseline scenario, and the estimated incremental investment required for a low-carbon scenario. It sets out the sources used and provides an overview of the estimates and modelling undertaken by the New Climate Economy (NCE) network.