The Global Infrastructure Outlook report released yesterday said spending such amount would also enable the country to attain UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The report showed that between 2007 and 2015 the country spent an average of 7.7 per cent, which was considerably lower than the required 12 per cent yearly.

Global Infrastructure Hub Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Chris Heathcote said the report released showed that the country was currently spending 206 billion US dollars on its infrastructure against an investment need of 321 billion US dollars until 2040.

“Outlook tells…how much each country needs to spend on infrastructure to 2040, where that need is for each infrastructure sector, and what their gap is, based on their current spending trends,” Mr Heathcote said.

The CEO said in a statement that the report gave the country and sector spending data that governments and funding organisations have been calling for. For instance, in order to achieve SDGs, an additional investment of 57 US billion dollars with all of this required in the electricity sector, taking the overall total to 378 billion US dollars.

The report also showed that GDP was expected to increase more than four-fold between 2015 and 2040, which was an indication that the required amount is attainable with an average annual rate of growth of 6.0 per cent.

Globally, the report, prepared by Global Infrastructure Hub, showed that infra investment needs to reach 97 trillion US dollars by 2040. GI Hub outlines infrastructure investment needs globally and individually for 50 countries and seven sectors.

The report also reveals the cost of providing infrastructure to support global economic growth and to start to close infrastructure gaps.

The gap was forecasted to reach 94trilion US dollars by 2040, with a further 3.5 trillion US dollars needed to meet the UN’s SDGs for universal household access to drinking water and electricity by 2030.

“This is not just a major challenge for emerging countries that need to create new infrastructure, but also for advanced countries that have ageing systems that have to be replaced,” the report showed.

The United States will have the largest gap in infrastructure spending, at 3.8 trillion US dollars, while China will have the greatest demand, at 28 trillion US dollars, representing a massive 30 per cent of global infrastructure investment needs.

Source: Daily News

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