by Antoinette Salmata Gabby Hayes
Achieving Net Zero is a crucial objective in the fight against climate change due to its potential to significantly mitigate the impacts of global warming and preserve the Earth’s fragile climate system. This concept, which aims to balance the amount of greenhouse gases emitted with the amount removed from the atmosphere, has gained increasing attention in recent years as a vital strategy in combating climate change because by reaching Net Zero, we can effectively halt further damage to our planet’s climate system.
The International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) recognizes the urgent need to address this global challenge and in their report titled “Closing the Sustainable Infrastructure Gap to Achieve Net Zero”, they highlight the significance of adopting sustainable practices in infrastructure development to achieve this objective.
According to the United Nations, fossil fuels are by far the largest contributors to global climate change, accounting for over 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions and nearly 90% of all carbon dioxide emissions. To curb this situation, interventions and commitments have been outlined globally, with the best call being sustainable infrastructure to achieve net zero. This means that the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced should not be higher than the amount taken away.
The release of this insightful report could not come at a more opportune time, as the world grapples with the urgent need to combat climate change and work towards achieving net zero emissions. The report focuses on the challenges faced by consulting engineering firms globally in addressing climate change and closing the sustainable infrastructure gap.
The FIDIC report emphasizes the need for effective governance, technical solutions, and restricted finance in the infrastructure sector to address sustainability challenges and achieve net zero. Technical solutions are required to develop sustainable infrastructure projects that reduce carbon emissions and promote renewable energy. Effective governance is necessary to ensure that these projects are implemented efficiently and effectively. Restricted finance is needed to ensure that funding is directed towards sustainable infrastructure projects and away from carbon-intensive infrastructure.
The report encourages engineering firms, consultants, academic institutions, and the broader infrastructure community to collaborate with the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) in sharing successful project examples. It concludes that the infrastructure community is critical in bridging the substantial global infrastructure funding gap and achieving the net-zero emissions objective. The report suggests short- to medium-term actions to narrow this gap, such as increasing carbon pricing and fuel taxes and enhancing transparency in taxonomy rules. It also recommends establishing a universally recognized grading system to assess the sustainability of infrastructure projects and defining clear pathways to net-zero emissions for each country. Furthermore, the document proposes the creation of a global funding platform to match funding opportunities for infrastructure projects in emerging economies and enhance their governance capabilities and confidence. This has become relevant as advanced nations are yet to provide the USD 100 billion of annual assistance to emerging economies agreed at the 2015 Paris Agreement. Quiet recently during the Africa Climate Week in Nairobi, it was estimated according to the African Development Bank (AFDB) that Africa only receives 3% of the global finance meanwhile Africa accounts for less than 4% of the global gas emissions with the Global North emitting about 90%.
It is anticipated that creating a global funding platform will help enable emerging nations to have access to funds to invest in their sustainable infrastructure. This will in turn accelerate the most impactful projects, thereby contributing to closing the sustainable infrastructure gap required to hit net zero targets. Cumulatively, these recommendations aim to address the sustainability challenges faced by the infrastructure sector and achieve net zero.
