Infrastructures are at the very heart of economic and social development. They provide the foundations for virtually all modern-day economic activity, constitute a major economic sector in their own right, and contribute importantly to raising living standards and the quality of life. However, infrastructures also have less desirable consequences. To name but a few – more roads may mean more traffic and more noise, power plants may add considerably to greenhouse gas emissions, and dams may entail the destruction of large areas of countryside and the displacement of population.

Over the past 35 years investment in modern telecommunications infrastructure in the OECD area has generated significant economic growth. It has widened access for consumers and business to communications of all kinds while making significant reductions in transaction costs.

The adequacy, quality and reliability of grid-based electricity supply are of crucial importance to economic development and growth. Large amounts of investment will be needed in the coming decades to meet the increase in demand for both the quantity and quality of electricity services, as well as to maintain and replace existing infrastructure that will be retired. Just how much investment will be needed and how much will actually be forthcoming will depend on a range of factors, including macroeconomic and population trends, prices, government policies, technology, and availability of capital.

The key drivers of road transport infrastructure requirements are: a) the current existing stock of road infrastructure, as measured by asset value; and b) GDP growth, which reflects population growth and per capita income growth. Other factors are considered to have marginal impact around a base-case forecast determined by these economic factors for road transport.

Water is like no other commodity, excepting food, in that it is essential to human life. The greatest challenges facing us relate to the conditions in which we live, how we are nourished and sheltered. Water is a central issue in a world that is increasingly urbanised and has a rising population to feed and seemingly ever increasing risks.