At the third international forum on China’s Belt and Road initiative, UN Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized the necessity to convert the infrastructure crisis in developing countries into a chance. He indicated that 75% of the infrastructure the world will need by the middle of the century has not yet been constructed.
Guterres appealed to leaders to make sure that the projects provide green, sustainable infrastructure to serve both people and ecosystems, while abandoning unsuccessful development models. He put forward a Climate Solidarity Pact and an Acceleration Agenda to compel major emitters to cut their greenhouse gas emissions and double adaptation finance by 2025. He also appealed for an end to the licensing of new oil and gas projects, abolishing fossil fuel subsidies, and abandoning coal by 2040. The Green Silk Road, he noted, can be a critical part of the process to speed up a fair, equitable and just energy transition.