October 26, 2021—The U.S. State Department, along with the governments of Japan, Australia, and the OECD, are developing criteria and standards for evaluating global infrastructure projects.
The Blue Dot Network, as it is known, is a voluntary reporting program meant to encourage private-sector financing in infrastructure projects that align with Paris Agreement climate goals.
“Think of it as a Good-Housekeeping certificate,” said Jose W. Fernandez, a State Department head of the Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment branch. “It’s designed to enable investors to more easily identify and certify investment-worthy projects.”
A Globally Recognized Symbol
Fernandez said a goal of the certification is to attract financers into worthwhile projects. He spoke with Stuart Holliday, CEO of the Meridian International Center, at the center’s annual conference on Friday.
“It’ll be a way to bring stakeholders into the project by basically showing them that these are worthy, high quality projects,” Fernandez said. “We believe, and I’ve seen this in the private sector, it’ll be easier to attract investment this way and also that the financing may be cheaper.”
Shining A Light On Infrastructure Projects
Earlier this month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with initiative partners at an event held by the OECD. He did not mention China’s Belt And Road Initiative, which spans a large portion of the Earth.
However, it seems that a clear goal is to support alternative public-private projects and shine a light on the sector.
What Blinken did said is that the Blue Dot Network is meant to bring more transparency to global infrastructure.
“Too often infrastructure is not built with sustainability, resilience or climate in mind. It’s less safe and less durable,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said earlier in the month at an event held by the OECD. “Corruption is often a problem with big infrastructure projects. And we know that where corruption flourishes, labor rights, human rights and environmental protections are often ignored or violated.”
For more information on the Blue Dot certification, see the State Department information and the OECD. The public organizations are working on standards in line with goals set out by the G20.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2021 Patti Mohr