G20 and BRICS Update #21 - Bulldozing Consensus on (Infrastructure) Investment

The G20 is to launch a Global Infrastructure Initiative at its November Summit in Brisbane. There is a "bulldozing" consensus between the G7, the G20 and the BRICS about the model of this initiative: 1. mobilizing private capital and mix it with public finance (blending) in 2. large scale Public Private Partnerships, not as stand alone projects but 3. pooling them in larger portfolios (from retail to wholesale) to diminish the risk of non-performing projects and to attract capital from pension funds and other institutional investors. There exist no binding environmental and social safeguards. In particular with view of the upcoming post 2015 development agenda combining poverty alleviation and sustainable development goals, this seems to be quite a hot mix, also in regard of sovereign debt prevention. This NL issue investigates these policies and potential repercussions.

There is also information about the BRICS Bank and an analysis about what the rise of the BRICS and the emergence of a multipolar global order means for alternative development policy space.