Reporter: At a meeting at G20 headquarters in Brasília, the Infrastructure Working Group established priorities for countries and cities, especially poor nations and those in the Global South, to face challenges in the region. By focusing on financing and poverty reduction, the group highlighted infrastructure as a key element in moving towards a more equitable future.
Working Group Coordinator Marden Barboza presented the priorities that are to shape the document Brasil is going to present at the G20 Summit of Heads of State in November, in Rio de Janeiro.
Marden Barboza: It’s important to highlight that these priorities are set against the backdrop of the Brazilian presidency’s priorities. The first priority we chose was financing climate-resilient infrastructure; the second is infrastructure and poverty reduction. The third topic that we chose is mitigating exchange rate risks in financing infrastructure projects. The fourth topic is cross-border integration—and in the latter we are also exploring best practices, best experiences, and how we may better develop border infrastructure.
Reporter: According to the coordinator, there are also strategies in place to make infrastructure more resilient through practical actions to reduce the impacts of climate change. Investments in infrastructure are capable of impacting poverty reduction, of correcting market failures, and of promoting well-being in regions that are most in need.
Marden Barboza also said that improvements to infrastructure are expected to boost economic growth. If they are to effectively contribute to poverty reduction, he said, infrastructure services must be available to all citizens, regardless of income.
Marden Barboza: We are currently analyzing how countries can invest more and better in infrastructure to serve the neediest populations.
Reporter: Under Brasil's leadership, the G20 is an important opportunity for the country to present topics that are of strategic interest to the world, and to thus have an impact on other nations.
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