China’s Belt and Road Initiative has yet to yield any formal commitments to promote gender equity. As its competitors move ahead, Beijing must begin closing the BRI’s gender gap to achieve its development goals.
Drawing from academic literature, evaluations, and technical consultations, this report analyses human rights and environmental impacts at the project and macroeconomic level to give recommendations on how to mitigate the potential risks infrastructure investment can pose for achieving equality, human rights, and the environmental sustainability.
A new report by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) leverages data from the Reconnecting Asia project to explore the potential human impacts of mega-infrastructure. With Asia’s infrastructure needs estimated to exceed $26 trillion through 2030, the region is racing to fill the gap with massive connectivity plans, sometimes involving multiple mega-projects across vast areas. But have regional players fully considered the potential challenges that these projects pose for upholding human rights? This OHCHR report explores that important question and its implications for policymakers around the globe.